One of the problems with music criticism is that, sometimes, a performance (or album) is so unspeakably stunning that words don’t — can’t — fairly capture or convey the experience. Such was the case when Jason Isbell began his three-night […]
Jennifer Knapp has a story to tell. It’s her story, but it’s also our story. On the surface, it’s seems like a story about faith and identity. But, really, it’s a story about life and love. Through her new album, […]
Way back in August of 1995 (August 24, to be exact), I saw Joan Osborne perform for the first time. By the end of the opening song (“Pensacola,” to be specific), I was smitten. In the 19 years since that […]
In an age when so many pop stars are auto-tuned, if not ghosted, it is refreshing to see true musicians out there still striving for more, still pushing for better. Piano man Bruce Hornsby, even when he was riding high […]
Very few people can hold their own against the likes of talents as huge as Mick Jagger, Tina Turner, Sting, Chris Botti, Luther Vandross, Roberta Flack, Chaka Khan, Anita Baker, and so many others. Singer Lisa Fischer can… and has… […]
Singer/songwriter Lori McKenna has been releasing stunning records for just about 15 years now. Like stop-you-in-your-tracks stunning records, from Paper Wings and Halo, at first, on down to Numbered Doors, her latest. McKenna’s attention to the detail of her craft […]
When William T. Cook and Adam Agin joined forces to become Neulore, it was a case of yin and yang, up and down, tortoise and hare. Though that combination could easily result in more friction than anything, in this particular […]
Let’s just be clear, right up front, I don’t usually attend music conferences or music festivals. Crowds just aren’t my thing. But, with the Americana Music Awards Festival and Conference is right in your backyard… it’s hard to say no. […]
Across continents and decades, singer/songwriter Josh Rouse has spread his own feel-good brand of soft rock for deep thinkers. Though he would sidle up alongside classic songwriters like Harry Chapin and Jim Croce, Rouse is also uniquely contemporary — especially in […]
There’s something incredibly poetic about Mary Gauthier, and it infuses everything about her. It’s in her language and diction, it’s in her work, and it’s in her life — past, present, and future. The thing is, poetry isn’t always red […]
