It’s been a good year for music so far this year (and the rest of the year is shaping up quite nicely, too). Here, in no particular order, are some of my favorite releases from the first half of 2016. WILLOW SPRINGS by MICHAEL MCDERMOTT Michael McDermott channels life’s hardships, both his own and those […]
Nick Loss-Eaton of Leland Sundries On Borrowing His Grandma’s Sedan and the Secret to Ordering at Taco Bell
Leland Sundrie’ Nick Loss-Eaton compares NYC rehearsal spaces and offers a tip for more easily memorizing song lyrics.
Mayer’s Playlist for June 2016
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH My Way Home by Eli Paperboy Reed They say that what doesn’t kill us just makes us stronger. While not quite that extreme, Brooklyn by way of Boston singer-songwriter Eli Paperboy Reed emerges from the ashes of a major label deal gone bad with a remarkable new album. The slick production […]
Grant Farm – Kiss the Ground
Say “jam band” to a lot of people and they picture fans as face painted twirlers wearing tie-dye in the meadow. Â I’ve never been to a Grant Farm show, but I have to believe they have also have a contingent dressed in pearl-snap shirts and intricately stitched cowboy boots. Â They’re about the only jam band […]
Ana Egge Premiere – Promises To Break
Last year I reviewed Ana Egge’s album, Bright Shadow. Â She had a progressive folk sound that owed a lot to her back up band, the Stray Birds. Â For her latest effort, Ana has thrown in with Danish indie band, The Sentimentals, to supplement her rich vocal talents. Here at Twangville we’re darned happy to offer […]
Robert Rex Waller, Jr – Fancy Free
The snow swirls around the lamp posts and even the bars have been closed for hours.  It’s too cold to kill time, but killing time is all you have left.  Painting that picture of desolation and near despair, Robert Rex Waller, Jr., opens his upcoming album with a version of Utah Phillips’ Walking Through the Snow In […]
Mayer’s Playlist for May 2016, Part 2
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH Poor Man’s Bible by Mike June Mike June doesn’t pull his punches. At all. His latest release is filled with biting commentary about society, politics and religion. He approaches it with a working-man’s perspective, certainly jaded but with a spirit that flirts between combative and cautiously optimistic. “Big corporations too big […]
Mayer’s Playlist for May 2016, Part 1
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH Between the Moon and the Midwest by Austin Lucas Austin Lucas wears his heart on his sleeve. He writes from a personal place, revealing – if not quite reveling in – tales of his adventures in love and music. “I look around and at 35 all I’ve got are songs,” he […]
Shamrock Shakes and Oxycontin – A Special Boston Playlist, Part 2
The musical ground in Boston and New England has been especially fertile this year. We’ve already seen some outstanding releases by artists that run the gamut from long-time favorites to incredibly talented newcomers. To that end, here is the latest installment in our periodic series highlighting Boston and New England artists. (View the complete series […]
Guy Clark, 1941 – 2016
An already rough year for music just got a bit tougher. Legendary country and folk singer Guy Clark passed away earlier today. He was an inspiration to both music fans and artists alike. Whether singing songs happy or sad, there was a tremendous warmth to his music and a wonderful vibrancy to his lyrical storytelling. […]