Category Archives: Americana

Alabama Shakes Announce Headlining U.S. Tour

Posted on by — 1 Comment ↓

alabama shakes

Alabama Shakes has announced a headlining tour of the U.S. coming this spring. The run will kick off with a two-night stand at the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC (April 25 and 26).

A ticket pre-sale begins this Friday, February 28, at 12:00 PM local time. Tickets go on sale to the public on this Saturday, March 1, for all dates except Washington, DC, where tickets will go on sale Thursday, March 6. The band will also perform at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, the Suburbia Festival, the Beale Street Music Festival and the Shaky Knees Fest. See below for itinerary or visit www.alabamashakes.com.

The Athens, AL-based band – comprising vocalist/guitarist Brittany Howard, guitarist Heath Fogg, drummer Steve Johnson and bassist Zac Cockrell – has been in the studio working on a new album. Further details will be announced soon.

Alabama Shakes – Upcoming Tour Dates

4/25 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club- Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires Fsupporting
4/26 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club- Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires supporting
4/28 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel – Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires supporting
4/29 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel -Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires supporting
5/2-4 – New Orleans, LA @ New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
5/3-4 – Plano, TX @ Suburbia Festival
5/4 – Memphis, TN @ Beale Street Music Festival
5/7 – Northfield, OH @ Hard Rock Live – The Deslondes supporting
5/8 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE – The Deslondes supporting
5/9 – Richmond, VA @ The National – The Deslondes supporting
5/11 – Atlanta, GA @ Shaky Knees Fest

Listen Up! Sturgill Simpson – “Living The Dream”

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

Sturgill Simpson - Living The Dream

Sturgill Simpson slows things down a but for “Living The Dream” his first cut released from his upcoming sophomore album, “Metamodern Sounds In Country Music.” The album will be released May 13th.

It’s good to hear he’s still channeling Waylon. Remaining ornery with a touch of gallows humor he sings “I don’t have to do a goddamn thing, but sit around and wait to die” and “That old man upstairs wears a crooked smile, staring down at the chaos he’s created.”

Buy all os not grim. Simpson says about the album – “Myriad worldly offerings – religion, drugs and more – all claim to be the omnipotent universal truth, but in my experience, love is the only certainty. That’s what this record is about.”

Simpson will perform at several SXSW showcases and, in April, will be featured on Communion’s Club Nights Series.

Listen Up! Beck is Back to Mourning – “Morning Phase”

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

Beck Morning Phase

Beck’s chameleon-like career has rivaled that of the Thin White Duke himself. Like Bowie, Beck has both trailed and established trends so tightly that it’s hard to tell which proceeds or which follows his maneuvers.

Beck has tackled soul, funk and might have started Emo with “Loser.” But the best Beck is the dour-folk Beck.

Said to be a companion to 2002’s heart-crushing “Sea Change” “Morning Phase” has a slightly more comfortable feel. More excepting, fateful. Like Beck seems more at home with being uncomfortable.

“Morning Phase” is Beck’s “Pink Moon.” On “Heart Like A Drum” he sings “The Heart is a Drum / Keeping Time With Everyone.” and “Beat Beat beat / It’s Beating Me Down.”

The whole album has a pop-menace that sound like it sprang from the mind of Brian Wilson.

When Beck strips away he beat-box schtick here’s is genuine talent here. Dare I say genius. Yes, I think I will.

A more complete review will come soon. Just wanted to share this with you.

Contest: This Is Lone Justice: The Vaught Tapes – Omnivore Recordings

Posted on by — 19 Comments ↓

Lone Justice

Lone Justice was the gateway band for much of the music that I have loved and written about over the years.

Maria McKee, Ryan Hedgecock, Marvin Etzioni, and Don Heffington helped define the term “Cowpunk in 80’s L.A. and were famous for their blistering live shows (which, alas, I never got a chance to see) The “Ways to Be Wicked” video entered the synth-gelled hair-florescent fray with unabashed roots-rock with McKee sporting her sultry sneer, garbed in vintage dress, and belting out the song of a jilted lover.

After only two excellent albums the band folded under label and internal pressures. McKee embarked on a successful solo career and Lone Justice helped shape the musical landscape forever.

Before it all LJ went into Suite 16 Studios in December of 1983 and recorded much of the set list they were packing Los Angeles area clubs with.

Recorded direct to 2-track tape by engineer David Vaught and with no overdubs, those twelve tracks can finally be heard in their entirety on “This Is Lone Justice: The Vaught Tapes, 1983.” As Billboard’s Chris Morris writes in his thoughtful liner notes, the release “offers the best representation of the band in its infancy—hot, full of piss and vinegar, and ready to take on the world.”

Nine of these twelve tracks are previously unissued, and include originals (including “Soap, Soup And Salvation”, which would appear on their Geffen debut two years later) to the covers they made their own in concert (Johnny Cash and June Carter (Cash)’s “Jackson” and “Nothing Can Stop My Loving You,” written by George Jones and Roger Miller.)

