For most travelers, the next stop out of Bakersfield is either the high desert and Las Vegas, or the sprawl of Los Angeles. Â Musically, Bakersfield leads to the honky tonk of rural California, or the alternative rock and roll sprouting out of the Mojave. Â There’s a third path, though, north to the mountains and the […]
Sarah Borges Gets Fired Up with “Good and Dirty”
Every once in awhile, there is an artist whose album is so anticipated by the Twangville Posse that a number of us pile on for a team review. Sarah Borges, who has just released a new ep called Good and Dirty sits firmly in that category. MAYER’S TAKE Sarah Borges means business. While she has […]
Photos that ROCK! Josh Brings his Joy to Boston!
Josh Ritter & The Royal City Band House of Blues, Boston MA February 19, 2016 On a cold night in February, I walked out of the sweaty House of Blues feeling like I had just been to some sort of a therapy session (and I am a therapist as my day job!) and my spirits […]
Monday Morning Video – Billy Bragg
Billy Bragg is one of those exceptional songwriters who can move you to tears with a heartbreaking ballad one minute and fire you up with some blistering social and political commentary the next minute. Proof in point, here are “Must I Paint You a Picture” and “Waiting for the Great Leap Forward” from his 1988 […]
Folk Alliance 2016 – The Video Companion
Actual videos of our fave Folk Alliance performances are hard to come by, well at least good quality ones. So we decided to go with the next best thing – videos of these performers captured in other, sometimes unique, locations. Featured in this video playlist are: The Show Ponies, Parsonsfield, Aoife O’Donovan, Session Americana, Bob […]
Folk Alliance 2016 – Say What?!
One of my favorite things about attending music conferences and festivals are the crazy comments that you hear along the way. Here are a few choice selections from this year’s Folk Alliance Conference. It’s no fun listening to someone tune a banjo, but it’s even less fun listening to an out of tune one. Parsonsfield […]
Shawn’s 2016 Folk Alliance Favorites
For what I’m certain won’t be the last time, I headed to Kansas City for the Folk Alliance International conference (and musical extravaganza). Â With nearly half of the 2500 attendees being musicians, you could barely round a corner in any public area and not find impromptu jams. As you might expect, there were a number […]
Folk Alliance Conference 2016 – The Scene and the Sounds
Twangville returned to Kansas City two weeks ago for the annual Folk Alliance Conference. As we wrote last year, Folk Alliance is a different than your typical music conference or festival. For starters, the attendees are overwhelming musicians (save party crashers like us). This translates into an all music, all the time philosophy. This comes […]
Brian Carpenter On Avoiding Fast Food and Why He Makes Music On His Own Terms
Multi-instrumentalist and composer Brian Carpenter talks about the benefits of keeping a day job and recalls a memorable meal he and his band enjoyed while touring through Washington, D.C.
Monday Morning Video – Courtney Barnett Pays Tribute to You Am I
Aussie singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett celebrates her fellow countrymen — and Twangville faves — You Am I by covering their brilliant song “Heavy Heart.” What’s not to like about a song with lines like “I’m like a waterlogged ball that no one wants to kick around anymore.” Sad, but certainly vivid. As a bonus, scroll down […]