Album Reviews

Fans of bluegrass and roots rock will find Blanche as a Radiohead to their collection, making the modern and exciting out of something familiar, without leaving the listener alienated. If Loretta Lynn, who recently won new fans with Van Lear Rose can do it, the more youthful Blanche might be next.

Midnight baby deep cerulean sky powder ocean navy. Not a rambling run-on that needs to be spell and grammar checked immediately to get that nagging green line to disappear- colors. Shades of blue to be precise, all of which can be found in varying hues on the latest Vassar Clements release, the aptly titled Livin

Noticeably absent from the Austin-based singer-songwriter

New Orleans blues guitarist, Mike DeLaCerda, has spent much of his career behind the scenes. For years he ran sound and performed roadie functions for such greats as Stevie Ray Vaughn and B.B. King. But Mike didn

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Our Shadows Will Remain is Joseph Arthur

Mixing a blend of rock, soul, R&B and even a little hip-hop thrown into the mix, the group has just released their fourth album, Ok To Go.

By the time you finish listening to A. C. Cotton

On Deceiver, Thile does it all, reinventing himself to the greatest degree; every note, word, and breath on the album comes from him.

The British four-piece Razorlight delivers so much run of the mill garage rock that even lead singer Johnny Borrel – despite his fervor – comes off as a second hand front man. Singing of blaze adventures such as

The buzz about Rilo Kiley being everybody

Le Tigre

A truly excellent album, There Will Be A Light does justice to the Blind Boys

In their short existence since being drawn together as a quartet at Montreal

Making a solid album is a difficult task for most jambands – Groovin

The feel of Cleveland’s music – a combination of Afro-Haitian rhythms mixed with jazz and acid rock – is best described as a drum-circle gone bonkers. Throw into the mix a myriad of flute, clarinet and electronic synth solos with Cleveland’s quirky guitar style and you have the ingredients that make up an avant-garde masterpiece.

Omaha, Nebraska is slowly turning into the new New York with a couple of bands emerging from the cornfields to make big names for themselves. The first to do so was the emo band Bright Eyes headed by Omaha native Conor Oberst. Now it’s the electro-dance group The Faint.

There is a fine musical line that exists between fusion and alternative rock, often blurred by a barrage of wailing guitars, electronics, and a pounding beat.

In today

You would never guess that the late Elliot Smith was battling his most inner demons during the recording of his now posthumous album, From A Basement On The Hill. But than again, Smith has always been profound at disguising his depression and cryptic visions through his catchy Beatlesque melodies.