Available on CD and LP (with the first pressing on translucent red vinyl) by Omnivore Recordings, in addition to Morris’ liners, the package contains an essay from the band’s Ryan Hedgecock, as well as a remembrance of David Vaught from Marvin Etzioni and an loving endorsement from Dolly Parton. With unseen photos and memorabilia, this collection is what Lone Justice fans have been waiting for. This Is Lone Justice: The Vaught Tapes, 1983 takes us back to a time when music had an energy that was hard to contain.

For a chance to win a copy of red vinyl + digital download card just leave a comment below describing your favorite Lone Justice song and why or a memory from a show.

A winner will be chosen at random and will be announced on Sunday 2/23 at 12 Noon Central time.

Good luck pilgrim.

THE CONTEST IS NOW OVER. THANKS TO ALL WHO SHARED THEIR THOUGHTS.

Miranda Lambert Looks Back In a New Cut “Automatic”

Posted on by — 1 Comment ↓

Miranda Lambert - Automatic

Just as there could have been no Tanya Tucker without a Dolly Parton I believe the current wave of female upstarts, like this year’s Best Country Album Grammy-winner Kacey Musgraves, owe a debt of tanks to Miranda Lambert.

I’m a fan.

Lambert is the only contemporary country music artists to be featured on the bible of alt.country No Depression, Lambert often chooses to cover songs by greats like Gillian Welch, Fred Eaglesmith. An she often channels the greats – Haggard, Loretta – in her own songs. And when her songs hew a little too close to an an influence, like when it was brought to her attention that her her hit song “Kerosene” closely resembled her hero Steve Earle’s 1996 comeback single “I Feel Alright” she retroactively gave Steve Earle writing credit for the song, owning up to a simple case of unintentional plagiarism.

As they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, just as long as you pay up. Right Dierks Bentley?

Lambert’s newest song she wrote with Nicolle Galyon, a contestant from second season of The Voice. and Natalie Hemby who has written for Lee Ann Womack, Eli Young Band and many others.

The mid-tempo cut has Miranda lamenting about the good old days. This might seems strange corning from a 30 year-old but “Ran” pulls it off by trading in a country music standard trope of nostalgia without cloying sentimentality.

Lambert drew on her personal experiences to co-write “Automatic,” which details early memories like using pay phones, recording country countdowns on cassettes and driving to Dallas to buy an Easter dress. She wrote the song with Nicolle Galyon and Natalie Hemby.

“Automatic’ is a song about the good life,” Lambert said. “It’s about slowing down, taking a breath and remembering what it’s like to live life a little more simply. It’s not about going back, but reminiscing about what it was like to hang laundry on the line and wait for it to dry and my dad teaching me how to drive my ’55 Chevy that I still have but don’t drive nearly enough.”

The song’s topic also ethos a current wave in America to move back to a small, craft-based culture and economy. I enjoyed listening to it over and over while enjoying a locally brewed beer.

“Automatic,” is a track from a new as-yet untitled album expected later this year.

Old 97’s to Release new Album, ‘Most Messed Up’

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

Old 97s Most Messed Up

Dallas’s own Old 97’s will celebrate their 20th anniversary this year with the release of their ATO Records debit Most Messed Up on April 29.

Sporting an excellent cover of a flaming Saguaro and recorded in Austin with producer Salim Nourallah, features guest appearances from Tommy Stinson from The Replacements and Jon Rauhouse steel & Hawaiian guitar player from Neko Case’s band.

The band have released the first single from the album, “Longer Than You’ve Been Alive” a jaunty ditty giving a whimsical history of the band and showcasing Rhett Miller’s wordplay.

“We’ve been in nightclubs and we’ve been in bars, Honky-tonks and theaters from Memphis to Mars.”

You can stream it over at EW.com and check out the cover art and tracklist below.

Rhett Miller has some solo dates this month and next. Those tour dates are listed below. Old 97’s 2014 tour dates will soon be announced.

Old ’97s – ‘Most Messed Up’ tracklist:
1. “Longer Than You’ve Been Alive”
2. “Give It Time”
3. “Let’s Get Drunk & Get It On”
4. “This Is The Ballad”
5. “Wheels Off”
6. “Nashville”
7. “Wasted”
8. “Guadalajara”
9. “The Disconnect”
10. “The Ex Of All You See”
11. “Intervention”
12. “Most Messed Up”

Rhett Miller – 2014 Tour Dates
Feb 04 Live Oak Fort Worth, TX
Feb 05 Sam’s Burger Joint San Antonio, TX
Feb 06 Continental Club Austin, TX
Feb 07 McGonigel’s Mucky Duck Houston, TX
Feb 07 McGonigel’s Mucky Duck Houston, TX
Feb 27 World Cafe Live Philadelphia Philadelphia, PA
Feb 28 Johnny D’s Somerville, MA
Mar 03 City Winery New York, NY
Mar 26 Off Broadway St Louis, MO
Mar 28 Radio Radio Indianapolis, IN
Apr 02 3rd and Lindsley Nashville, TN
Apr 03 Eddie’s Attic Decatur, GA
Apr 04 The Southern Charlottesville, VA
Apr 05 Cat’s Cradle Carrboro, NC
Apr 24 South on Main Little Rock, AR

Nickel Creek Announce New Album, Tour. Hear the New Song “Destination,”

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

nickelcreekpress

7 years ago neo-bluegrass trio Nickel Creek,Chris Thile (mandolin/vocals), Sara Watkins (fiddle/vocals) and Sean Watkins (guitar/vocals) , went on “indefinite hiatus” and then ventured into separate successful solo careers. Many thought the day the band might reunite had passed

They would be wrong.

