Archive: 2025

Charlie Musselwhite has issued thirty-some albums during his lengthy career, and none may be more potent than his last two. 2022’s Mississippi Son was a flashpoint of creativity, within which the mix of originals and covers illuminated the Mississippi native’s well-developed skills as a songwriter, singer, bandleader, and harp player. A more low-key outing on Forty Below Records, Look […]

Collective Fear is an alternative rock band based in Los Angeles, CA. Mike Guerard serves as the primary songwriter and instrumentalist. The act is a hard-hitting yet accessible fusion of alternative music, ranging from synthpop and electro to 80s-inspired post-punk and shoegaze. Founded in Boston, MA, from the boredom of isolation and the desire to […]

BlackLiq is a songwriter, radio host, author, teacher in public and private schools, juvenile detention facilities, and universities, and TEDtalk speaker. He first collaborated with producer Dub Sonata on a 7″ in 2023 before working on their new collaborative album, Much Given, Much Tested. The LP is available now on olive green vinyl through Bandcamp.  […]

Drawing from a wide range of influences, including everything from hardcore to honky-tonk, singer-songwriter Pat Hatt crafts his own brand of Americana with songs that give listeners a sense of heartfelt humility and grit. After driving cross-country to begin a new chapter of his life on the west coast, Hatt was inspired by the awe […]

Austin, Texas quartet Gentlemen Rogues celebrate aggressive guitar pop anthems — bearing the influences of Superchunk, The Replacements, Superdrag, and similar visionaries — and have been gaining momentum and increased attention. Since their debut in 2011, the band — Danny Dunlap (guitar/vocals), Josh Power (drums), Dave Hawkins (bass, vocals), and John Christoffel (guitar) — have […]

As soon as I discovered plinko, the board’s rows of tiny pegs felt like a fast track for pocket-sized suspense. Drop after drop, the ball bounces in ways no skill can predict, and that clean randomness turns spare minutes into pocket-change drama. The thrill climbs higher when the screen shows a single phrase—plinko ball real […]

Pennywise is one of the more prolific bands to emerge from California’s punk scene, and they arrived in the genre in the nick of time. The band formed in 1988 around songwriter/vocalist Jim Lindberg, guitarist Fletcher Dragge, drummer Byron McMackin, and bassist Jason Thrisk. At the time, hardcore punk seemed to be on its way […]

The debut full-length album Blest from Brooklyn-based artist Yuno finds him expanding the scope of his sound, embracing pop grandiosity and exploring vocal styles. Yuno’s musical journey finds him unrestricted by genre or style as he evolves.  His 2018 EP Moodie (also on Sub Pop) found him dealing with a traumatic breakup. On Blest, he is back exploring the world, moving […]

On May 12th, Boston welcomed Larkin Poe, comprised of The Lovell Sisters, for another round of Georgia-blues influenced rock and roll at the historic Wilbur Theatre. Touring in support of their latest sonic tapestry ‘Bloom’, Rebecca and Megan stepped onto the stage, bathed in a warm, inviting glow, ready to unfurl their unique brand of […]

Robin Trower’s self-designed cover art for Come And Find Me is pretty similar to the graphics of his predecessors in recent years. Still, there’s an edge to the music on this Provogue release that’s quite distinct from the more insinuating likes of 2023’s Joyful Sky or the previous year’s No More Worlds To Conquer.  The latent aggression in tracks such […]

Two-plus decades ago, not long after the release of 2002’s stellar Walking In A Straight Line, North Carolina’s The Mayflies USA, puzzlingly called it a day, despite growing buzz and their best reviews to date. Twenty years later, they realized they still had a little something left in the tank. And as if they’re trying […]

The VOV VOV! project came to life between March and April 2023 in Florence, founded by three band members: Giulio (drums), Pier Paolo (guitar), and Francesca (vocals and keyboard). Their first tracks emerged from improvisation sessions in the rehearsal room or melodic ideas that evolved through mutual influence.  This workflow remains a defining feature even […]

Following the success of their album Waves with its four million cumulative streams, Pale Grey now looks to the future with their third album, It Feels Like I Always Knew You, a work deeply aware of the world’s turmoil and the challenges of our time.. Emerging from the highlands of Belgium, nestled between eternal forests […]

Charming Disaster are releasing their seventh full-length record, titled The Double, on May 16th. They will also be releasing the record in a special 2-disc package that includes their 2024 compilation, Time Ghost, which collects their many singles over the past ten years. The songs created by Ellia Bisker and Jeff Morris span a number […]

Rounding out our salute to Primus this week, part of what has made them such a distinctive and entertaining band over the years is that they have a world-class weirdo behind the mic and bass. And we mean that affectionately, of course, as Les Claypool’s quirky eccentricities are what make Primus, well, Primus.  There have […]

Singer, songwriter, and producer Cautious Clay has become mysterious in the modern music pantheon. His list of songwriting/producing credits is brimming with A-listers, and each addition’s solo discography is becoming more impressive and expansive. What started as an earnest career for an R&B hopeful quickly became a colorful exploration of the human experience set to […]

Two female, redheaded raspy blues vocalists from Texas come to mind. One is practically immortal, Janis Joplin. Yet another Texan has been ripping bluesy guitar licks and belting out the blues vocally for over three decades. She is Carolyn Wonderland, who was often compared to Joplin early in her career for her raw, powerful vocals. As […]

On the heels of a sold-out tour, an acclaimed third studio album, Middle, and his late-night television debut, Jesse Welles announces his “Meet You In The Middle” tour of the United States and the EU/UK. Tickets for his previous tour sold out immediately and, on this tour, Welles will perform in cities including Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, […]

Boston DIY stalwarts Pile have announced that their ninth album, Sunshine and Balance Beams, their first release with Chicago’s esteemed Sooper Records, will be out August 15. On Sunshine and Balance Beams, the band pushes into new sonic territory, enlisting engineer Miranda Serra (Kal Marks, Kira McSpice), mixer Seth Manchester (Model/Actriz, The Hotelier, Big Brave) and mastering engineer Matt […]