2012

Scott Holiday of Rival Sons (INTERVIEW)

Leslie Michele Derrough December 17, 2012 No Comments

Rival Sons is a band on the borderline of a breakthrough here in the States. Yet across the pond they have already been embraced, kissed and welcomed aboard the rock & roll freight train. With the recent issue of Classic Rock magazine pondering on their cover whether they just may be the hottest band in rock, this California quartet are reveling in some big time British love. Their most recent album, Head Down, is afire with psychedelic soul based rock & roll tunes that have become all too uncommon in an industry that swears they love rock & roll yet continues to prop other unworthy genres high on their charts.

Ari Hest

Shane Handler December 17, 2012 No Comments

Ari Hest doesn’t like to think of himself as a veteran pop rocker but after seven full length albums he admits, “Weird to call myself that, but I suppose it fits.” From his six albums, three EPs, and "52" in 2008, an innovative project whereby he wrote, recorded and released a new song every Monday for a full year, “prolific” might be an understatement when describing Hest.

Warren Haynes 24th Annual Christmas Jam: US Cellular Center, Asheville, NC 12/15/12

Bryan Rodgers December 17, 2012 No Comments

After a relatively low amount of guest sit-ins in 2011, the event returned to form this year. There was collaboration at every turn. The set-list became an article unto itself during the first hour of the show and grew into a monster by the end of the eight-hour affair. The Jam can unfold in countless ways, with a limitless amount of song possibilities, so it's engaging enough just to see what Haynes has concocted. Though the increasingly rare appearance by String Cheese Incident drew the most attention from the heavily partisan crowd, the entire night proved noteworthy, if not always riveting, and large portions were indicative of the unique magic the Christmas Jam fosters.