Midnight OilResistSony Music [2022] The standing joke among those of us old enough to remember is that the opening months of 2022 feel a lot like the 80’s, with new music from Elvis Costello, Tears for Fears, and now Australia’s gift to the alternative rock world, Midnight Oil. When the band returned after a long … 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
Midnight Oil Armistice Day: Live At The Domain, Sydney Sony Music [2018] Fire Note Says: The “Power And the Passion” lives on with this new burning live set from Midnight Oil. Album Review: One of the best bits of news early in 2017, was that Midnight Oil had reformed, and was planning a global tour, … Read more
St. Paul & The Broken Bones Young Sick Camellia RECORDS/Sony Music [2018] Fire Note Says: St. Paul & The Broken Bones maintain their soulful energy. Album Review: With their third album in six years, St. Paul & The Broken Bones, no longer satisfied with being appreciated for their status as a world class retro-soul act … Read more
The Jayhawks Back Roads And Abandoned Motels Sony Music/Legacy Recordings [2018] Fire Note Says: The Jayhawks put their own stamp on songs Gary Louris had written with the Dixie Chicks, Jacob Dylan and others, inspiring a return to their own sonic roots. Album Review: If The Jayhawks were a band of equals, and I’m not … Read more
Ray Davies Americana Sony/Legacy Recrodings [2017] Fire Note Says: Kinks’ rocker Ray Davies joins with alt-country Jayhawks to take a musical journey through the wild west, sorting reality from fantasy in pursuit of the American Dream Album Review: Ray Davies, 73, is still best remembered for a pop song he wrote and recorded with the … Read more
Ben Folds Five Live Sony Records [2013] Fire Note Says: Ben Folds Five puts out a fan-pleasing but uneven live album. Album Review: One of the songs that I most identify with high school is “Underground.” I remember driving my blue Chevy Beretta to school, listening to the radio (94.1) and there being this weird … Read more