Most people drink corn whisky for one of two reasons; to forget their troubles or to start some new ones. But there’s a third path, a fine line, where the bourbon serves to focus an artistic endeavor and provide the fuel for an emotional fire. Hans Chew’s debut album, Tennessee & Other Stories, seems to […]
Mayer’s Playlist for August 2010, Part 1
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH: You Go Your Way, by Amy Correia It’s hard not to get lost in Amy Correia’s latest release, You Go Your Way. The story-telling quality of her songwriting, matched with some diverse and engaging instrumentation, conjures up images of a musical from the classic age of Broadway. “Love Changes Everything” is […]
The Giving Tree – The Joke, The Threat & The Obvious
To hear about a band being “green†in today’s society seems like another gimmick. We have whole foods, organic produce, carbon footprints and alternative energy bombarding us from all action. As a music fan, I like to listen to my music to unplug and hear the “organic†side for a while. But Todd and Eric […]
Green Corn Revival – Say You’re A Sinner
Never underestimate the imagery a good audio track can create. Fifteen seconds into the opening song of Green Corn Revival’s first full length effort, Say You’re A Sinner, all I could think about were Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns. Part One, as the track is called, is an avant garde country number with soaring background harmonies […]
Lissie/Catching A Tiger
So, for the last couple of weeks I’ve been riding around with Lissie in the car. And no matter how hard I try, I can’t get past second base. Sorry, I meant the second track. I’m not sure if it’s the pounding bass or the hooky repeating guitar line or the chorus that sticks in […]
Let the Day Begin: A Tribute to Michael Been
We lost one of the good ones last week. Michael Been, former front-man for the Call passed away. The Call were one of those impressive bands that married intelligent and thought-provoking lyrics with fervent rock anthems. It was a potent combination, reflective of Been’s passion as the band’s singer and primary songwriter. Although the Call […]
Newport Folk Festival 2010 (Part Two)
Day two of the Newport Folk Festival dawned with even better weather than the day before. With the giant bridge gleaming at me in the background, I trekked from the parking lot straight to the set of Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons. I had seen Cory’s name around a lot recently, opening up for […]
Ray Lamontagne – God Willin’ & The Creek Don’t Rise
Ray Lamontagne’s latest project might be the most un-Lamontagne album he has done, thus far, even though it’s the first album he has produced for his own self. God Willin’ & The Creek Don’t Rise, his fourth studio LP, was recorded in Lamontagne’s New England cabin with the help of his country, soul-brothers, the Pariah […]
You Pick It: The Replacements “Can’t Hardly Wait”
Twangville is pleased to launch a new periodic series that we call “You Pick It.” Here’s how it works. We’ll serve up videos of multiple artists covering a single song and ask you to pick the definitive version. We’ll kick things off with one of my all-time favorites, The Replacements “Can’t Hardly Wait.” Replacements singer-songwriter […]
Kathleen Edwards- Northampton, MA (07.21.10)
Kathleen Edwards is one of my favorite singer-songwriters. Though sometimes dismissively lumped in with Tift Merritt, Allison Moorer, and other female alt. country singers, she has released 3 overwhelmingly consistent and great albums. With a penchant for writing songs that seems to write themselves and a sound that makes the alternative country genre sound like […]