vinyl Archive
19 Aug 2021
Album Review: Greg Antista and the Lonely Streets — Under the Neon Heat
When we last checked in with this South California rock quartet about two years ago, they had released their debut album, Shake, Stomp and Stumble. As I wrote at the time, that record featured “concise, taut songs played with verve and conviction.” Two years and a world pandemic later, one thing has changed: guitarist Jessica
18 Aug 2021
Nina Simone is #trending in 2021
Nina Simone is trending in 2021. Nearly two decades after her death, the Tryon, N.C.-born musician, vocalist songwriter and civil rights activist is as popular as ever. Just over a year ago, the Nina Simone Project launched a fundraising campaign to establish an official Nina Simone Archive in Tryon. In June of this year, a
04 Aug 2021
Thirty Years with the Mother Hips (Part Three)
Continued from Part Two … “We started in Wisconsin and ended near San Francisco at the Shoreline Amphitheater,” Tim Bluhm recalls. “And by that time, we were headlining the side stage. It was a big moment for us: a lot of people say that’s the first time they saw us.” In 2007, around the time
03 Aug 2021
Thirty Years with the Mother Hips (Part Two)
Continued from Part One … Tim Bluhm concedes that the Mother Hips fan base isn’t as large as the following of some other groups, but he believes that their followers’ loyalty more than makes up for their numbers. “They’re very dedicated to what we do,” he says. But that doesn’t mean that they accept everything
02 Aug 2021
Thirty Years with the Mother Hips (Part One)
Popular West Coast Band reissues its entire studio catalog, on vinyl for the first time Some artists have made a successful career out of establishing a signature sound and then sticking with it over the course of their entire catalog. Other artists take a potentially riskier approach, following their muse wherever it takes them. The
16 Jul 2021
Album Review: True Loves — Sunday Afternoon
If you have an appreciation for – heck, even an awareness of – the sort of kinetic soul jazz that formed the musical component of late ‘60s and early ‘70s crime film and television, then ohmygoodgracious do I have something to tell you about. True Loves’ Sunday Afternoon is a 21st century answer to that
14 Jul 2021
Album Review: WRD — The Hit
Far more often than not, the term supergroup is hype. Even when it isn’t use of the word can create unfairly high expectations. The members of Blind Faith understood that, and named their (short lived) group thusly. But in the world of jazz, a different sensibility took hold long ago. Artists receive co-billing, and get
13 Jul 2021
Album Review: Trees Speak — PostHuman
Krautrock and its variants are not for all tastes. To some listeners, the idea of minimalism combined with an insistent beat is a recipe for migraine. But for those who appreciate the droning yet oddly exploratory vibe of the style, riches await beyond those well-worn Neu! LPs. PostHuman is the newest release from Trees Speak,
12 Jul 2021
Album Review: The Eyebrows – Fight/Flight
Listeners wandering into Fight/Flight expecting some sort of slavishly imitative power pop outing a la [any of hundreds of current artists; pick one] will find themselves in for a shock. The Eyebrows’ latest album starts out with a blast, the yelpy “Have Mercy, Lose Control.” And things never let go. The opening tune plays with
11 Jul 2021
Album Review: Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal – Natural Born Hustler
The Color Red label has quickly and effectively established itself as the home of current-day retro-soul/boogaloo, issued on good ol’ vinyl. Some of the artists – Color Red’s founder Eddie Roberts, for example – are well-known. Others, like Josh Hoyer, less so. The thing is, Color Red’s track record is such that I’m more than