With the size of a collective and the instruments of a bluegrass string band, Giving Tree band has a unique sonice texture. In their most recent release, they’ve moved further from the bluegrassy sound of “The Joke, The Threat and The Obvious.†“Vacilador†has a decidedly downtempo country feel with folk accents.  The second […]
Monday Morning Video: Big Star “September Gurls”
So I was waiting for months to post this song during the requisite month… and promptly forgot! Ah well, better late then never, right? Here’s Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens, joined by Posies Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow, on the Big Star classic.
Music With a Purpose: Joey’s Song, Volume 2
Musicians have a long tradition of giving. Sure, they give to all of us with the music that they share. Yet they also have a penchant for supporting meaningful causes. Over the next few weeks we will highlight several releases that demonstrate this giving spirit. You’ve got to admire perseverance, especially in pursuit of a […]
Robert Francis – Strangers in the First Place
 Americana? Rock? Alt-Country? Sometimes all the labels get tiresome and you just want to hear some good songwriting. Simple, emotional, powerful. On Robert Francis’ third record, he’s simplified the production, cleaned it up perhaps to a fault. That said, the polish hasn’t dulled the power of Francis’ melodic vocals. His direct vocal delivery and […]
Joanne Shaw Taylor – Almost Always Never
Joanne Shaw Taylor is in the vanguard of a group of driven, talented young European women who have taken on blues music – and taken no prisoners. Taylor, originally from Birmingham, England, has been playing professionally since she was a teenager (she toured with the Eurythmics’ Dave Stewart’s group D.U.P. when she was only 16) […]
Monday Morning Video: Jeff Tweedy and the Bottle Rockets
Here’s a cool one from the archives. In 1994 Brian Henneman of the Bottle Rockets, formerly the guitar tech for Uncle Tupelo, played lead guitar on Wilco’s debut, A.M. Twelve years later the two reunited when Tweedy joined the Bottle Rockets for a few songs at a Chicago club. Said Henneman, “I don’t know if […]
Chris Knight – Small Victories
Eli, Todd and Chip share their collective insights on the stellar new release from Chris Knight: Eli Peterson Chris Knight is the real deal. Dude is from Slaughters, Kentucky. That’s right. The town is named “Slaughtersâ€. Dude was a mine reclamation inspector for 10 years before he went to Nashville to give songwriting a try. […]
Americana Music Association Annual Awards
The yearly AMA awards kicked off with a bang in the delightful Ryman Auditorium in Nashville last week. Â The house band, Buddy Miller, Don Was, Larry Campbell, Brady Blade and Rami Jaffe, was joined by Booker T. Jones, who later took home the Lifetime Achievement Award for instrumentalist, on organ and Richard Thompson, Darrell Scott, […]
Monday Morning Video: Paul Westerberg
We’re gonna go a bit old school this week. Here is Paul Westerberg performing two gems from the Replacements’ catalog: “Achin’ to Be” and “Skyway.” As Westerberg says in his introduction, “I’m gonna play some tunes for you that I know pretty good and some old ones that I’ve forgotten completely.”
Leeroy Stagger- Radiant Land
Leeroy Stagger is a Twangville artist. What makes an musician a Twangville artist you may ask? In my mind, it’s an artist we here at Twangville think (a) is awesome and (b) should be appreciated by a greater number of people. Stagger is perhaps the epitome of such an artist. A Canadian singer songwriter who […]