Brian Q. Newcomb 
Keith Kenny Lifetime Ago MoteliNtuRecords [2021] New Jersey indie recording artist Keith Kenny’s fifth album is a testament to the persistence and innovation required to thrive as a singer/songwriter in the digital age, made all the worse by the forced touring sabbatical required due to the pandemic. Kenny’s career as a band-of-one allowed him to … Read more
The Choir Deep CutsGalaxy21 Music [2021] Originally formed in the 80’s, The Choir’s long creative partnership between singer and guitarist Derri Daugherty and drummer and lyricist Steve Hindalong continues to reap rich musical rewards on the band’s 16th studio album. While no band thrives through multiple decades without some willingness to adapt to changing musical … Read more
Bill Mallonee & The Big Sky Ramblers A Clamoring Of GhostsSelf-Released [2021] Bill Mallonee knows all the words, and he’s not afraid to use them. After 10 years of slogging it out on road throughout the 90’s, as the singer/songwriter that came to define Athens, GA alternative rock band, Vigilantes of Love through a … Read more
The Natvral TethersKanine Records [2021] As the leader of NYC indiepop band The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Kip Berman & Co. leaned into noisy pop of My Bloody Valentine and the 80’s melodic hooks favored by bands like the Psychedelic Furs and Echo & the Bunnymen. When that band broke up in 2017, … Read more
Josh Caterer The Hideout SessionsPravda Records [2021] Back in October, Smoking Popes’ vocalist and main songwriter Josh Caterer put together a new band, with John San Juan (of the Hushdrops) and John Perrin (drummer with NRBQ), and played a live show in the empty venue of The Hideout in Chicago, sending their music out over … Read more
Ghost Of Vroom Ghost Of Vroom 1Mod y Vi Records [2021] The story goes something like this: after making 3 critically acclaimed albums in the 90’s with Soul Coughing, a NYC band that distinguished itself from that decades heavy grunge/rock dominance with what Mike Doughty calls his “quasi-rap thing” delivered over the band’s unique mix … Read more
Peter Case The Midnight BroadcastBandaloop Music [2021] Singer/songwriter Peter Case’s first brush with mainstream rock star level fame came when his band the Plimsoul’s appeared in the 1983 cult classic movie, “Valley Girl,” which featured Nicholas Cage. The band was featured playing “A Million Miles Away,” their near-hit, and a couple other live songs in … Read more
Too Much Joy Mistakes Were MadePeople Suck Music [2021] Along with the quick arrival of life saving vaccines, you can count the return to recording by the late 80’s/early 90’s power pop/punk rockers Too Much Joy as something good that came from our year of COVID-19 shut-down. The Scarsdale, NY natives achieved a modicum of … Read more
Jay Gonzalez Back To The HiveMiddlebrow Records [2021] Athens, GA musician Jay Gonzalez joined Drive-By Truckers in 2008, filling in for Spooner Oldham on keyboards, and eventually sharing lead guitar duties with Mike Cooley to compensate for the absence of third guitarist Jason Isbell. Left to his own devices on this second full-length solo album, … Read more
Lake Street Dive ObviouslyNonesuch Records [2021] Lake Street Dive have carved out a unique place on the current musical landscape rooted in time honored pop music songcraft informed by classic R&B, with just the right dash of dance floor funk, delivered in jazzy arrangements that push the soulful lead vocals of Rachel Price to the … Read more
Har Mar Superstar RosevilleLove OnLine Records [2021] I’ll admit that the first and only time I saw Har Mar Superstar play live, opening for Afghan Whigs in Cincinnati in the Fall of 2017, more than once in the band’s nearly hour long set I wondered if it was a joke, that somebody had forgotten to … Read more
Todd Rundgren: Clearly Human Live Virtual Tour; Cleveland, OH (via Chicago, IL) – Monday, February 22, 2021 Anyone who’s paid attention to the technology of live concert touring, would not be surprised to learn that long-time early adapter, rocker, and producer Todd Rundgren would be one of the first people to reimagine live music experiences … Read more
Nick Cave & Warren Ellis CarnageGoliath Records [2021] The one time I was able to see the Australian band Nick Cave & The Bad Seed play live, they delivered a set in the afternoon on the 1994 version of the Lollapalooza festival, the year Beastie Boys and Smashing Pumpkins were the headliners. Fresh from the … Read more
