The Whipsaws are a bar band…. a glorious, alt. country ass kicking bar band. Just listen to the tossed off rock and roll of their sophomore effort, 60 Watt Avenue. Though Neil Young is the easiest influence to infer as the band moves from Crazy Horse style rockers to Harvest-era ballads with ease, the Whipsaws […]
Celebrating Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens & the Big Bopper
The rumors were fast and furious. Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton and the Rolling Stones were mentioned. I even heard Ozzy Osbourne, although that may have been a town local toying with me. The occasion? 50 Winters Later, a special concert honoring the legacy of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper. The […]
Mayer’s Playlist for October 2008, A Video Companion
October’s video companion kicks off with live performances from Joseph Arthur & the Lonely Astronauts and Matt Mays & El Torpedo, two of our featured artists. Then we settle into a nice groove with live performances from Dar Williams, Sometymes Why, Gretel, Dan Baird, Backyard Tire Fire, Brandi Carlile, Jesse Malin, Paul Weller and the […]
Twangville Cinema: Johnny Cash’s America
As a lover of music and also as a documentary geek, it doesn’t get any better for me than when I get my hands on a well done film that chronicles the artistic life of one of our greatest legends. I have enjoyed films that showcase up and comers, like Dig! for example (featuring Brian […]
Country with Muscle – John D. Hale Band & Back Porch Mary
I have been very clear (or not, probably not) in the past that I have grown weary of musical-genre labels that either fail to make much sense, or simply don’t really define much (“Red-Dirt” anyone??). Having said that, I have recently began espousing a labeling philosophy that I think suits me just fine. If the […]
Bo Diddley, 1928-2008
Sarah Borges & The Broken Singles, On the Run
A short stay in Austin for SXSW 08 didn’t afford me the opportunity to catch any performances by Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles but we did catch up briefly at the Guitartown party at Mother Egan’s on the first day of the music festival. This is one of the hottest acts around. Do yourself […]
Bad to the Bone, 25 Years Later
I had forgotten how good George Thorogood and the Destroyers are. The commercial success of the song “Bad to the Bone” and several of the songs on the album of the same name numbed my perspective of their talent. We’ve heard songs like “Bad to the Bone”, “Nobody But Me” and “No Particular Place to […]
Sarah Borges & The Broken Singles, Live at IOTA
Sarah Borges & The Broken Singles at IOTA (8/10/07) I hit the IOTA Club & Cafe Friday night to catch the Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles performance. And what a performance it was. I had previously only seen them once before at a beer festival in the middle of the afternoon. Let me tell […]
Sarah Borges & The Broken Singles + More, Album Previews
Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles, Diamonds in the Dark (Full CD) Now here’s a record to get excited about. I’ve had high anticipations for this record ever since catching Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles live last summer at the Old Dominion Beer Festival. Since then they’ve signed with Sugar Hill Records which can […]