With Labor Day now in the rearview mirror, life gets more serious. Students are back in school, work projects pick up, winter is coming. Even the chaos of 2020 isn’t changing that cycle. As it happens, singer-songwriter Garrett Owen is releasing a good accompaniment to buckling down, his second full length album, Quiet Lives. The […]
Kelley Swindall – You Can Call Me Darlin’ If You Want
Regret is an interesting emotion. For some people, it’s a melancholy tickle in the back of their mind. For others, it’s a pair of blinders that forces them straight ahead when they have so many choices. Finally, some use regret as the engine that propels them to greater heights. On her new album, You Can […]
Admiral Radio – Sounds Like You
It’s funny how you can get attached to an item over time, appreciating it first for what it physically is, and then over time for what it represents. South Carolina natives Becca Smith and Coty Hoover had that experience with a 1941 Admiral Radio. As they learned more about the antique and how it related […]
Wood & Wire – No Matter Where It Goes From Here
Polish is an under-appreciated art form. For a few years of my misspent youth I was enamored with old cars. As part of that I learned that while the most beautiful paint job was just a combination of wax, pigment & resin, the right artist could create a depth and dimensionality that belied the simplicity […]
Chuck Prophet – The Land That Time Forgot
Maybe it’s just me, but 2 guitars, bass, and drums is like the instrumental equivalent of a meat and three. There may be a lot of variations, but it’s all comfort food. That’s a little bit how I think of Chuck Prophet. You can get pickled okra to go with your marshmallow yams and douse […]
Golden Shoals – Golden Shoals
One of the best things about travel is the occasional chance to just sit there and observe the people around you. Not being held to a schedule opens your mind to different perspectives. Musical duo and long-time friends Amy Alvey and Mark Kilianski were afforded probably a lot more of that perspective than most while […]
Tawny Ellis – Love Life
On pretty much any night of the week on network television, you can find a show featuring contestants with incredible vocal talents. What most of them are missing is soul. Not literally like soul music, but spiritually like the non-physical essence of someone. If you don’t know what that sounds like, you can hear it […]
Ted Russell Kamp – Down In the Den
Everybody knows about Cheers, the bar where everyone knows your name. Apparently the recording studio equivalent of that is Ted Russell Kamp’s former garage, now affectionately known as The Den. Ted has a new album out, Down In the Den, that features (if I counted right) 35 of his friends, who all happen to be […]
Nocona – Los Dos
They say you should always dance like you think no one is watching. I think the same thing applies to air guitar and drums. Wail and flail. If you want a good soundtrack to do that to, I’d suggest the new album from LA-based roots rockers Nocona. Entitled Los Dos, it has a garage band […]
Darlin’ Brando – Also, too…
I think the best ones are located a mile or so out of town. Far enough that no one complains about the noise, but close enough you can still get home after, well, whatever. Budweiser and Miller are the Premium options at the bar and food comes from the microwave or deep fryer. I’m talking […]