I love a good story with a happy ending. Who doesn’t love happy endings? So way back, Ben sand Emily Roberts almost called it quits until that fateful moment when a woman in a grocery story praised the duo and told them not to give up. And they didn’t. If that isn’t a Cinderella Story, please correct me. I didn’t think so.
Better get a whole fuckin’ box of tissues for this album. I am not even kidding. Everything you thought you knew about the singing Jewish cowboy from Illinois that lives in Texas, needs to be thrown out the window. This isn’t just a fun-loving album that Kinky is known for. The humor is not as prominent as in years past, but the humor has been replaced with some of the most thought provoking songwriting I have been exposed to in quite a while.
Right in my wheelhouse. Irreverent rock and roll with a sturdy foundation of power pop. Not too shabby for just three fellas. That’s a lot of sound from three peeps. I was, and still am, totally obsessed with power trios. The good ones, of course. I put Jeremy Porter & The Tucos in that category. All of the guys in the band sing and play at the same time. I have trouble doing two things simultaneously so when I see folks do it well, it really impresses me. Let me introduce you to the boys in the band. We got: Jeremy Porter on guitars, vocals, organ, piano, and harmonica; Gabriel Doman on drums, percussion, and vocals; and, Patrick O’Harris on bass and vocals. All of the guys are expert multitaskers.(more…)
Four songs? I want more! This EP is too good to be this short. This is like eating just one potato chip, it’s impossible. Well, maybe some people can do that. I cannot. This is the same situation. It is a good conundrum to have. That means there is real quality here, which is restating the obvious.
Dynamite. That’s my first thought. This is some very compelling music. I was just looking for new music and I came across “How To Be Okay Alone”. Normally, I will listen to a few bars of each track and then pass it on to the “To Be Reviewed” folder. I didn’t do that this time. I listened from start to finish. Then I went back for another round. I was just wanting to hear the next note. When the album ended, I had no choice but to to rewind. (more…)
If you scraped the residual aural DNA accumulated on the walls and floors of this legendary venue over the past 30 years and reconstituted it Jurassic Park-style, the artist created would be Charley Crockett. On this warm holiday weekend evening at FitzGerald’s, the epicenter of Chicago’s American Music scene, Charley Crockett blended his soulful baritone voice across a 34-song whirlybird set to the delight of the beer-swiggin’ honky tonkin’ audience. (more…)
This is true “tear in my beer” honky tonk. And I am loving every second of this. It makes me want to cry and it is also completely uplifting. I guess it’s the same as looking at the car accident or putting your tongue in your cavity, even though you know it is going to lead to excruciating pain. People like living on the edge. This is about as “living on the edge” as I get. The bigger point is that Joshua Hedley is able to evoke real live emotion. And that is downright impressive. (more…)
