How was your Record Store Day? Mine was fine, thanks. Our friends at Bloodshot made it all the better with an awesome live release, recorded at their 15th Anniversary celebration in Chicago on September 12th, 2009. Beyond being a great music collection, it’s a great reminder as to why Bloodshot is one of our favorite […]
The Lost Pines – Sweet Honey
Summertime requires some bluegrass on the Most Played list on the iPod of any hard-core Americana fan. Â You just can’t beat the combination of instrumental jams and light-hearted harmonies with some gin-laced lemonade on a sunny weekend afternoon. Â With that in mind, it’s good timing for the release of Austin-based The Lost Pines second album, […]
Mayer's Playlist for Mar/Apr 2011
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH: A Day at the Pass, by Jill Sobule and John Doe What happens when you take two distinctive singer-songwriters and put them in the studio for a day with a group of talented musicians. Get your hands on a copy of this stellar release and you’ll have your answer. The collection […]
Monday Morning Video: American Gun “Therapy”
Given that American Gun singer-songwriter Todd Mathis is a long-time contributor to Twangville, I’ll admit to a bit of bias when it comes to the band’s latest release. But there is only a bit of bias when I say that this is the way that rock and roll is supposed to be played. And by […]
Old Settler’s Music Festival 2011 Review
Every year at this time, a couple of weeks after all the glitterati have left South By, one of the best music festivals in the country kicks off 20 minutes outside of Austin: the Old Settler’s Music Festival. Â It’s a great mix of old and new talent, with enough people to get a good vibe […]
Readers’ Pick: Lucinda Williams, “Blessedâ€
READERS PICK: MARCH 2011 Twangville readers recently picked Lucinda Williams Blessed as their favorite album of March 2011. It seems like each time Williams releases a new album critics call it the best since Car Wheels On A Gravel Road. I guess that’s the consequence of having a Grammy-winning album. While comparisons will forever be […]
The Band Of Heathens – Top Hat Crown & the Clapmaster’s Son
I’m beginning to think The Band of Heathens are a little bit like Benjamin Button. Â Many well-known bands start with critically acclaimed albums, move to spending more time on the road, then abandon studio releases all together to milk their live performances. Â The Heathens started as a live-only phenomena and now, with their third release, […]
Monday Morning Video: The Return of the Rainmakers
Long-time followers of Twangville should be familiar with Bob Walkenhorst, one of my favorite songwriters. I first heard Walkenhorst as lead singer and primary songwriter for the Rainmakers. Well, 25 years since their first album — and 15 years since their most recent album — the Rainmakers have returned with a new release. Learn and […]
Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit – Here we Rest
I almost didn’t make it past the first song. “Alabama Pines”. Usually that would have bad conotations, but in this case the song was absolutely mesmerizing. It is a song centered around the area of Alabama where I grew up. It is not the first Isbell penned song to have such an impact. “Dress Blues”, […]
Bobby Long – A Winter Tale
English Folkster Bobby Long, the man with a name that (to me, at least) recalls more baseball and apple pie than London Bridge and Boddington’s, is back with an album that, at first blush, seems like a relatively stright-forward folk record, A Winter Tale. Sure, the album’s title has a certain Stratford-on-Avon feel to it, […]