This video, from a 2013 performance in Germany, is making the rounds again. For the young bands out there, this is how it’s done. For everyone else, ain’t this the joy of music? And a bit more from the Bruce Springsteen glory of rock and roll file. ’cause once you get started, it’s hard to […]
Mayer’s Picks – the Best of 2017 (So Far), the Albums
It’s been a good year for music so far this year (and the rest of the year is looking quite nice, too). Here, in no particular order, are some of my favorite releases from the first half of 2017. BIG BAD LUV by JOHN MORELAND It’s not too late to get on the Moreland train […]
Back in the Saddle Again – a Special Twangville Playlist, Part 4
Sallisaw Blue, John Moreland (from the 4AD release Big Bad Luv) It speaks volumes when some of Americana’s leading lights are, pardon the pun, singing an artist’s praises. Such is the case with Oklahoma boy Moreland. Perhaps they are captivated with his profound storytelling, simple tales that overflow with emotion and meaning. Or maybe it’s […]
Monday Morning Video – K Phillips
There’s something about sitting outside listening to music on a hot summer night. All the better when the performer is someone like K Phillips. Dirty Wonder, his latest release, veers from straight-on rock to Texas red dirt country to hook-heavy pop, all with the soulful swagger that has become the singer-songwriter’s hallmark. Here’s a tasty […]
Back in the Saddle Again – a Special Twangville Playlist, Part 3
Battle Born, Matthew Ryan (from the self-released Hustle Up Starling) I tend to judge the quality of a year in part based on the caliber of new music unleashed within them. In that light, any year that we get a new album from Matthew Ryan is well on its way to being a good one. […]
Steve Earle – So You Wannabe An Outlaw
Steve Earle is back. He may have never really left, but “So You Wannabe An Outlaw” stands beside his best albums (and there are many). It sounds like his classic period from the 80s up through his classic Transcendental Blues in 2000 (without the early 90s records during his descent into drug addiction). Earle has […]
Monday Morning Video – The Texas Gentlemen
Ready to get your jam on? Although they’ve only formally been a band a few years, The Texas Gentlemen have already proven themselves to be musicians of the highest order. Just ask folks like Leon Bridges, Nikki Lane, Paul Cauthen and Kris Kristofferson. They are just a few of the artists who have enlisted the […]
Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires – Youth Detention
There is only one way to listen to a Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires album…. LOUD!!! Don’t worry about disturbing the neighbors. Just crank it up and wake up the whole neighborhood. On their new album, Youth Detention, the band combines their power chord driven Southern Rock and Blues influences with a Punk […]
Monday Morning Video – Rod Melancon
Los Angeles-based singer/guitarist Rod Melancon likes to write songs about his formative years growing up in Louisiana. These are richly colorful tales, or more to the point vivid characters, often based on real people and occurrences. If his debut album from focused on the youthful innocence (and exuberance), his sophomore release takes on much darker […]
A Twangville Premiere: Celebrating Father’s Day with Matthew Logan Vasquez
I don’t have any kids of my own but, from what I’ve heard from those that do, there’s a certain irony to the title of Matthew Logan Vasquez’s new album entitled Does What He Wants. The idea that a new-ish parent, rock musician or not, can do what he or she wants when there is […]