Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

Yes! This is what I am talkin’ about! The Ramalamas are out of Sydney, Australia and they got it going on. They describe their music as part Ronnie Lane and part Ronnie Wood. An appropriate description for starters. I would like to go one step further and throw in the entire Rolling Stones and some Old 97s for good measure. The first song, Can’t Put You Down is what would happen if the Exile era Stones and the Old 97s had a love child. This song would be their spawn. This music is loud, aggressive, and full of a shitload of attitude. And I love every second of it. These guys have been making music for about ten years now and practice has definitely paid off. They are loose when they wanna be, but a very tight musical outfit. (more…)

 Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

Hell yeah! Some nice twangy, somewhat distorted, country rock! I have been pining for this for a little while now. I didn’t head south, either. I headed north because these fellas are from Beantown. There are quite a few good country/Americana/roots rock bands in the Boston area and add These Wild Plains to that list. They have been together since 2012 and have been quite prolific in their time together. This is their second full length album, but they have released a few EPs and singles along the way as well. They have opened for acts such as Futurebirds, The Sadies, and Deer Tick.  (more…)

Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

Shrouded in mystery are The Magnetisers. I was searching for information on this band to do my prep for the review. I reached out to them, or who I thought was them, and their label sent me a very nice and thoughtful email response. They told me that they really don’t have much information to share about The Magnetisers. This is a project made up of members of other bands in Minnesota and Wisconsin. They want the music to be able to speak for them instead of any superfluous information. Well if the music could speak, it would be giving the Gettysburg Address. Maybe I embellish a little, but the music is downright fantastic. And I like that fact that there is limited information. It adds to the mystique of The Magnetisers. It also makes me work a little harder as a reviewer, but I am up for the challenge. (more…)

Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

“The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.” That is a quote by Leo Tolstoy that is quite pertinent as I listen to The Hornet’s Nest. This was not one that I warmed up to immediately. It is sparse and a bit on the slower side. But I hung in there, and by the third listen I loved it and found myself humming the tunes. So my advice is hang in there a bit and your patience will be rewarded. (more…)

Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

Guy Clark isn’t exactly a household name, which is very unfortunate. He has been called the greatest songwriter of the last 50 years. That puts him in some lofty company with the likes of Dylan, Prine, and Van Zandt. Before his death on May 17, 2016, Clark had 13 studio albums to his credit. That doesn’t even include the songs that have been recorded by others. He never did well in the charts but his songs had success being recorded by other artists. Some of the artists that have recorded Clark’s songs include Jerry Jeff Walker, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, and Kenny Chesney. (more…)

Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

Zito proves that the blues are still a vibrant and exciting musical genre. There is a tendency for blues music to sound very similar and hard to distinguish individual songs. Zito completely tears that myth down on Make Blues Not War by showing his versatility. Not only is Zito a world class guitar player, he is a great singer. This album mixes blues with rock and roll, southern rock and swamp rock to create an album that is infectious and each song is distinct. Zito can sing his tail off, but every song comes back to the guitar and his playing is smokin’. (more…)

Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

Shinyribs started as a side project of Kevin Russell in 2007 when The Gourds weren’t touring . Since then, Shinyribs have released 3 albums and are about to release their 4th, I Got Your Medicine. Since The Gourds went on sabbatical in 2013, Shinyribs went from a side project to a full fledged act. They got the personnel and the material to successfully navigate that transition. I may say there was very little transition at all. Before I forget, I just wanted to say that Shinyribs actually have some flute parts in I Got Your Medicine. I was just thinking the other day, what ever happened to flute in rock and roll? And my question was answered by Shinyribs.  (more…)

Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

Matt North has done more in his 47 years than most people have done in a lifetime. At age 15, he worked backstage at Farm Aid I in Champaign, IL picking up trash and states that day cemented his decision to pursue a career in music. After dropping out of college and forfeiting his music scholarship at the University of North Texas, North drove a Yellow Checker Cab while drumming in John Garvey’s University of Illinois Jazz Band from 1989-92. (more…)