Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
Raw, raucous, good time party music. The music is upbeat and just downright fun. Lots of funk and pretty awesome guitar licks. They have picked up a lot of elements from other bands and seem to blend them nicely in their sound. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
Blue Shift is a live album and was released along with another live album entitled Red Shift. For a live album, this is recorded flawlessly. Without the audience applause, there is no other indication that this was recorded live. The songs are sung and played so well, it sounds like a studio recording. Echo Bloom is more of an even than a musical group. Their music is full of surprises. The music is extremely rich and symphonic. At times it is more akin to opera than rock music. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
Super talented artist that is a one man band on the road. He plays guitar, drums, and sings all at once. It really is something to see. Some artists have trouble playing guitar and singing simultaneously. Add a drum to that and you have something that is nearly impossible to replicate, let alone excel at. Alex can do it and do it well. Who needs a band, when you can do it all. Alex hails from Fredericksburg, VA, but he is always out on the road, playing. Honing his skills as a troubadour extraordinaire. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
The name Peter Himmelman has been quite ubiquitous since the 80s. This Minnesota native is Bob Dylan’s son in law, which gives him instant musical street cred. But Peter Himmelman is more than just Bob Dylan’s son in law. He is also gifted in the art of song writing and composition. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
If you like your music straight-up without any twists and turns, walk away. However, if you like your music on the unconventional side, step forward. By unconventional, I mean with a pretty large helping of weirdness. Of course weirdness is always welcome here. TwangriLa is a defender of the off-kilter and unorthodox. Slim Cessn’a Auto Club (SCAC) is safe here with me. This album was originally released in 2008, but it still sounds perfectly suited for today. Cipher is not dated in the least bit. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
It’s all in the voice when discussing A Different Thread. Well, not all in the voice, but certainly the voice is the first thing that jumps out at me. Robert Jackson is the vocalist and his voice is one of those one in 100 year voices. It is jazzy, bluesy, and also a bit of that standards singer voice from the 40s and 50s. In the vain of Sinatra and Dean Martin. I know that is a lofty comparison, but Jackson’s vocals are in the stratosphere. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
This album plays like a personal diary. The songs and stories are so personal and intimate that I feel like I know the characters. Steele has a fantastic ability of turning a three minute song into a full story with a beginning middle and end. These are songs about struggle, heartbreak, addiction, and drinking, as well as other blue collar issues. This is a working man’s album. That is in no means meant as a slight. It is just that Randy understands the actions and emotions of the general populace and is able to articulate those experiences into tangible works of art. Not an easy task, by any means. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
I am coining a new genre name to describe the Raw Beets: garage-folk-funk-experimental-bluegrass. That’s a long one, I know. I wanted to give Raw Beets the proper number of words to praise this EP. In this case, I am going to throw word economy out the window. The whole EP is fours songs and clocks in at 14 minutes. All the songs are so well done (two covers and two originals), that this totally captivated me. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
Elmwood Park is very contradictory. It can be happy and sad, loud and soft, and, pretty and ugly. These songs are written right on the sleeve of songwriter and performer, Darrin Bradbury. I saw Darrin on June 25th opening for Ray Wylie Hubbard. Immediately, images of Todd Snider and John Prine came to mind. Those are the other two songwriters that can effectively add humor and still have the songs be profound. Well, add Darrin Bradbury to this short list. (more…)
Reviewed by Harry Kaplan
Holy water! Something completely novel and refreshing. There is true synthesis here. Too Sad For The Public mixes more genres than a soda jerk at Baskin Robbins does with 31 flavors. The second song is concrete evidence of my previous statement. Liberty City, Pt. 1 is a flat out, knock em drag out of the highest order. Let’s not forget Parts 2 & 3 either! This song mixes country, jazz, big band, bluegrass, folk, reggae, and funk to create a completely original composition. This will be the 4th time listening to this track, at the time of writing. (more…)
