Show Reviews

Acoustic Syndicate: Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro, NC 1/28/12

Bryan Rodgers February 8, 2012 No Comments

Armed with an album’s worth of new material for the first time in nearly a decade, Acoustic Syndicate returned to Carrboro, NC’s Cat’s Cradle for a Saturday night show that turned out to be a showcase for new songs instead of the usual barrage of crowd favorites. The McMurry clan (Steve, Bryon, and Fitz), along with bassist Jay Sanders and Billy Cardine on dobro, are newly committed to making music again, and it’s invigorating for the band and their fans to hear freshly minted songs emanating from the stage.

Tift Merritt: City Winery, New York, NY 01/01/2012

Peter Zimmerman February 7, 2012 No Comments

The audience at City Winery drank in the seventy minutes Tift spent on stage, and by the end were buoyed by the chance to witness an artist in motion– continuing on her journey and leaving all of us a travelogue to follow.

Soul Rebels Brass Band: Brooklyn Bowl, Brooklyn NY 2.3.12

Shawn Donohue February 7, 2012 No Comments

A Friday night just weeks before Mardi Gras saw the New Orleans bouncing brass boys cruise up north on their nationwide tour to promote their newest release Unlock Your Mind.

Portlandia: The Tour: Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY 01/21/2012

Jeff Demars February 6, 2012 No Comments

The result of Armisen and Brownstein's chemistry is a spirited and overall hilarious performance by two talented entertainers who enjoy satirical comedy and each other’s company almost as much as their audience does.

Alabama Shakes: The Independent, San Francisco, CA 01/26/2012

Jeffrey Taylor February 1, 2012 No Comments

Bottom line, Howard has a one-of-a-kind voice that we’ll be hearing for years to come if the band’s songwriting remains strong.

Anna Rose : Tammany Hall, New York, NY 1/13/12

William Helms January 26, 2012 No Comments

When I first saw Anna Rose open for local legend, Edward Rogers sometime last year, she had more of a pop singer/songwriter sound. But in that year Anna Rose has gone through a remarkable transformation sonically and visually – still diminutive (which would never change), she’s noticeably mature, wiser and womanly. In other words, she’s confident, knowing, brash, even playful but still awkward.

Jack’s Mannequin: Beaumont Club, Kansas City, MO 1/20/12

Sarah Legg January 26, 2012 No Comments

After more than a decade, dozens of releases, a personal battle with cancer and touring relentlessly, Andrew McMahon should be ready to settle down as a retiree on a Florida golf course at the ripe old age of 29. But he’s not. His band, Jack’s Mannequin, brought its unrivaled energy to Kansas City’s Beaumont Club support of its latest album People and Things.

They Might Be Giants: The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA 11/14/2011

Jeffrey Taylor January 23, 2012 No Comments

Anyone who goes to a They Might Be Giants show will be given a good lesson in not just how to be a good act, but how to be a class act.

Keller Williams Kids Show: The National, Richmond, VA 12/29/11

Nathaniel Elliott January 20, 2012 No Comments

Keller Williams doesn’t sit still for long. The undisputed king of the one-man-show is no one-trick artist. So it came as no surprise when he issued a children’s album, Kids, earlier this year. His current tour includes several matinees for kids which highlight songs from that album.

Gregg Allman Band/Jaimoe

Leslie Michele Derrough January 18, 2012 No Comments

What a difference a year makes. When Gregg Allman brought his band to Biloxi last year he was fully recovered from a 2010 liver transplant and with a brand new rip-roaring blues album hot off the presses. And his guitar player Scott Sharrard was his secret weapon. One year later, Gregg and his band are smoking hot, playing with a youthful vitality that was just a wee-bit lacking before, and Sharrard is no longer a secret.