Ok folks, I got behind the 8 ball a bit on finishing up the full review of the new Aoife O’Donovan (Crooked Still) record. It’s called Fossils and it’s really good. I’ll post a full review sometime in the very near future. In the meantime, here is my favorite song from the record:
Mayer’s Picks: The Best of 2013, So Far (the Songs)
Elephant and Super 8, Jason Isbell (from the Southeastern Records release Southeastern) This list wouldn’t ordinarily include two tracks from the same artist but I’m gonna make an exception. These two tracks exemplify the range of Isbell’s songwriting talent, from the somber beauty of “Elephant” to the boisterous rock of “Super 8.” Alphabet City, Todd […]
Bakersfield – Review & Giveaway
Although we tend to think of the rebellion against the slick production values that Nashville country music is perhaps best known for as a fairly recent phenomena, it dates back over 50 years to a group of artists, and a Capitol Records producer, that called Bakersfield, California, home. Â The Bakersfield Sound eschewed the strings and […]
Photos that ROCK! Barnstar!
Barnstar! at the Outside the Box Festival July 15, 2013- Boston, MA C’mon! Besides being the name of their album, this is a phrase that you can often hear bassist Zack Hickman holler during a rollicking bluegrass solo. And as he pointed out, their name isn’t Barnstar, it’s Barnstar! This is fitting for a band […]
Slaid Cleaves Reinvents the Rocking Coffeehouse
Though “Club Passim” in Cambridge has a generally laidback vibe, it took the homey comfort of a prodigal son to turn it into a what a coffeehouse should be. Slaid Claves played his highly literate tunes in front of capacity crowd of about 100. Square tables, appetizers and friendly stories made Cleaves’ feel like a […]
Mayer’s Picks: The Best of 2013, So Far (the Albums)
This has been a great musical year and we’ve still got several months — and some highly anticipated releases — to go before it ends. Here, in no particular order, are some of my favorite releases from the first half of 2013. You’ll see that I’ve listed my favorite Boston releases as a group. Each […]
Ducktape Saves Lives- Frank Turner’s Recovery
Another entry in our recurring feature, Ducktape Saves Lives demolishes the normal review protocol in favor of cheap jokes, extended digressions, and an occasional interesting thought or two. Inspired by long back and forth emails between myself, fellow Twangviller Todd Mathis, and my twin brother Kyle Petersen, Ductape Saves Lives is intend for ‘big’(ger) records […]
Drive By Truckers – Live at Track 29 in Chattanooga, TN
I woke up June 28th and all the signs were there. My ears were ringing. My voice was gone, and my head hurt. It wasn’t the flu. I had been to see the Drive-By Truckers the night before. Track 29 is a converted skating rink behind the ubiquitous Chattanooga Choo-Choo Hotel. When the Truckers took […]
Steve Earle: The Warner Bros Years
I ‘m usually not a fan of re-releases. My general view is that if I bought the album once, why should I buy it again? Well, I’d make an exception for Shout Factory’s new collection The Warner Bros. Years, which brings together Steve Earle’s first three releases for Warner Brothers Records. This trio of albums […]
Twangville Music Fest – Night 2
After the more familiar performances from night one, I was all the more excited to see three new-to-me acts. And given the intimate Lizard Lounge in Cambridge, I knew I was in for an up close opportunity to see each of the performers. The three acts managed to feature distinct shades of Americana music today: […]