review Archive
17 Dec 2019
Album Review: Daystar — The Complete Recordings
It’s always tricky choosing a band name. I once had a group called the Buzztones; we played obscure ’60s garage-psych. But one day we discovered there was another Buzztones, and […]
16 Dec 2019
Neil Young is Here to Stay: the ‘Rusty’ Year of 1979
As the 1970s wound toward a close, Neil Young placed himself in a curious position. By that point he had been in the public eye as a musician for more […]
15 Dec 2019
Hundred-word Reviews for December 2019, #3
Here’s the final installment of the year (and the decade!) of my quick, condensed album reviews. Ten titles, 100 words each. Seven are new releases; the remaining three are archival […]
14 Dec 2019
Hundred-word Reviews for December 2019, #2
With the end of 2019 on the horizon, I figure now’s as good a time as any to bring things up to date with another batch of quick reviews. In […]
08 Dec 2019
Album Review: Bask — III
For a small city, Asheville is home to musicians representing a staggering array of musical styles. In an era that many see as post-album, post-rock and post-all other manner of […]
05 Dec 2019
Holiday Music for 2019
‘Tis the season for holiday music. It’s a genre that often gets a bad rap, for good reason: a lot of it is pretty dire. Though there are classics (like […]
04 Dec 2019
Hunger for the Dreams: ‘The Allman Brothers Band’ at 50
When the eponymous debut album by The Allman Brothers Band appeared on record store shelves in November 1969, record buyers may have thought they were discovering a new group. To […]
03 Dec 2019
Hundred-word Reviews for December 2019, #1
As 2019 heads toward its end, there’s time for one more house-cleaning set of quick reviews. Here’s a look at notable new releases in jazz, blues rock and even country. […]
25 Nov 2019
So Bad They’re … Still Bad
Part of my role as a music journalist is to be a critic. While these days I focus more on features, interviews and essays, I still review quite a lot […]
23 Nov 2019
Weird of Scotland: Jack Bruce’s ‘Songs for a Tailor’ at 50
Sixties supergroup Cream had at least five things that made it special: guitarist Eric Clapton, drummer Ginger Baker and bassist-vocalist Jack Bruce were the three most obvious assets. But producer […]