vinyl Archive
20 May 2024
Teenage Underground: The Beginnings of The Red Rockers (Part 1 of 3)
New Orleans (by way of San Francisco) foursome The Red Rockers scored a hit in in 1983 with “China,” a single from the band’s second LP Good as Gold. Reflecting […]
20 Apr 2024
Album Review: The Westbound Sound
Armen Boladian’s Westbound Records was an important force in the funk and r&b scene of the late ‘60s and early 1970s. With Funkadelic as its anchor artist, the label turned […]
04 Apr 2024
Album Review: Mushroom – Messages from the Spliff Bunker
A kind of indie-underground supergroup, Mushroom is at its core the brainchild of Pat Thomas. Combining avant-garde, free jazz and krautrock influences and textures might – to the causal listener, […]
03 Apr 2024
Album Review – R.E.M. – Up
As I’ve noted previously, while I was a major fan of R.E.M. in the band’s early (I.R.S. era) days, by the CD era, I began to tune out. Again, it […]
23 Feb 2024
Album Review: Eddie Roberts & The Lucky Strokes
Eddie Roberts can pretty much do it all. Guitarist in The New Mastersounds, he’s also a producer and label owner, applying his gifts to the work of other artists on […]
22 Feb 2024
Album Review: 3 – Rockin’ the Ritz
As I and many others have often pointed out, the 1980s were a tough time for progressive rock bands. A few thrived: King Crimson, in its own fashion, was among […]
21 Feb 2024
Album Review: def.fo — Eternity
Shimmering modern psychedelia with a tuneful foundation is at the core of Eternity, the new album from def.fo aka Tom Powell. His liquid, phase-shifted guitars and laid-back vocals are part […]
20 Feb 2024
Album Review: Neon Leon – 1979-84 Singles Collection
Here’s one out of left field. I’ll admit a complete lack of knowledge of Neon Leon, but even a few seconds into “Rock ‘N Roll is Alive,” the opening track […]
19 Feb 2024
Album Review: Eamon Ra – Dunce Witch Snowman
When we last checked in on the music of Eamon Ra, it was to review his 2020 album Meat Bones Chemicals Electricity. Even though the album title makes me think […]
18 Feb 2024
Album Review: Real People, Great Radio Vol. 2
Indie by definition and indie in spirit, Real People, Great Radio Vol. 2 is a compilation featuring Asheville musical artists. Curated, sponsored and put together by community radio station AshevilleFM […]