This gallery contains 1 photo.
Ben Harper with Charlie Musselwhite Get Up! (Stax) There’s always been a bluesman bottled up inside slide guitarist Ben Harper. Subtle elements of the blues can found even in his most hook-laden rock songs. With harp virtuoso Charlie Musselwhite, Harper … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Neal Casal isn’t exactly a household name, though the guitarist has worked with a diverse collection of artists including The Jayhawks, Willie Nelson, Lucinda Williams, Phil Lesh and Rufus Wainwright, spent four years as lead guitarist with Ryan Adams & … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Van Morrison : Born To Sing: No Plan B (Blue Note) After 50 years as an uncompromising musical innovator always following his muse, the arrival of every Van Morrison album is something of a crapshoot. While it’s certain that Van … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
The Whigs: Enjoy The Company (New West) With a bratty attitude and snarling guitars among crooked, yet catchy melodies on their breakthrough Give Em All a Big Fat Lip, The Whigs secured their rightful place near the top of the gritty indie … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
The Orb (feat. Lee Scratch Perry): The Observer in the Star House (The End/Cooking Vinyl) Respected for its unmatchable ambient house and electronic music, The Orb—Alex Paterson and Thomas Fehlmann—delve into stripped-down dub plates for experimental producer and dub pioneer … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Only Willie Nelson could sing “Roll me up and smoke me when I die” and have the idea seem, well, actually plausible. The country music legend and admitted pot smoker would probably give off a pretty good buzz. Heroes (Legacy) offers … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Carlos Santana’s guitar tone and sustain-powered solos are instantly recognizable and, with a few exceptions, the musical composition remains pretty regular if not formulaic. That said, Santana always finds ways to make his songs stand out. On Shape Shifter, two things … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Tennis Young and Old (Fat Possum) The Wikipedia entryabout Tennis labels the band as “surf-pop.” Yet there isn’t anything Beach Boys-like about this Denver-based husband-wife team, save for some rich vocal harmonies. Atmospheric pop and even power pop better describe … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Robert Randolph and The Family Band Live in Concert (Dare) Early in Robert Randolph’s career, his over-the-top gospel-infused pedal steel playing burned with desire, frequently veering into on-the-edge Hendrix-esque territory. A good thing then, this live album reveals what a … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Joe Henry Reverie (Anti) Modern day troubadour Joe Henry picks his way through the American musical landscape on Reverie, the follow up to 2009’s powerful Blood From Stars. Henry doesn’t have a problem looking to the fading past for present-day inspiration. From … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Lisa Hannigan Passenger (ATO) Lisa Hannigan’s work is shrouded in subtle intensity. One aspect comes from Hannigan’s voice, which is frequently haunting, occasionally wailing, jazzy, gravelly or weighted with bluesy drawl, but always in command at the forefront—the main instrument. … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Tom Morello The Nightwatchman World Wide Rebel Songs (New West) Though Tom Morello’s 2008 solo acoustic work as The Nightwatchman was considered a radical image departure, World Wide Rebel Songs has Morello flirting with a variety of musical idioms while … Continue reading
This gallery contains 2 photos.
Mickey Hart Band Compound Grill, Phoenix, Ariz. December 6, 2011 Space is the place… It always has been in some form with the Grateful Dead, and it’s where drummer Mickey Hart currently finds inspiration. And that’s space in the literal … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Grateful Dead: Road Trips Vol. 4 No. 4 Philadelphia Spectrum April 5-6, 1982 At the core of this latest Road Trips offering comes a well-known and revered concert: Philadelphia Spectrum, April 6, 1982. From the opening notes of a bustling … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
Jayhawks Mockingbird Time (Rounder) Mockingbird Time is the first album from The Jayhawks original lineup in 15 years. What’s 15 years when the result is an album like this? That’s the time gap since the original Jayhawks recorded together, yet … Continue reading
