You don’t rack up country credibility by wearing big hats and shiny shirts, although the current crop of Nashville movers and posers might suggest otherwise. Better to emulate the trajectory Ricky Skaggs has followed for the better part of the past four decades and return to your roots, or in…
For the first six albums, a dozen years into their collective career, the North Mississippi Allstars took a more traditional approach to their rural, rootsy designs, resulting in a sound that paid homage to blues by the book. Then again, that’s not surprising considering their family pedigree — two members…
Granted, the name Hungrytown suggests a Third-World municipality desperate for charitable donations. But it’s actually the handle for a husband-wife duo that purveys honest-to-goodness, down-home folk songs with an authentic old-time flair. Cast with fiddles, mandolins, banjos, bluegrass, and balladry, their self-titled debut boasts a rustic back porch feel that…
In the dozen or so years since the breakup of his band Black Janet, Jim Wurster has produced a steady stream of exemplary albums, both solo and at the helm of his Americana outfit, the Atomic Cowboys. In the process he has established himself as one of South Florida’s most…
Prior to assuming the frayed-ponytail persona, and long before the superstardom he snared in the Seventies, Willie Nelson was just another strait-laced, short-haired Nashville tunesmith cranking out hits for others. His songs — “Crazy,” “Funny How Time Slips Away,” “Hello Walls,” and “Night Life” among them — went on to…
When you’re in a world-famous rock band, having your frontman meet an unexpected demise can really be a major annoyance. At the very least, it makes you rethink your future. Take what happened when Jim Morrison OD’ed in that Paris bathtub — the remaining Doors gamely put out two albums…
For a guy who’s been credited as the godfather of “cosmic country,” Gram Parsons hasn’t exactly been well represented when it comes to concert recordings. This goes for his solo work as well as the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers, two of the most influential ensembles of which he…
There are certain riffs that are forever emblazoned in the soundtrack of rock and roll: the Beatles’ “Day Tripper,” the Stones’ “Satisfaction,” the Kinks’ “You Really Got Me,” Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love,” Hendrix’s “Purple Haze.” Then there’s the opening guitar lick to “Locomotive Breath,” the inevitable showstopper at any…
Miami Beach may be famous for many things — celebrity cachet, club chic, thongs, and a dearth of parking spaces. But it’s generally not known for birthing rock stars. So when singer/guitarist/songwriter Roger Houdaille proclaims himself a Miami Beach homeboy, it doesn’t necessarily affirm his credibility or credentials. Then again,…
The Thrills’ 2003 debut, So Much for the City, was an idealistic homage to the California myth, as filtered through the Day-Glo haze of wistful Seventies euphoria. Its idyllic imagery summoned up endless vistas of surf and sand, idealized and admired from a vantage point somewhat distant and distinct. It’s…
With his second solo disc — after previously helming local outfit Legends of Rodeo — Florida homeboy John Ralston builds on the strength of his critically acclaimed debut, Needle Bed. He has created something akin to a seminal milestone. Finding the perfect mix of attitude and ambiance, Ralston crafts a…
On his third full-length, baby-face Ben Kweller has raised the bar, not only for his own budding career, but also for his competition. Despite its unassuming and eponymous title, Ben Kweller provides an effusive, exuberant, and wholly infectious example of classic pop pageantry, boasting more hooks than a fishing fleet…
After 10 years or so, the members of Mendoza Line are still mining their original choice of topics: dashed hopes, failed relationships, and the uncertainties of life in the modern era. The band’s latest two-disc opus clings to this tangled trajectory, maintaining a decidedly downcast gaze. Therefore those unfamiliar with…
I admit it — I don’t like cover bands. In fact I’ve never heard a cover band that can substitute for the original record. My wife tells me I can’t appreciate cover bands because I don’t dance, and she’s right on that score; every time I attempt to gyrate, I…
Rich Ulloa can’t contain his enthusiasm. Here he is, arms full of scrapbooks, three of the 20 volumes he has meticulously compiled since the early Nineties. They comprise every scrap of paper having anything to do with singer-songwriter Mary Karlzen. She’s one of the more prolific artists he has managed,…
Adopting the guise of roots revisionist, musical journeyman, and trad troubadour, John Doe has taken an unexpected tangent since parting ways with X, the apocalyptic punk group he helmed in the Eighties. And with every twist of his trajectory and each succeeding album, Doe’s reputation has ratcheted up accordingly. So…
Although Frank Black’s tenure at the helm of the Pixies overshadows his solo career, his individual efforts deserve this recap, an extensive compilation of 23 tracks culled from a decade’s worth of recordings. Archivists, take note: The track list stops just short of the more pensive material contained in Honeycomb,…
This latest disc from San Francisco singer, songwriter, and audio auteur John Vanderslice was borne from mitigating circumstances, mostly having to do with immigration authorities denying his French girlfriend a visa. Apparently the legal limbo had a tumultuous effect on his psyche, because it reverberates in the skittish melodies and…
Okay, so Rocky Votolato hardly seems like the kind of guy you’d count on to be the life of the party. His languid vocals and low-key ruminations rarely rise above a whisper, and when they do, it’s only to express some sense of dread or discontent. Up until now, that…
Since launching his solo career in 2000 — after helping redefine the alt-country concept with Whiskeytown — Ryan Adams has made overachievement something of a musical mantra: He released three albums in 2005 alone. Still, in Adams’s case, quantity hasn’t always equated with quality, and critics have complained that he…
The University of Miami School of Music boasts some notable alumni, two of the best known being Pat Metheny and Bruce Hornsby. Only time will tell whether Sam Friend will reach their level, but if his first EP is any indication, this 22-year-old UM grad is off to a good…
The Police reunion has been hailed as the musical event of the millennium. But an online missive from drummer Stewart Copeland, following the opening date of the band’s North American tour, in Vancouver, warned all was not well. Mentions of miscues and onstage fumbles suggested that after an absence of…
