Ronnie Earl is has long been regarded as being among the best blues guitarists alive today, having won the Blues Music Award for “Guitar Player of the Year” four times. But Earl is also an earnest cheerleader for advancement of the human condition. Rise Up effectively lashes his interests in social justice with great music. […]
Two EP Gems – The Ghosts Of Liberty & Drew Aron
First up is the debut record from North Carolina couple Emma & Tyler Millard, who go under the band name The Ghosts Of Liberty. My favorite song on the 3-tune EP is Roanoke River. It’s a tension-filled, country-pop story about society’s biases and love’s ability to overcome them. With Tyler’s rootsy edge on guitar providing […]
Alright Alright – Crucible
Several years ago I voted for Jason Isbell’s Southeastern as #1 in our annual album poll. I kind of surprised myself at the time, because as awesome as the record was, the subject matter of many of the songs was dark. I found myself having to steel up a little before I hit play. I […]
A Twangville Premiere from John Pedigo’s Magic Pilsner
I’ve been waiting patiently for John Pedigo to release the follow-up to 2018’s self-titled release. Pedigo, with his Magic Pilsner compadres, have been taking their time on their sophomore release, in part due to Pedigo’s “side gig†as a producer extraordinaire for the likes of Joshua Ray Walker and others. And then pandemic. Without the ability to […]
The Mastersons’ “Sensitive Souls” – a Twangville Video Premiere
If you’re reading this then you’re likely aware of the many ways that Covid has devastated musicians, not to mention the music venues that have long sustained them. The Mastersons, singer-songwriters/multi-instrumentalists Chris Masterson and Eleanor Whitmore, had just embarked on a tour to support No Time For Love Songs, their latest album, when the live music business […]
The Bodarks – Side Effects
The English language has some very captivating words. A friend of mine likes “shenanigans”. I’ve always been partial to “gobsmacked”. Then there’s “hootenanny”. If you’re not familiar with the term, it’s sort of like open mic night at the square dance. Think string bands and dancing; raw, fast-paced, and open to anyone. That’s the spirit […]
New Moon Jelly Roll Freedom Rockers – Vol. 1
There are jam sessions, and then there are JAM SESSIONs. When you get blues masters Charlie Musselwhite and Alvin Youngblood Hart together with former Squirrel Nut Zipper Jimbo Mathus, North Mississippi Allstars brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson and their father Jim, you’re gonna have a JAM SESSION. That’s what happened in the fall of 2007, […]
Non Duo – In Your Eyes
I’ve been writing reviews for over a decade, and I listen to a bunch of things I never write about. Plus, stints on the radio and owning too many records. In all that time, I’ve never heard an album start and end with the same song, only in English and Russian. I have now. Better […]
Mayer’s Playlist for Fall 2020, Part 2
Fine, Bonnie Whitmore (from the Aviatrix Records release Last Will & Testament) Bonnie Whitmore lulls you in with a chorus of harmonies on the opening track to her latest album. But before one can settle into the lushness, a fuzzy bass, quickly joined by ominous strings and a resonating electric guitar, interrupts to create a […]
Greg Felden Premiere – Back of the Line
Back last summer I ran across the debut album from LA-based Greg Felden. I noted at the time he set an emotional tone with the songs and several of them were driven by a rock and roll guitar sound. He also did a bit of introspection on some of the acoustic numbers. Well, he’s turned […]