More of my capsule commentaries.<\/p>\n
Louder Than Hell<\/b>
\nRemember the \u201880s? Louder Than Hell certainly does. Drawing from a variety of popular styles \u2013 hair metal, power balladry, mainstream rock, hard rock and more \u2013 Louder than hell takes concertgoers on a trip back to the days of teased hair, spandex and other sartorial affectations. More importantly, the group immerses listeners in a wash of sound that evokes warm memories of when FM radio and MTV ruled supreme, when men (and women) with loud guitars, chorus pedals and big voices roamed the Earth. Louder Than Hell describes its performances as \u201cnight[s] of decadence and debauchery,\u201d but the band\u2019s sound suggests something with a wider and more timeless appeal.<\/p>\n
Thee Sacred Souls<\/b> Tank and the Bangas<\/b> Futurebirds<\/b> Travis<\/b> More of my capsule commentaries. Louder Than Hell Remember the \u201880s? Louder Than Hell certainly does. Drawing from a variety of popular styles \u2013 hair metal, power balladry, mainstream rock, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28414,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-essay","cat-27-id","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28936","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28936"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28936\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28937,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28936\/revisions\/28937"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28936"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28936"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28936"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nChicano soul \u2013 sometimes called \u201cbrown-eyed soul\u201d \u2013 is a subgenre that gained traction in 1960s Los Angeles. Based in part on rhythm and blues and Latin rock, the style was a rich mix of styles that resonated with Latino communities and beyond. Chicano soul\u2019s heyday persisted into the 1970s, but the sweet soul sounds of the form never really went away. At the forefront of the current Chicano soul revival is San Diego\u2019s own Thee Sacred Souls. Launched in 2019, the trio \u2013 vocalist Josh Lane, bassist Salvador Samano and drummer\/guitarist Alejandro Garcia \u2013 made its recorded debut with \u201cCan I Call You Rose?\u201d a standout track that would feature on the group\u2019s self-titled debut album in 2022. Widely acclaimed by critics, Thee Sacred Souls<\/i> ended up on many best-of album lists for the year. The band\u2019s performance on NPR\u2019s influential Tiny Desk Concert<\/i> exposed Thee Sacred Souls to an even wider audience, Part of the roster of tastemaking Daptone Records, the group released a followup, Got a Story to Tell<\/i> in October. Joined by a powerhouse backing ensemble, the group is currently bringing its 21st<\/sup> sweet soul to audiences across America and beyond to Europe.<\/p>\n
\nOne of the most intriguing and compelling musical acts to gain national attention in recent years is Tank and the Bangas. The New Orleans-based group combines spoken word, hip-hop, gospel and other styles into a unique sound all its own. Tank and the Bangas won the prestigious Tiny Desk Contest in 2017, and has released three studio albums, a live set and no less than seven EPs to date. Their latest, the vinyl Floating<\/i> EP was released in November. Slam poet Tarriona \u201cTank\u201d Ball started the group in 2011; her approach of alternating sections of spoken word, freestyle rap and spirited vocals earned the group a strong following in New Orleans and beyond. A breath of fresh air on NOLA\u2019s musical scene, Tank and the Bangas offered up a modern alternative to the city\u2019s jazz traditions. With wide exposure has come even more recognition: the group scored Grammy nominations in 2020 (Best New Artist) and 2023 (Best Progressive R&B Album). They were nominated yet again in 2024 \u2013 this time for Best Global Music Performance \u2013 for \u201cTodo Colores,\u201d the group\u2019s collaboration with renowned trumpeter Ibrahim Maaalouf and Havana-based singer-songwriter Cimafunk.<\/p>\n
\nThere\u2019s a distinct Southern character to the music of Futurebirds. That shouldn\u2019t be surprising, as the group founded in 2010 comes from Georgia. In fact Futurebirds began in Athens, the college town that gave the world R.E.M., Pylon and B-52s. But Futurebirds doesn\u2019t quite sound like Southern rock, nor does it make edgy \u201ccollege rock\u201d (as it was once known). Instead, the group serves up an amiable, psychedelically-tinged brand of country rock. Yet even that label doesn\u2019t quite get to the heart of the band\u2019s musical style, one informed by pop and jam band culture. Futurebirds came on the scene with 2010\u2019s Hampton\u2019s Lullaby, but the group truly found its footing with its second full-length, 2013\u2019s Baba Yaga<\/i>. The large group \u2013 currently featuring seven members \u2013 has been quite prolific: since its start, Futurebirds has released two live albums, five studio full-lengths (2024\u2019s Easy Company<\/i> is the latest) and no less than eight EPs. Futurebirds is fond of collaboration as well: My Morning Jacket\u2019s Carl Broemel has worked with the group on select recordings.<\/p>\n
\nTaking their name from a character in the 1984 Western film Paris, Texas<\/em>, Travis is in fact a Scottish pop group. With a deeply melodic and accessible sound, the group cultivated a strong following in Great Britain. Their breakthrough album, 1999\u2019s The Man Who<\/i> went 9x Platinum in the UK. Nine of their ten studio albums top-tenned in the UK; the other won still made it to #20. Fronted by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Fran Healy, they\u2019re a critics\u2019 darling as well: Travis won three Brit Awards (the British Phonograph Industry’s GRAMMY equivalent) and three Q Awards. Somewhat mystifyingly, Travis\u2019 success in the U.S. has been more measured, though the band had a dedicated following here. To be sure, their music has all the hallmarks of surefire hits: emotionally resonant lyrics, evocative vocals, rock-solid instrumentation and top-notch songwriting. The lovely \u201cWhy Does it Always Rain on Me\u201d (1999) and \u201cSing\u201d from 2001 did both creep onto the U.S. Top 40 singles charts. Their latest album is the well-received L.A. Times<\/i>, released in 2024.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"