With slightly less than 4000 attendees, the annual gathering of Folk Alliance International is still small enough to be held in a hotel. Â It doesn’t have a stadium-draw headliner, but other than that and lack of a campground, there’s everything else you’d want in a music festival. Â And most of it is done better than […]
Monday Morning Video – Jack Ingram and the Tin Man
I recently saw Jack Ingram perform a special show and he closed the set with this brilliant piece of songwriting. Co-written with Miranda Lambert and Jon Randall, Lambert’s recording of “Tin Man” was deservedly nominated for song of the year by the Country Music Association in 2017.
Waterloo Sunset – AmericanaFest UK 2018
If you’ve ever traveled to another country, you know the quiz well. Border control agent: “So, what brings you to (insert country name here)?†What you may be less familiar with is the variety of quizzical expressions you get from those border control agents when you’re traveling to England and your answer is: “an Americana […]
Monday Morning Video – Todd Snider Can’t Complain
It’s been awhile since we’ve shared some Todd Snider music. About time we rectify that, don’t you think? Here’s the enlightened “Can’t Complain.” We’re all waiting in the dugout Thinking we should pitch How you gonna throw a shutout If all you do is bitch
I’m With Her – See You Around
The term “folk supergroup” seems a little like an oxymoron.  Calling anyone in the folk music business a superstar is probably pushing it.  Having said that, there aren’t many musicians in this genre that can draw crowds like Sarah Jarosz, Sara Watkins, or Aoife O’Donovan pull in individually.  So if they do something together, yeah, I […]
Monday Morning Video – Lake Street Dive’s A-Ha Moment
Leave it to the exceptional Lake Street Dive to reimagine A-Ha’s “Take On Me” that swings, at various moments, between mariachi, reggae, jazz and pop.
Laura Benitez and the Heartache – With All Its Thorns
In dance halls and on flatbed trucks across most of this nation there’s a style of country music that’s still played a lot more than you’d ever guess listening to a radio programmed out of Nashville. Â Sure, everyone has a cover of the latest bro’ country hit and the obligatory Garth Brooks or George Strait. […]
Monday Morning Video – Northcote Hopes the Good Things Never Die
Canadian singer-songwriter Matt Goud, aka Northcote, is overdue to release some new music into the world (hint, hint). In the meantime, here’s a favorite from 2013’s Northcote.
Steep Canyon Rangers – Out In the Open
One of the more anticipated albums recently around the Twangville offices is the new one from Steep Canyon Rangers.  Out In the Open finally hit our hard drives a couple of weeks ago andI got a chance to ask banjo player and lead vocalist Graham Sharp a few questions about the record.  What really came through […]
Monday Morning Video – John Hiatt and the Goners
With one notable exception, my live concert year is off to a phenomenal start. The most recent addition to the list was John Hiatt, joined by Sonny Landreth and the Goners. The foursome revisited Hiatt’s seminal album Slow Turning in its entirety, every musical nook and cranny resounding with an infectious energy. Landreth, in particular, […]