HovvdyTrue LoveGrand Jury Music [2021] Hovvdy is the duo of Charlie Martin and Will Taylor, which now with True Love have four albums under their belt. This full length finds the pair both now married and Will became a father. It goes without saying that those life events easily can shape your current state of … Read more
Jeff Elbel + Ping The Threefinger OperaMarathon Records [2021] When life gives you lemons, the crafty among us make limoncello, the saying goes. If you have a talent for language and storytelling, you can turn any horrible event into The Great American Novel. But what if you are a musician and you have an injury … Read more
MotoristsSurroundedBobo Integral/We Are Time/Debt Offensive Records [2021] Toronto based Motorists have released one of the more interesting debuts I have heard this year. Surrounded covers an array of genres that swims in post-punk, jangle indie rock, power pop and a classic raw college radio sound from the 80’s. What works is that Motorists successfully combine … Read more
Mild High ClubGoing Going GoneStones Throw Records [2021] When we last saw the moniker Mild High Club it was paired with none other than King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. There was once a time, way back in 2017, where Gizzard released 5 albums in one year. One of those was their collaboration Sketches of … Read more
YesThe QuestInside Out Music [2021] Love them. Hate them. There are few bands that generate the kind of emotions from audiences that Yes can. They are, by turns, confounding and astounding – often at the same time. Throughout their 52 years as a band there have been numerous lineup changes, lawsuits, multiple bands calling themselves … Read more
LowHey WhatSub Pop Records [2021] Hey What is the 13th studio album from Low, the curious noise band that juxtaposes challenging instrumentals against the sweet and often harmonious vocals of the married Minnesota duo, Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker. Like much of the contemporary compositions made in “serious music” circles (think modern takes on classical), … Read more
Alejandro Escovedo La CruzadaYep Roc Records [2021] Arriving 3 years after Alejandro Escovedo’s wonderful story about two young American immigrants – one from Italy, the other from Mexico – who bond over a love of punk rock and set out to explore the American cultural frontier, La Cruzada is that very same album, with all … Read more
Indigo De Souza Any Shape You TakeSaddle Creek Records [2021] At least twice a day, I hear someone complain about the state of modern music, often shaped by their belief that the music made when they were teenagers was “the golden era” of pop or rock, or music as a whole. What’s both sad and … Read more
Colleen GreenCoolHardly Art Records [2021] After 2015’s solid I Want To Grow Up we were fully prepared to see much more of Colleen Green’s guitar pop smarts and then she went quiet. After 6 years we finally have new material in Cool from Colleen Green that is full of mature guitar pop which is direct, … Read more
The Bevis FrondLittle EdenFire Records [2021] The Bevis Frond is an English rock band formed in 1986 in East London and has been the moniker used by Nick Saloman for the last 35 years. He has consistently released an indie neo-psychedelic alt-rock style that has always been driven from strong writing and purpose. His newest … Read more
GA-20Try It…You Might Like It!Karma Chief/Alligator Records [2021] Boston’s GA-20 proved on their 2019 release, Lonely Soul, that the blues can be for everyone. The group crossed genres with their pristine technique, electric style, and funky groove. The band now returns with a smoldering tribute record to the legendary Chicago bluesman Theodore Roosevelt “Hound Dog” … Read more
NMB (The Neal Morse Band)Innocence & DangerInside Out Music/Sony [2021] The Neal Morse Band may have had a descriptively inaccurate name all along but the label wanted the Morse name-recognition thing to help sales. With all five members actively writing and arranging (and four of the five singing lead) it was probably the right time … Read more
Phil Madeira Hornet’s NestMercyland Records [2021] With three jazzy piano albums under his belt in the last couple years, it’s no surprise by now that one of Phil Madeira’s musical heroes is jazz icon Thelonious Monk. That may be a surprise to anyone who’s only heard Madeira at his day job, playing backup to one … Read more
Tim EastonYou Don’t Really Know MeBlack Mesa Records [2021] For over twenty years, Tim Easton has been successfully combining elements of indie rock, folk and a little bit a blues to create his own genre that also consistently adds excellent songwriting and tons of heart to round out his musical ingredients. Easton is now on … Read more
Fashion Pimps And The GlamazonsJazz 4 JohnnyFeel It Records [2021] There is absolutely nothing pretty about Cleveland’s Fashion Pimps And The Glamazons debut record Jazz 4 Johnny. The music is raw, rough, loud, noisy, post-punky, unkempt and gritty. It is as almost like the foursome got together and figured out a musical style that would … Read more
WednesdayTwin PlaguesOrindal Records [2021] Indie rock is alive and well with the Asheville, North Carolina band Wednesday. On their sophomore album, Twin Plagues, the quintet turns up the amps and make a glorious guitar fueled album that is driven by vocalist Karly Hartzman. The band still uses their shoegaze skills found on their debut but … Read more
Jackson Browne Downhill From EverywhereInside Recordings [2021] Mention Jackson Browne’s name these days and folks’ eyes tend to glaze over while they try to explain the difference between folk/rock and soft rock as if it matters. But both as a songwriter and a performer, he’s always had a lot more going on artistically than those … Read more
The Joy Formidable Into The BlueHassle Records [2021] On its 5th full-length release, Welsh alternative rockers The Joy Formidable continue to deliver on The Big Roar, the title of its 2011 debut. A decade later on Into The Blue, the trio continue to evolve beyond their influences by wall-of-distortion shoegaze bands like My Bloody Valentine … Read more
T. Hardy Morris The Digital Age Of RomeNew West/Normaltown Records [2021] Sometimes an artist or musician taps a universal theme of love, hope, or purpose that transcends the everyday, and feels relevant in any context in which it is experienced because it’s not specific to any event or era. Classic rock songs may suggest a … Read more
Acid DadTake It From The DeadGreenway Records/The Reverberation Appreciation Society [2021] Acid Dad has evolved since we first started covering them back in 2016 with their EP release, Let’s Plan A Robbery. The Brooklyn group has always carried the genre label of psych-punk and alternative-rock but with the release of their sophomore LP, Take It … Read more
LYSOLSoup For My FamilyFeel It Records [2021] Raw, rocking and relentless is a great way to describe Seattle’s LYSOL. The band’s newest record, Soup For My Family, walks a line that balances their sound between garage, punk and hardcore as each track on the album comes at you in different ways. That is the what … Read more
Ty SegallHarmonizerDrag City Records [2021] Nothing like a surprise album from Ty Segall to shake up your Tuesday as he dropped Harmonizer on world this week without any notice. The record represents his first solo LP since First Taste which was released two years ago. The album was co-produced by Cooper Crain and features Ty … Read more
Guardian SinglesGuardian SinglesTrouble In Mind Records [2021] Guardian Singles hail from Auckland, New Zealand, and their self-titled debut was sadly overlooked last year with its small local indie release from Moral Support Records. Well, thanks to Trouble In Mind Records their excellent post-punk mover has now received a world wide release. The band was actually … Read more
Durand Jones & The IndicationsPrivate SpaceDead Oceans/Colemine Records [2021] Durand Jones & The Indications is easily one of the first bands I would point someone to if they wanted to hear some quality modern day retro soul. The Indiana five-piece has quickly rose to the top of my list since their 2016 self-titled debut and … Read more
Night BeatsOutlaw R&BFuzz Club Records [2021] I am always about an artist stretching out their musical vision as they progress through a career but sometimes getting back to your roots is good for your soul. That is the way I feel about Danny Lee Blackwell and his Night Beats vehicle on their fifth full-length, Outlaw … Read more