The Damnwells’ Air Stereo turns 20 this year. It’s not old enough to drink yet, but the band is throwing it a party anyway with two special shows. The first was a sold-out night at Lodge Room in Los Angeles on September 10. The second is at Racket in NYC on Friday, October 9 (get […]
Miko Marks on Music’s Healing Power and Never Breaking a Guitar String
Flint, Michigan–born singer-songwriter Miko Marks takes us inside Redtone Records, the red-walled basement studio where she rehearses, in a house tied to the founding of East Palo Alto. She also recalls her first gig, a second-grade show with a $25 fee she never saw, and talks about the day job she still holds as social director at a tennis club.
AmericanaFest 2026, Say What?!
One of my favorite things about attending music conferences and festivals are the crazy comments that you hear along the way. Here are a few choice selections from this year’s AmericanaFest. Lifetime achievement award? I’m not done yet. Mike Campbell, accepting a lifetime achievement award Always blame the bass player, they almost never have a […]
Monday Morning Video – Our Dial Back Sound Collab Shows (NYC + Boston)
Dial Back Sound is a studio and label in Water Valley, Mississippi, owned by Drive-By Truckers bassist Matt Patton. It’s more like a community than a studio: artists from across the country have traveled there to tap some of the mojo that lives in the room. Twangville is thrilled to collaborate with Matt Patton and […]
AmericanaFest 2026, Mayer’s Picks (Part 3)
THE HEARTBREAKERS featuring CHRIS STAPLETON It was hard not to be moved, from exhilaration to overwhelming emotion, watching the founding Heartbreakers reunite for the first time in more than 20 years and then accept a lifetime achievement award. (Don’t miss Shawn’s Americana Honors awards show coverage) JOHN PRINE TRIBUTE John Prine would have been 80 […]
Now & Then: Ian Noe’s Canyon Falls Trailer Band and the reach of Grievous Angel
Country music has always had room for musicians whose ambitions exceed their prospects. Ian Noe gives those musicians a whole album on Canyon Falls Trailer Band, imagining a group taking its shot at a Nashville showcase. Gram Parsons makes a fitting companion: an artist whose attachment to traditional country helped expand what younger songwriters could do with it. The connection becomes especially clear when Noe introduces some interstellar visitors with country music on their minds.
AmericanaFest 2026, Mayer’s Picks (Part 2)
Neelys Band This group’s weekly gig at Nashville institution American Legion Post 82 was required attendance even before their AmericanaFest blowout. Their performance alone was a thrill. Then came the special guests: Margo Price delivering a rip-roaring “9 to 5,” Shakey Graves joining Price for an incredible duet of “Islands in the Stream,” and Duane […]
AmericanaFest 2026, Mayer’s Picks (Part 1)
BOY GOLDEN I caught Boy Golden twice, and both sets were terrific in song and stagecraft. At the second show, I recognized a guy in a Boy Golden t-shirt from the previous set. I struck up a conversation and it turned out to be Dad Golden. Boy Golden also had to follow the reunion of […]
Readers’ Pick: Ian Noe – Canyon Falls Trailer Band
You picked Ian Noe – Canyon Falls Trailer Band as your favorite new release for the week of September 25, 2026.
Americanafest 2026, Todd’s Take
Going into this year’s Americanafest there was no “one big thing” that I had to see. I was open to anything. Sure, there were a few acts that I had on my wish list, but there wasn’t anything as exciting as last year’s Daniel Lanois appearance so I decided not to make much of a […]