Like a lazy river winding through the woods on a hot summer day, the new EP, Dying Old Flower, from Santa Cruz Mountains-based Brad Sanzenbacher is as much a feeling as a sight or sound. You can practically smell the riverside rhododendrons on Cacapon, perhaps named after a park in West Virginia with just that […]
Photos that ROCK! The Highwomen at Newport Folk Festival
Unless you slept through the 2019 Newport Folk Festival, you could feel the buzz leading up to The Highwomen’s set at the quad stage on Friday afternoon. Made up of Brandi Carlile, Amanda Shires, Maren Morris, and Natalie Hemby (with special guest Yola), this group of badass ladies have started a band AND a movement. […]
Newport Folk Festival 2019 – Looking Back at the New Faces
Newport Folk Festival has made it a practice to bring fresh faces in front of a discerning crowd of music fans. The 2019 edition was no different and the new artists certainly made a splash. J.S. Ondara only needed one song to bowl me over. I heard him sing “Saying Goodbye” as his last song […]
Newport Folk Festival 2019 Feature – Gregory Alan Isakov Transports Listeners to Other Worlds
When I think about atmospheric music, I picture lots of instrumentation and layered tracks. I don’t picture a guy and a guitar. Gregory Alan Isakov has somehow merged the world of a singer/songwriter with moody ethereal music in a way that defies logic. My wife and I had a chance to sit down with Gregory […]
Mayer’s Playlist for Summer 2019, Part 1
Love Is Dangerous, Dalton Domino (from the Lightning Rod Records release Songs from the Exile) Dalton Domino does more than wear his heart on his sleeve; he lays it bare. Much of his latest release finds him cycling through the various stages and emotions of heartbreak, from bitterness to self-reflection. He opens with the brooding […]
Newport Folk Festival 2019 – Looking Back at the Big Names
Surprise guests are really nothing new at Newport Folk Festival but the 2019 edition highlighted a particularly timely legendary performer in Dolly Parton. The emcee of the Saturday night performance was Newport Folk Festival stalwart Brandi Carlile (introduced by Executive Produced of the Newport Folk Festival Jay Sweet) who introduced the country legend. Parton regaled […]
Photos that ROCK! Dawes at Newport Folk Festival 2019
Newport Folk Fest is my favorite weekend of the year. Dawes played an incredible set to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of their “North Hills” record, complete with many special guests (Jason Isbell, John McCauley of Deer Tick, MC Taylor of Hiss Golden Messenger, Benmont Tench of the Heartbreakers, and more!). After catching that, I […]
Guy Forsyth & Jeska Bailey – Conspirators
The sound crawls out of the Mississippi Delta before taking wing over the vast Texas landscape. After soaring above you it lands back in the cotton field, where sanctity and sin go hand in hand. That’s about the best way I can describe the new album from Guy Forsyth and Jeska Bailey, their first recording […]
Robert Ellis/Texas Piano Man
I’m not exactly sure how I stumbled upon Texas Piano Man, the recent release from Robert Ellis. I’m thinking it was the monsters at Spotify that put him in my queue or something. Whoever or whatever it was, I owe them a pat on the back, as for the last 2 weeks I’ve been playing […]
Newport Folk Festival 2019 – New Faces
Even though Twangville has been lucky enough to cover many Newport Folk Festivals in the past, the lineup this year has made some great choices to get new faces in front of music fans. The lineup is filled with both new acts garnering critical buzz and underappreciated gems. It’s that dedication to amazing and innovative […]