new release Archive
07 Jul 2018
Album Review: Diamonds and Whiskey — Dark Country Voodoo
The band name suggests an alt.country/Americana act, and while those labels aren’t too wide of the mark, there’s a harder, edgier and slightly more sinister feel to this music. The […]
06 Jul 2018
Fifty-word Reviews for July 2018, Part 1
For years now, I’ve engaged in an occasional series of reviews in which I limit myself to 100 words. The point isn’t at all to give short shrift to these […]
05 Jul 2018
David Wilcox: Local Hero
David Wilcox didn’t start his life in Western North Carolina, but once the singer-songwriter discovered the region, he knew he had found his home. Thirty-seven years and twenty-plus albums later, […]
04 Jul 2018
Album Review: Hearts Gone South — Little Things
In an era filled with twanged-up, Eagles-style lite rock passing as country, it’s bracingly refreshing to encounter an album of classic country such as Hearts Gone South’s latest, Little Things. […]
29 Jun 2018
Liner Notes News
I’ve been extraordinarily busy lately. After devoting a large chunk of 2017 to the writing of my first book, Reinventing Pink Floyd: From Syd Barrett to The Dark Side of […]
28 Jun 2018
Album Review: Gretchen’s Wheel — Black Box Theory
I’ve reviewed releases from Gretchen’s Wheel before. Gretchen’s Wheel is the professional name used by Lindsay Murray for her musical project. Largely a solo affair, Gretchen’s Wheel is Murray’s vehicle […]
27 Jun 2018
Album Review: Tashi Dorji & Tyler Damon — Leave No Trace: Live in St. Louis
By its very nature, instrumental music is challenging for both musician and listener. The listener has to lend greater concentration to the music, since the absence of lyrics makes the […]
23 Jun 2018
Album Review: Marty Thompson — Romantic Stories
In 2018, every album release has to have an angle, it seems. The unique selling proposition for Romantic Stories is that Thompson wrote all of its songs ion a ukulele. […]
23 Jun 2018
Album Review: Gideon King & City Blog — Upscale Madhouse
Sophisticated, jazzy pop is the order of the day on Upscale Madhouse, the latest album from Gideon King & City Blog. With a sound that instrumentally recalls Steely Dan, King’s […]
22 Jun 2018
Album Review: The Shadows of Knight — Alive in ’65
Sundazed and its affiliated imprints have been doing yeoman work of late, providing an astounding service to the history of rock. The label has unearthed live tapes of fabled garage-rock […]