On Little Seeds, Shovels and Rope (out October 7 on New West) pushes the envelope in both directions. The noisy, propulsive songs are noisier and more propulsive than ever, as the album-opening, wickedly backbiting “I Know” and the devastating “Invisible […]
As its title might hint, Anna Coogan’sThe Lonely Cry of Space and Time (self-released on April 28) is category-resistant. Or, stronger, category-defiant–even across the wide open spaces of Americana. But until someone devises a Prog/folk/Eurodisco/opera/goth metal/environmentalist dystopian chanteuse category, it fits […]
How does he love thee? Let us count the ways. Ron Sexsmith opens The Last Rider (out April 21 on Compass Records) knowing that whether it’s love or loss, “It Won’t Last for Long,” offering wistful, bittersweet solace. He loves […]
Here’s hoping that Willie Nelson has a dozen more albums left in him. But he’ll have trouble equaling the richness and emotional depth he has achieved here, with God’s Problem Child (out April 28 on Legacy). The album’s cover recalls […]
Robyn Hitchcock has released so many albums over so many decades that even those who love him might be tempted to think, oh, another one, and then file it away. But Robyn Hitchcock (out April 21 on Yep Roc) is a […]
Lots of Americana purists (now how’s that for a contradiction in terms?) suspect that everything coming through the Nashville musical pipeline is homogenized, pasteurized cliche. On Wrangled (out April 21 on Mining Light/Thirty Tigers), Angaleena Presley not only feels your […]
Well before Americana existed as a musical semi-category, the Kinks were charter members of its British wing, with Muswell Hillbilles exploring the pull that the land of cowboys and dreamers had on the wry, literate Ray Davies. Americana (out April […]
Forget cow-punk, the ‘80s precursor to alt-country, Americana, whatever you want to call it. The Lucky Ones Forget (out March 31 on Third Man Records) sounds a whole lot more like the real deal, whatever your deal may be and […]
On Rodney Crowell’s new Close Ties (out March 31 on New West), there’s a thin line between self-mythologizing and self-lacerating, though its edge is sharp enough to draw blood. Crowell once titled one of his lesser albums Life Is Messy; […]
Forget everything you know about Jessi Colter: widow of Waylon, mother of Shooter, “I’m Not Lisa.” Forget everything you know about Christian music—traditional hymns, southern gospel, spiritual sing-alongs, contemporary pop-rock, whatever. Now, think to yourself, What Would Patti Do? Patti […]
