Interviews

Since obtaining his first banjo nearly fifty years ago as a gift from his grandfather at the age of fifteen, few musicians have done more to champion the oft-misunderstood instrument than Béla Fleck. From bluegrass to country to jazz to classical to pop and even African tribal music, the five-string master has left an indelible […]

Cassius King is one of several musical projects for all who are involved, but it’s one that introduces new musical and thematic possibilities to create its own ethos. Field Trip is the first full-length album delivered by Cassius King and is currently available digitally with vinyl on preorder from Nomad Eel Records, who are also […]

Hard Rock New Jersey-based trio Shred Flintstone have been laying some excellent foundations in original music with some EPs and their first full-length album, They’re Not There, and now their second LP is going to be arriving on September 3rd. The sounds behind the album are varied and dig deep into Rock history showing off […]

In a career spanning more than forty years so far, Lydia Lunch has taken on many roles: musician, writer, spoken word poet, self-empowerment speaker, podcaster, and actress, just to name a few. Through it all, she’s been an unwavering countercultural voice, using her art as a platform for her outspoken take on a wide range […]

Foghat levelled up in the American mainstream when they released their first live album in 1977, and captured the zeitgeist of interest in live show recordings being released for fan enjoyment at that time. Not only that, but it became their biggest selling album. In the many years since then, both before and after the […]

Robert Randolph is an artist who needs no introduction. Along with his Family Band, the eclectic and massively talented pedal steel player has garnered numerous accolades for his scorching style of music that draws on soul, gospel, funk, blues and rock and roll. In normal times, Randolph spends much of his year on the road, […]

In the 1980s, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Doug “Cosmo” Clifford undertook a number of substantial musical experiments, both solo and in collaboration. One of them was recording with various musicians as songwriters, vocalist, and drummer at his home studio near Lake Tahoe, which was unearthed and released in 2020 as Magic Window. Now, still exploring “Cosmo’s […]

David Duchovny is a modern-day Renaissance Man, something that was never really in his plans. He was an academic and a jock who eventually pursued acting as a way to live inside literary characters. But life has a way of opening doors to opportunities you may not have imagined at fifteen or twenty-two or even […]

James McMurtry speaks fluidly through his songs, talking to a generation of hard-working, humble, and gritty Americans. The lessons learned in this life aren’t always easy, often they are hard and very painful; situations and appearances stripped of both fancified bullshit and vanity of self. McMurtry, the son of the late novelist Larry McMurtry, is […]

The pandemic has impacted every area of life, particularly for musicians, but Ian Jones was on an interesting creative path just before those events with the recording of a new album, Results Not Typical and major touring bookings. Thankfully, that’s a path he’s been able to forge ahead with, building up his band, The Living […]

It’s not unusual for a musician to have some other job. After all, everyone has bills to pay. Still, while it’s not unusual for a musician to have another job, you don’t see many of them listed as singer-songwriter-iron worker. Erik Shicotte might be the only one in that particular category. His “regular” job entails […]

For Zach Myers and Brent Smith of Shinedown, doing a duo project was a very natural thing. But making an album came somewhat out of the blue when vocalist Smith blurted out one night at a concert that he and guitarist Myers were going to record some songs together. Catching Myers by surprise, the idea […]

Mary Gauthier is an inspiration. Having built careers in two of the most challenging professions to break into: a working songwriter and now a published author, Mary’s tale is epic. Forged in real, hilarious, fucked up, and perfectly vulnerable experiences, Gauthier’s ability to draw parallels and weave memories is beyond impressive. She came into songwriting […]

The pioneering Electronic band Information Society is making a foray into new technological possibilities by teaming up with THX to present their upcoming album ODDfellows in multiple sound formats, including THX Spatial Audio, arriving August 6th. The effect of this technique on the listener is to make it sound like the drummer is behind the […]

The first thing you notice about Jerry Douglas is that he is a master on the dobro. The second thing is his laugh. It’s big and he does it often. Simply listening to him tell stories will make your abs hurt for a week because you’ve laughed so much. He’s like the cousin you always […]

Mayako XO’s full-length album XO has recently come to vinyl from the label Post Present Medium, and her collaboration with another LA-based band, Behavior, has also recently been released as a digital LP, Free World. While XO was recorded before the impact of the pandemic, Free World was created through the pandemic period, adapting to […]

A songwriter’s songwriter: Hiss Golden Messenger is armed with a voice to permeate the fabric of existence, a quiver soft and subtle, directed into a radiant ovation of happenstance and aural spirituality. M.C. Taylor is a heavy-hitting tunesmith from North Carolina with a tactile approach to songcraft and spacious arrangement, who on his ninth studio […]

Songwriters are our gateways to the subconscious. They provide the words and feelings for all of our emotions when we can’t find the words to express them on our own. Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell and Johnny Cash were angels of mercy when we felt anger, sadness, exhilaration, frustration, loneliness and pure joy. Without them, we […]

Venice Beach duo Movie Club released their first LP in 2020 with Black Flamingo, but this August 10th, they’ll be bringing us their new EP, Fangtooth, which marks their fifth studio release since they started playing together in 2018. The instrumental Rock music that they create is compellingly moody, often strongly suggesting narrative elements, which […]

Nine years between albums can feel like an eternity in the music world. It might lead you to believe there will be no more albums at all. But bands have a sneaky way of coming back to life when you least expect it and sometimes they actually knock your socks off with what they give […]