The first two tracks on Michael Doucet’s new album are solid Cajun stuff. They are rollicking tracks like those at which Doucet’s old band, BeauSoleil, excelled — but nothing unusual. Then it changes: Lâcher Prise gives you many more spicy […]
There is a moment in Ken Burns’ wonderful Country Music documentary when he traces the twin themes of the genre — singing about home and hearth, or about being out on the lonesome road — to The Carter Family and […]
Bobby Hawk’s first solo album Lights On Kinks Out is one of those releases that requires a few listens. After my first run-through, I thought “meh.” The second left me a bit more positive. When I heard it for the […]
There is a fair bit of banjo on Time Sawyer’s entertaining new album Mountain Howdy, but as befits the alt-country style of the band, it is by no means frenetic mountain bluegrass picking. Indeed, some of it is a refreshing use […]
It is completely unfair to relate the work of a child to that of their parent. But here goes anyway. It barely takes a moment listening to Cancel the Sun, the entertaining new album from The Rails, to be reminded […]
It is becoming almost a rite of passage that veteran singers and musicians who achieved a modicum of success in earlier years try to stir up interest with an album of covers. The latest in this genre is from Rickie […]
Musicians must hate it when a reviewer likens their hard work to that of a more famous performer — particularly if, like New Orleans-based singer-songwriter Anders Osborne, you have been around a while yourself. But Osborne’s lovely new album Buddha and the Blues has moments throughout […]
You certainly get your money’s worth from singer-songwriter Glen Hansard’s new album This Wild Willing. At an hour and five minutes it is a good 20-25 minutes longer than most albums — with five songs over six minutes, two of which […]
The new album from Mekons is not your typical fare for these pages. Deserted runs through a broad range of musical styles including punk, alt folk, even prog rock. It is a delight, but only for those with an eclectic bent when […]
What do you do when you are a 70-year-old rock legend with time on your hands? Well, go on the road again with a new band, of course. It’s the music, stupid. Robert Plant (ex of Led Zeppelin, as if […]
