new release Archive
03 Aug 2017
Christopher Paul Stelling: Embracing the Unknown
Christopher Paul Stelling is a singer-songwriter; he doesn’t include an ability to predict the future among his skills. Yet unlike some of the most respected pollsters, the seismic political changes […]
02 Aug 2017
Skunk Ruckus: Disrupting the Old-time Vibe
Nearly everything about Asheville-based band Skunk Ruckus is suffused with humor. But the band is very serious about its music. The inherent tension between those two realities is part of […]
01 Aug 2017
Samantha Fish’s Soul/R&B Side Trip
Kansas City musician and vocalist Samantha Fish made a name for herself as one of relatively few female blues guitarists. She prefers to be measured on her own merits rather […]
27 Jul 2017
Album Mini-review: Heather Trost — Agistri
File next to: Beach House, Françoise Hardy There’s a cinematic sweep to the song cycle that is Heather Trost’s Agistri. Drawing from wildly diverse stylistic inspirations, this collection of eight […]
27 Jul 2017
Album Mini-review: Raging Fire — These Teeth are Sharp
File next to: X, Lone Justice After toiling in relative obscurity though the 1980s, Nashville country-punkers Raging Fire threw in the towel. But the under-appreciated quarter left behind some superb […]
26 Jul 2017
Album Mini-review: TajMo
File next to: BB King, Ry Cooder The cover of John and Yoko’s Two Virgins features a Paul McCartney quote: “When two great saints meet, it is a humbling experience.” […]
26 Jul 2017
Album Mini-review: Screamfeeder — Pop Guilt
File next to: Belly, Hoodoo Gurus While the name of this Australian quartet might suggest something bratty and noisy, the truth lies elsewhere. Screamfeeder is an endlessly inventive purveyor of […]
25 Jul 2017
Album Mini-review: Chris Price — Stop Talking
File next to: Jellyfish, Wings After spending his time on production duties for obscure-yet-revered artists like Emitt Rhodes and Linda Perhacs, Chris Price has finally refocused his attention on his […]
25 Jul 2017
Album Mini-review: Russ Tolman — Compass & Map
File next to: Dream Syndicate, late-period Byrds True West swam in the rootsier, countrified end of the 1980s “paisley underground” pool. Once that band folded, founder-guitarist-singer Russ Tolman began a […]
24 Jul 2017
Album Review: Cowbell — Haunted Heart
File next to: Flat Duo-jets, The Cramps, Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes Discerning listeners may turn a skeptical ear toward news of yet another guitar-and-drum duo. There’s a strong […]