Abigail Washburn has resisted categorization from the start of her relatively young career. She plays banjo with the traditionalist all-female string band Uncle Earl, but released a solo album in 2005 that included, alongside old-time chestnuts, a couple of songs […]
On their second album for Nettwerk, these Charlottesville, Virginia, sweethearts dole out their show-famous headbanger string-band sound. As usual, the Hackensaws’ take on the genre is a restless and reeling high-octane blend of bluegrass, jug band, and edgy old-time reels. […]
On the surface, Nathan could be viewed as just another of the many Canadian bands embracing roots music. Unlike most of their peers, however, the Winnipeg-based quartet also draws from pop traditions not far removed from fellow hometown natives such […]
Po’ Girl has the same womanly (not girlish, mind you) croon of the 1920s and ’30s blues mamas — yet their music isn’t of another era, despite the banjo backing, woodsy clarinet licks and Wurlitzer. On their third album, Po’ […]
It feels like three very long years since the release of the Be Good Tanyas’ last album, the brilliant Chinatown. Upon reconvening after a hiatus, the trio of Frazey Ford, Trish Klein and Samanth Parton reputedly recorded many songs over […]
Still consumed by the bile and pathos of a failed relationship, singers and songwriters Blake Hazard and John Dragonetti reconciled in the studio over pop and psychedelic obsessions theyve since gotten married turning co-dependency into sad, sweet, intricate songs. Forgetting […]
The Weepies came to life when, in 2002, Deb Talan and Steve Tannen met and discovered they were fans of each other’s then-new debut solo releases. Their debut, 2003’s Happiness, was built on what they had been doing as individual […]
The first thing you notice about Sally Ellyson’s voice is the almost overwhelming warmth, the fulsome heat of her tone. The second thing you should notice is that she doesn’t sound like any of the singers she is often compared […]
Following in the form of the fabulously filthy Christina Aguilera, the Hackensaw Boys’ “Kiss You Down There” ought to carry a parental advisory warning. The song, the third track on the band’s third studio album, finds founder and mandolin player […]
Given that their sound falls somewhere between the sugary pop of Barenaked Ladies and the acoustic folk of the Duhks, it’s no surprise the Clumsy Lovers hail from Canada. They’ve not always had a knack for memorable pop songs, but […]
