A few years back, rock n roll survivor Jon Langford transplanted himself from Leeds, England, to Chicago for love and money. His past and present band, the Mekons, have been around for more than 15 years and occupy a musical […]
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Earl Brooks of Seattle band the Crop Circles did what any self-respecting musician would do. He dropped an advance of his bands first CD by the radio station in his hometown in Idaho. And after a few days, he called […]
The San Francisco country scene is a misnomer. Yes, a growing number of bands play their own blend of country-rock/hillbilly-folk/ alternative-twang, but the idea that these bands belong to some sort of badge-carrying Bay Area alternative-country collective and sit around […]
In 1994, I was lucky enough to pick up the self-titled debut by a trio from Oxford, Mississippi, called Blue Mountain. Released on their own 4-Barrel Records, it was an unassuming but highly impressive little collection of hopelessly catchy blues- […]
Paula Frazer’s voice swoops like a barn swallow on the last day of fall, riding hot currents for the pleasure of swooping and dipping, and not altogether concerned with destination. Hers is a beautiful voice, pure and limber. Gentle Creatures […]
You get the feeling that Brian Henneman drinks Budweiser. You get the feeling he looks out the window of his home in Missouri and sees a hot, dusty neighborhood full of run-down cars whose tires squeal and kick up that […]
Will Oldham has arrived. Those who think he’s already here number many, but their ranks will likely swell with this release. Where Palace records once were exercises in style rather than substance, Viva Last Blues is a substantive landmark in […]
Late to this party, having missed the preceding three long-players, I have only overheard conversations for background. The tenor of which seems to be that Freakwater are somehow less authentic an expression of country phrasing because Janet Beveridge Bean drums […]
Paul K. has paid his dues. On Achilles’ Heel, his third domestic release after a decade of self-produced cassettes and five full-length albums released by the Dutch/German label Silenz, K. sounds as though the nearly schizophrenic roles he has led […]
The first clue that Joe Ely is up to something different on Letter to Laredo is in the thank-you credits, where the Lubbock legend tips his hat to writers Garcia Lorca, Michael Ventura and Cormac McCarthy. The next clue is […]
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