We lost Johnny Winter last week. Johnny, known for his blistering fast guitar playing, burst onto the national scene as a solo act in the late 1960s. A guitar prodigy, Johnny and younger brother Edgar – both albino – had formed a band as they were growing up in Beaumont, Texas, and had a single released when Johnny […]
Mayer’s Picks: The Best of 2014, So Far (the Songs)
Rubicon, Chris Mills (from the Loud Romantic Records release Alexandria) Mills lulls you in with a lilting melody before unleashing the jaw-dropping emotion of lyrics and voice. The results are heartwrenching. Really Wanna See You, Lydia Loveless (from the Bloodshot Records release Somewhere Else) This is the way rock and roll is supposed to sound: […]
Tommy Ramone, 1952 – 2014
Mayer’s Picks – The Best of 2014, So Far (the Albums)
The year is off to a strong start and I expect that it will only get better. Here, in no particular order, are some of my favorite releases from the first half of 2014. SOMEWHERE ELSE by LYDIA LOVELESS “Simply bad-ass” is the phrase that overwhelms my thinking every time I give this album a […]
Jesse Winchester, In Memoriam
April is shaping up as a difficult world in the world of music. This past week we lost Jesse Winchester, whose soft-spoken style belied the power of his songs. Here are two magical Winchester performances. The first is an early (and often covered) classic “Defying Gravity.” The second is the celebrated appearance on Elvis Costello’s […]
SXSW 2014 — Say What?!
One of my favorite parts of SXSW is the crazy things you see and hear along the way. Here are a few choice selections. We’ve got about 20 minutes to make you love us. Chris Masterson stating what could be the SXSW mantra. One in, one out. The other SXSW mantra, overheard at the men’s […]
SXSW 2014 — The Sounds, Part 2
DAVE AND PHIL ALVIN I’m a big Dave Alvin fan. Unfortunately for me I discovered the Blasters, the seminal band co-founded by Dave and his brother Phil, after they went their separate ways. I was hooked, though, on their encyclopedic knowledge of American music — everything from folk to country and from blues to vintage […]
SXSW 2014 — The Sounds, Part 1
THE HOLD STEADY While I may not be as crazy as my friend who chased the band around Austin for the band’s 7 planned shows, I wasn’t going to pass up a chance to see the Brooklyn rockers celebrate their first album in 4 years. I accompanied said friend to the front of the stage […]
SXSW 2014 — 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 2,500 bands and 20,000 attendees from around the world, SXSW is the world’s premiere music conference. Even better, it […]
In Memoriam – Dave Lamb
Dave Lamb of the Providence, RI-based duo Brown Bird passed away this past weekend. The circumstances are heart-wrenching. Lamb fell ill with mysterious symptoms while touring Texas last year. In a tale that is all too familiar, Lamb had no insurance. Fortunately, he was able to get home and secure insurance for what became a […]