Show Reviews

The 2020 return of Circles Around The Sun to Higher Ground on March 1st reaffirmed the distinctions of their music, in its original configuration and in the more accessible form as documented on their third studio album. Bassist Dan Horne’s subdued shout-out to the late Neal Casal as the group left the stage belied the […]

The third Innings Festival in Tempe held at the city’s Tempe Beach Park held over two days (February 29 and March 1st)  was a resounding success. Blending music and baseball’s spring training has been wildly accepted by Arizonans. The producers of Lollapalooza have a home run with this festival. The event had two stages dedicated […]

Buffalo, New York jam stalwarts moe. have been proudly moving along at a steady clip for thirty years. In that time, the band has had some brushes with mainstream success, garnering some radio play or perhaps a song featured in a commercial here or there. But mostly, they have maintained a devoted following of fans […]

Circles Around The Sun kicked off their latest tour at Baltimore’s 8×10 Club on February 27th to a packed house. The psychedelic rock-outfit, consisting of Adam MacDougall (keys), Mark Levy (drums) and Dan Horne (bass) were joined by guitarist Scott Metzger (RANA, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead) for a two-hour-plus show that honored the memory of […]

The San Francisco blues-rock outfit The Stone Foxes newest release Gold is an EP mixing modern sounds with overblown retro rock staples, all-around passionate vocals. Led by the brothers Koehler, Shannon and Spence tie their clear devotion to classic rock into full-blown, arena-ready jams.  The group has a long list of successes using their music […]

Part of his month-long US winter tour, Kamasi Washington played one night at Northampton’s Calvin Theater on February 22nd, with his eight-piece band, including drummers Tony Austin and Ronald Bruner Jr, Masayuki Hirano on keyboards and synthesizer, Ryan Portar on trombone, vocalist Patrice Quinn, Ben Williams on bass, and his dad Rickey Washington on flute/soprano […]

For just over two decades, Brooklyn-based musical collective Antibalas have been proudly waving the Afrobeat flag. What makes them such a unique act is that, instead of copying pioneers of the genre like Fela Kuti and simply taking a revivalist approach, they have expanded on it and forged a sound that is simultaneously faithful yet […]

Dweezil Zappa brought forth a searing concert of his father’s music to Tucson’s Rialto Theatre on February 19th. The show embraces the legacy of Frank Zappa’s 1969 Hot Rats album that was Frank Zappa’s first studio album released after the Mothers of Invention dissolved. The album was very jazz-influenced consisting of many instrumental solos and […]

The five-piece Drive-By Truckers pulled into New York City on Friday night February 21st to play a show at the recently renovated Webster Hall as they tour behind their excellent, politically motivated record, The Unraveling. The group seemed revved up walking out to the stage and while there was a clear focus on their new […]

February 19th at Rough Trade in Brooklyn was a night for straight-up rock and roll – no hip hop toss-ins, no pop sentiments, no funk bass lines; just unapologetic, in your face rock and roll.  The night started off with JJ Wilde and her band. Wilde is from Ontario, and at only 27, commands the […]

It’s always special when Lyle Lovett comes to town and he’s been to Tucson many times. Every show is different and that may account for the reason that many of his fans return repeatedly. This time at the Fox Theatre on February, 18th Lovett brought his Acoustic Group to the sold-out show. Lovett has been […]

They are two legendary members of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and GRAMMY Lifetime Achievement Award recipients, who continue to amaze and delight audiences. As founding members of Jefferson Airplane, Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady deserve their place in rock’s pantheon of greats – and that’s the pioneering psychedelic rock band that earned […]

Dr Dog performed to a sold-out crowd at Portland, Oregon’s Roseland Theater on Sunday, February 17th. Hailing from Philadelphia, the band is known for having a hard to categorize eclectic folk rock sound with a decidedly playful attitude. Would you call them Folk-Pop? Glam Rock? Dream Folk? In any case, they find themselves balancing something […]

New York City was lucky to get one of dreamy (in every sense of the word) singer-songwriter Alexandra Savior’s few US shows before she zips off to a brief European tour to promote her 2020 sophomore release The Archer.  Savior has a distinctive voice and most of her songs have a similar atmospheric sound and […]

Some of you have heard the buzz and some may have seen a premiere of the Grammy-nominated “Best Music Film,” Miles Davis; Birth of the Cool, the documentary directed and produced by renowned Stanley Nelson. This is the audio companion. The film’s U.S. broadcast premiere will be part of  “American Masters” the award-winning biography series […]

It’s been almost five years since Riley B. King passed away in May of 2015.  Be it his diabetes awareness ads or his early endorsement of Sirius satellite radio, B.B. always seemed to be the perfect ambassador for almost anything.  However, he truly was the last living of the great bluesmen, a title he has […]

ALO (Animal Liberation Orchestra) brought their Tour D’Amour winter run to the famed Troubadour nightclub in Los Angeles on February 15, 2020. The Brothers Comatose lead singer and guitarist Ben Morrison opened the show in support of his new solo album Old Technology. The two bands delighted a packed house with up-tempo tunes, impressive harmonies […]

Introducing their new songs from Up and Rolling, the North Mississippi Allstars brought their blues-influenced southern rock to the Teragram Ballroom in Los Angeles on February 13, 2020.  Luther and Cody Dickinson have been the heart of that band, who have been together for over 20 years. The brothers’ deep roots in hill country blues […]

Ani DiFranco has earned a long list of accomplishments that are described as a folk-punk-indie rock singer, one-woman show, poet, and feminist entrepreneur. She released her memoir, No Walls in a Recurring Dream, last May. The memoir covers how her career came to pass and how she helped launch a whole new generation of feminism […]

Every year around the time of Mardi Gras, Louisiana musicians tend to hit the road. Besides bringing the festivities to their fans, it serves as an opportune time to remind people what makes Louisiana’s musical culture so special. It was certainly a factor in the co-headlining tour of Marcia Ball and Sonny Landreth, who passed […]