“Pretty Polly” with a chugging rhythm that hints at krautrock? Roots music never fails to surprise. Vermont native Sam Amidon continues an experimental approach to his craft on his latest, a self-titled LP for Nonesuch. Over nine takes on traditional […]
In America and the world over right now, there’s pent-up desire to celebrate something. But a heaviness looms over the whole human experience. From a pandemic to systemic racism to eroding or nonexistent human rights at home and abroad, there’s […]
In terms of musicality, lyrical depth and pure swagger, there are few country music legends who compare to the late, great Merle Haggard. With a 50-year career that included the expected ebbs and flows, there’s much art to explore, consider, […]
A careening sense of abandon courses through the self-titled debut of the scrappy Nashville threesome Country Westerns. A powerful and compelling 33-minute rock album via the Oxford, Mississippi, label Fat Possum, County Westerns recalls pre-pandemic glory, seemingly ready made for […]
Darrell Scott struggles to pick just one favorite song from Hank Williams, an artist who left an indelible mark on his childhood. There’s “Alone and Forsaken.” Or maybe “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry.” Broadly, it’s “the sadder the better,” […]
Apocalypse references are popular here at the turn of the decade, and veteran singer-songwriter David Dondero kicks off 2020 with a stark, end-times image. “Take a selfie with a mushroom cloud / as the backdrop while I smile so proud,” […]
“Keep it simple,” Jeb Loy Nichols instructs on the 22-second “Intro” that leads off his new album, June is Short, July is Long. The album, credited to Jeb Loy Nichols and The Westwood All-Stars, sticks to that commitment across its […]
Sound & Fury, Sturgill Simpson’s fourth and latest release, is not his most melodic album. That’s High Top Mountain. Nor is Sound & Fury the hard-to-classify Kentucky native’s most consistent record. That’s Metamodern Sounds in Country Music. But Sound & […]
Compounded by generations of unwavering respect to the music and self-imposed rigidity, bluegrass continues to be highly wary of change. The genre often is stagnant to the point of self-parody. Tradition is rich and reverent, but it’s also stifling to […]
After a five-year album break, the indie rock heroes of The Hold Steady return with a pummeling confidence and reach back to glory days right at the top of their seventh LP with “Denver Haircut,” a focused story song about […]
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