Residing in a neighborhood where Captain Beefheart and 70s AM radio not only coexist but share the same turntable, Tim Rutili’s band Califone examines the strange landscape of villagers. It is, to say the least, an interesting trip, one where…
Ceremony seems to suggest formality, yet Tiny Ruins new album is far less formal than the title suggests. Hollie Fullbrook wrote the album during walks with her dogs along the turbulent landscape of “Old Murky” – Tāmaki Makaurau’s (aka Auckland’s)…
Esther Rose has lived a bit of a nomadic existence, and now living in Santa Fe, after stays in Columbiaville, Michigan; and New Orleans, Safe to Run suggests that trading places has had a certain appeal. It’s as if she…
Sometimes things just don’t fit. Angel Olsen had that problem with ‘Nothing’s Free’, the first track from her new EP, Forever Means. Soulful in a way that the other songs on Big Time weren’t, it became obvious it wouldn’t make…
Creating one of the densest openings a song has ever had, The New Pornographers take ‘Really, Really Light’ from Continue as a Guest and rather than sounding soft and reflective they almost sound like Electric Light Orchestra. Everything jangles and…
“My God it’s good to see you/ Right here in the flesh.” With that Celebrants takes a look at what has gone on in the nine years since Nickel Creek released their last LP. Times and people change. Examining that…
Inspiration can come from anywhere. In the case of Almost A Sunset by Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman it seems to come from everywhere. Gargoyles, Robin Hood, tight rope walkers, even lions in revolt are spun into gold by the…
Life works in mysterious ways, Iris DeMent nearly gave up on the songs from Workin’ On A World, the album that had its genesis after America’s 2016 presidential anomaly. By 2020 the recordings helmed by Richard Bennet and Jim Rooney…
The Unthanks have always taken risks, how else can you explain covering King Crimson’s ‘Starless’? Yet when Rachel Unthank joined with Maximo Park’s Paul Smith as Unthank : Smith on Nowhere and Everywhere, no one really knew what to expect.…
Mark Erelli could have made a record of resignation, instead Lay Your Darkness Down is a record of empowerment. We live in a light that is ever waning. The landscapes get more shadowed, yet it has its own structure, nuance…