ALBUMS OF THE MONTH Walking With a Stranger by Escondido It’s tempting to describe Escondido as cosmic country. Sure, that’s a core part of the duo’s sound. There’s a rock undercurrent and a musical tension, however, that pushes beyond the genre’s typical boundaries. Primary vocalist Jessica Maros has an ethereal voice but a healthy dose […]
SXSW 2016 – The Sounds, Part 3
And yet more favorites from SXSW 2016… Matthew Logan Vasquez It may have been just past noon, but the Delta Spirit front-man came to rock. Vasquez prowled around the stage while he and What Made Milwaukee Famous guitarist Michael Kingcaid traded some snarling guitar solos. His set leaned heavily on songs from Solicitor Returns, his […]
SXSW 2016 – The Sounds, Part 2
SXSW never lacks for great music, so here are more favorites from 2016. Ryan Adams One of the few relatively big budget corporate events this year was Marriott hosting a couple of nights of music at their downtown Austin location. It was an interesting venue as the ballroom setting made the shows feel sort of […]
SXSW 2016 – The Sounds, Part 1
We’re gonna start with the faves – these are the artists who delivered my favorite sets of SXSW 2016. JAVIER ESCOVEDO Escovedo didn’t do much talking but, then again, he didn’t have too. He and his crack band demolished the crowd with a two (sometimes three) guitar onslaught and the best set of straight-up rock […]
SXSW 2016 – The Scene
For me, the true harbinger of spring is the arrival of the SXSW Music and Media Conference in Austin, Texas. Or rather, spring begins for me when I arrive in Austin for SXSW. With upwards of 2,200 bands and more than 20,000 attendees from around the world, SXSW is the world’s premiere music conference. Even […]
Brett Harris Talks About Proposing to His Wife in a Song and Why He Tours With a Set of Running Shoes
Brett Harris talks about why he was more nervous for his first solo gig than he was singing in front of a large crowd at the National Cathedral and a particularly memorable – and meaningful – first song.
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 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 […]
Mayer’s Playlist for February 2016, Part 2
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH Meridian Rising by Paul Burch Paul Burch is a musician’s musician in the truest sense of the word. Admired by peers (who regularly lend their talents to his recordings), he is also ambitious with his musical exploration. Case in point – his latest release is a fictionalized take on the life […]
Mayer’s Playlist for February 2016, Part 1
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH Heavy Hearts, Hard Fists by Nikki Hill We’re gonna call this the best 2015 album that slipped by me last year. Better late than never, right? Hill’s sophomore release, the aptly titled Heavy Hearts, Hard Fists, hits like a punch in the gut. While her sound is rooted in old-school R&B, […]