Maxïmo Park Nature Always WinsProlifica Inc. [2021] British trio, Maxïmo Park combine the big, rock guitars of modern rock acts with the catchy electro-pop melodicism of 80’s new wave on their solid seventh full-length album, Nature Always Wins. With the departure of long-time keyboard player Lukas Wooller, the remaining trio of players have regrouped to … Read more
Joyann Parker Out Of The DarkHopeless Romantic Records [2021] Joyann Parker, a Minneapolis-based singer/songwriter, brings her big, soulful voice to a set of originals that lean toward the traditional pop side of Americana’s spectrum of musical influences, from rootsy R&B to blues, country and rock & roll. Parker co-writes with her band’s guitarist Mark Lamoine, … Read more
Jeff Johnson & Phil Keaggy RavennaArkMusic [2021] Ravenna is the fourth instrumental collaboration from keyboardist Jeff Johnson and guitarist Phil Keaggy, this time inspired by 5th and 6th century mosaics from the Byzantine era, housed in 8 early Christian monuments in Ravenna, Italy, all now on the World Heritage List. As such this lush, layered … Read more
The Hold Steady Open Door PolicyPositive Jams/Thirty Tigers [2021] At this point, with 7 studio albums under their belt since debuting on the scene in 2004, The Hold Steady have locked down a pretty reliable piece of rock & roll real estate around the storytelling narratives of singer/songwriter Craig Finn. The band’s 2019 album, aptly … Read more
The Weather Station IgnoranceFat Possum Records [2021] With the fifth album from her band The Weather Station, Canadian singer/songwriter Tamara Lindeman has expanded her band’s sonic palette to include a fuller sound that includes a richer, jazzier sound carried in the percussion and the increased textures achieved by the addition of saxophone, flute and in … Read more
Foo Fighters Medicine At MidnightRoswell/RCA Records [2021] Nobody who heard Foo Fighters’ self-titled debut in 1995, which featured Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl playing all the instruments and singing all the leads, could have guessed that 10 albums and 26 years later Grohl & Co. would be one of the most successful rock acts in the … Read more
Aaron Lee Tasjan Tasjan! Tasjan! Tasjan!New West Records [2021] To get a sense for the vast musical inspirations that fuel Aaron Lee Tasjan’s eclectic pop style, expressed across the 11 strong tracks of his fourth full-length album Tasjan! Tasjan! Tasjan! you just have to consider the list of artists he’s collaborated with in one way … Read more
Charlie Peacock Skin And Wind UTR Media [2021] Unless you’re someone who studies the small print credits list when you pick up a new album, you likely have never heard of Charlie Peacock, the producer of The Civil Wars’ 2011 debut, Barton Hollow, which picked up two Grammy’s for Best Folk and Best Country Duo Performance. … Read more
Ryan Adams WednesdaysPAX-AM [2020] Early in 2019, Ryan Adams announced that he had three albums set for immanent release, but that was before the New York Times released a story in which seven women, including his ex-wife Mandy Moore, Liz Phair, and Phoebe Bridgers, accused him of sexual misconduct and abuse. Adams denied the allegations … Read more
Weezer OK HumanCrush Music/Atlantic Records [2021] With the pandemic postponement of the Hella Mega Tour with co-headliners Green Day and Fall Out Boy, Weezer has delayed the release of their promised Van Weezer record designed to re-visit the big noisy guitars of their hard rock and metal influences a la the likes of KISS, Sabbath, … Read more
Lucero When You Found MeLiberty & Lament/Thirty Tigers [2021] On the tenth studio album from long-time Memphis band Lucero, singer and songwriter Ben Nichols leads his bandmate crew through 10 songs that celebrate the rock & roll influences he heard on the radio throughout his youth in a series of story songs that reflect his … Read more
Steve Earle & The Dukes J.T.New West Records [2021] Steve Earle, one of the founding fathers of Outlaw Country and Americana, has gotten awfully good at something he likely never hoped to be known for. Especially this time. Back in 2009, Earle released Townes, a tribute to his friend and mentor, Townes Van Zandt, who … Read more