Reviews

[rating=8.00] Few artists can take on multiple genres within an album and expect solid results. Joe Goldmark is one of those few.  Perhaps it’s because the Bay Area favorite splits the material between vocals and instrumental tracks, the latter serving as interludes, and invitations to the next kind of sound. In any case on Joe […]

“This is Jazz Fest – it doesn’t get much better than this!” So were the words of a music fan as she made her way towards the main Acura Stage, where artists such as Rod Stewart, Bonnie Raitt and an all-star tribute to the recently departed Fats Domino would perform during Day 2 of the […]

Listen up, Jazz Fest Day 2, you’ve got a lot of work ahead of you – because Day 1 is going to be hard to beat. For an opening day, the weather was picture perfect with a cool breeze. You couldn’t have asked for a better environment to spend a day walking around, eating some […]

Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real just completed what seems like the unthinkable from their perspective.  They took two weeks off.  The band has logged enough miles to match most artist’s entire year thus far in 2018, with visits to ten countries and three continents in just three months. Nelson and POTR kicked off […]

[rating=8.00] Van Morrison has rarely, if ever, sounded so good-natured as he does on his collaboration with Joey DeFrancesco. From the tongue-in-cheek cover photos to the Belfast Cowboy’s frequent chuckles at the end of tracks to his playful phrasing as he sings, the lighthearted atmosphere here is arguably even brighter than during his ever-so-sunny sojourn […]

The Mule never disappoints. The first set of the April 25th show at the NYCB Theatre at Westbury seemed like it might be a mellow one. Sure, Warren Haynes showed his usual guitar brilliance on “Railroad Boy” and “Thorazine Shuffle,” but once the instrumental “Sco-Mule” began, it seemed like this might be the usual raging […]

Hardcore lineups in 2018 don’t come much more stacked than the one that hit Austin, Texas, on Tuesday, April 24 at Barracuda. The buzz surrounding headliners Turnstile has been palpable, gracing magazine covers and receiving rave reviews, while Touche Amore has had a solid cult following of diehard fans for years and Culture Abuse is […]

In the latest Wannabe, artist Chris Prunckle offers his illustrated commentary on The Tree of Forgiveness, the long-awaited new album from legendary singer-songwriter John Prine, in his signature six-panel comic strip form. Click on the image for full resolution (best viewed on desktop):

[rating=8.00] Cary Brothers is not a sibling ensemble. In fact, as an individual, Brothers may be the most accomplished artist making music these days while still remaining all but unknown to the vast numbers of the listening public. His contribution to the Garden State soundtrack and abundant contributions to film and television scores have earned […]

[rating=7.00] As you listen to New England-based singer-songwriter Hayley Sabella’s second full-length album, Forgive the Birds, quiet passages transform to the sounds of wind, rain, or even ocean waves. Her sound slithers between ethereal folk music to Americana, often depending on her accompaniment. It’s rather easy to hear how she wrote these ten tunes alone on her vintage hollow body Gibson but the songs have clever […]