Reviews

The lasting impression of the show remains Merchant’s unparalleled vocal prowess and her grounded approach to putting her music out there for audiences. As always, there’s a quiet intensity to her performances, one that stems from the mature subject matter of the songs she sings.

[rating=9.00] A super group like The Delines only comes around so often. A collaboration between vocalist Amy Boone, the Decemberists’ Jenny Conlee-Drizos, Minus 5’s Tucker Jackson, Sean Oldham, Freddy Trujillo, and beloved songwriter and novelist Willy Vlautin of Richmond Fontaine, their new record Colfax wipes a finger through the thick layer of dust settled on […]

[rating=8.00] Nickel Creek co-founder Sean Watkins boasts a solid solo catalog of three prior albums, and the mournful All I Do Is Lie may be his best independent effort to date. Primarily a collection of gentle and accessible love songs, the album quietly addresses disharmony within dying relationships, examining the corrosion of ill-fated romances. Shifting […]

While the road to success is long for many independent artists, “Forget,” the first single from Home Video’s new album, indicates that the band is focused and on the right track.

[rating=7.oo] Despite a lack of what would be perceived as “commercial success” (ten years has passed since the release of the band’s timeless single “Wagon Wheel”) Old Crow Medicine Show continues to create original, unique music.  Their eclectic sound has been described as everything from blues to folk to country to roots rock to hillbilly […]

[rating=7.00] On his tenth album, Noise vs. Beauty, Lorin Ashton’s message to the public is hinted at through the title. In a recent fan Q&A, he discussed “the spectrum between highly opposing extremes like the noise of pop/mainstream EDM (which I feel alienated by) and the beauty of deep, meaningful music which stirs your soul.” Fittingly, this […]

If there’s only one thing Zach Braff can do right, it’s put together an amazing soundtrack, and Bon Iver’s sultry new ballad is the latest proof.

There was no celebration recognizing the fiftieth anniversary of Bob Dylan’s recording career in 2013, perhaps because The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration, released in a deluxe edition of DVD/Blu-ray & CD, simply couldn’t be surpassed. The stunning visuals and audio clarity of the recording match an redoubtable array of artists spanning ages and genres, all […]

[rating=9.00] Fans of Tim Easton who aren’t yet familiar with his side project Easton Stagger Phillips will want to catch up quickly. The trio’s second album Resolution Road is a fantastic collection of songs that will undoubtedly appeal to country, folk, pop and rock ears alike. Easton Stagger Phillips is made up of Easton, Leeroy […]

Hailed as pioneers of the alt-country/Americana sound, the Jayhawks emerged from Minneapolis’ mid-’80s scene with a soaring combination of folksy harmonies and power-pop melodies. The band’s status as a major influence, as well as that of being one of the best bands of its generation, are richly deserved. The July 7th release of expanded versions […]

[rating=8.00] “If you’re feeling overflowing, Throw your hands up to the sky; If your minds exploding, Grab yourself a seat – it’s time to ride.” – Pigeons Playing Ping Pong The jam band genre is thriving with the help of a new generation of talented and ambitious acts like Pigeons Playing Ping Pong.  Their newest […]

If you’ve never seen blues-rock powerhouse Patrick Sweany with a full band, make it a mission to do so as soon as possible. Often performing as a one-man band, playing instruments with every available limb, Sweany shines even brighter with this more multi-dimensional sound. When he played his set at Rockwood Music Hall in NYC […]

Red Frog Events third annual Firefly Music Festival kicked off Thursday, June 19th at the beautiful expanse of land known as The Woodlands at Dover Downs International Speedway in Dover, Delaware. An estimated 80,000 music fans of just about every demographic you can think of attended the event, up from 65,000 in attendance last year. […]

[rating=9.00] God bless Robert Plant! (For him, I guess that would be Odin or Pan.) The workingman’s Celt who burst on the rock scene as a grinning satyr has somehow managed to age gracefully as a performer. Embracing the limitations that time, moans, and smoke have placed on his voice, he has sought out musical […]

[rating=6.00] On  Mutineers, David Gray’s first release in four years, the problem is not that he has left the building, but rather that he is lost down a better forgotten corridor. With 2005’s Life in Slow Motion, English singer/songwriter David Gray released the album that his fellow countrymen in Coldplay should have recorded following their […]

Nikki Lane is the indie country chanteuse of the moment, and on the tail of the release of her latest record All or Nothing, she’s on a musical high. She took the stage at New York City’s Mercury Lounge on Sunday, June 22nd to a crowd that seemed to have filled the room in mere […]

It may come as a surprise to many that it’s taken Jeff Tweedy till 2014 to record a solo record, but evidently the time has come, as  his solo debut Sukierae is due in September. Sharing these new tunes with his legions of ever-loyal Wilco fans is clearly the objective of Tweedy’s current tour, which […]

[rating=8.00] As a means to simultaneously address their longevity as an ensemble (they just hit their thirtieth anniversary December of 2013) and the challenge facing a fundamentally improvisational unit recording in the confines of the studio, Phish began working on Fuego as a collective endeavor in composition. That original concept changed as Bob Ezrin (Alice […]

[rating=7.00] Upon first listen of Bad Suns’ full length debut Language & Perspective, one would think they were listening to something straight out of the Depeche Mode registry, but the Los Angeles natives (who seem to have a flare for everything good about 80’s new wave) are carving out a name for themselves, even if […]

Three musicians from seemingly different musical backgrounds get together to form a band that’s totally awesome and unlike anything they’ve ever done before. This is the best way to sum up Spanish Gold, the new project featuring My Morning Jacket drummer Patrick Hallahan, Dante Schwebel of Hacienda and City and Colour, and Adrian Quesada of […]