Nickel Creek have announced new album in the Spring of 2014 as well as a 7 city tour this Spring.

A limited ticket pre-sale will begin tomorrow, February 4 at 10 a.m. local time at nickelcreek.com. Tickets will go on sale to the general public beginning this Friday, February 7.

Hear “Destination,” a song from the upcoming Nickel Creek album below.

Here’s the latest of Nickel Creek’s tour dates:

April 18 and 19 – Nashville, TN Ryman Auditorium
April 29 New York, NY Beacon Theatre
May 1 Boston, MA House of Blues
May 3 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
May 9 Chicago, IL Riviera Theater
May 19 Oakland, CA Fox Theater
June 19-22 Telluride, CO Telluride Bluegrass Festival

Emmylou Harris To Release “Wrecking Ball” Special Package Reissue

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

Emmylou Harris Wrecking Ball

American Songwriter reports that Nonesuch Records will reissue Emmylou Harris’ acclaimed 1995 album Wrecking Ball as a three-disc set. The reissue will contain a remastered version of the original album, which snagged the Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album in 1996. There will also be a bonus CD of recently unearthed demos and outtakes.

The reissue will also include a documentary DVD “Building the Wrecking Ball,” featuring studio footage and interviews with Harris and producer Daniel Lanois, as well as album contributors Steve Earle and Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and Neil Young, who wrote the title song.

Last month Harris celebrated her collaboration with Rodney Crowell, “Old Yellow Moon,” by winning the Grammy for Best Americana Album

In October of 2013 Emmylou Harris and Daniel Lanois, joined by Jim Wilson, Brian Blade and Malcolm Burn, performed “Wrecking Ball” in it’s entirety at the Marathon Music Works in Nashville. (see video below)

The Wrecking Ball reissues is slatted for release on April 8

In celebration of the reissue, Harris will hit the road with Lanois this spring. Check out tour dates below.

Disc 1

1. “Where Will I Be?” (Daniel Lanois)
2. “Goodbye” (Steve Earle)
3. “All My Tears” (Julie Miller)
4. “Wrecking Ball” (Neil Young)
5. “Goin’ Back to Harlan” (Anna McGarrigle)
6. “Deeper Well” (David Olney, Lanois, Emmylou Harris)
7. “Every Grain of Sand” (Bob Dylan)
8. “Sweet Old World” (Lucinda Williams)
9. “May This Be Love” (Jimi Hendrix)
10. “Orphan Girl” (Gillian Welch)
11. “Blackhawk” (Daniel Lanois)
12. “Waltz Across Texas Tonight” (Rodney Crowell, Emmylou Harris)

Disc 2 – Deeper Well: The Wrecking Ball Outtakes

1. Still Water 3:55
2. Where Will I Be (alternate version) 4:14
3. All My Tears 3:21
4. How Will I Ever Be Simple Again 3:36
5. Deeper Well 2:18
6. The Stranger Song 5:21
7. Sweet Old World (alternate version) 5:56
8. Gold 3:16
9. Blackhawk (alternate version) 4:40
10. May This Be Love (acoustic) 2:15
11. Goin’ Back to Harlan 2:35
12. Where Will I Be (alternate version) 2:13
13. Deeper Well 3:06

Emmylou Harris Wrecking Ball Tour Dates:

April 3 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern
April 5 San Francisco, CA The Warfield
April 7 Royal Oak, MI The Royal Oak
April 8 Chicago, IL The Vic
April 11 Washington, DC The Lincoln Theatre
April 12 Brooklyn, NY TBA
April 13 Boston, MA The House of Blues
(additional tour dates to be announced)

Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson and Merle Haggard Working on New Album

Posted on by — 57 Comments ↓

willie kris merle

The live (and lively) performance by country legends Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, and Merle Haggard on the 56th Annual Grammy Awards stage to perform the classics “Highwayman,” “Okie From Muskogee” and “Mamma’s Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys” was a magnificent, albeit creaky, moment of music history. It is also a testament to how far off the reservation Music City has veered.

Leaving aside whether Blake Shelton merited a spot alongside such luminaries (cough…Jamey Johnson, Sturgill Simpson…cough) it was a highlight of the event.

Wille mentioned to Billboard.com that a formal collaboration among the three is in the works.

“We’re working on one now, yeah,” Nelson said, adding that they’ll release it “as soon as we get it together.”

Tentatively called “The Musketeers” (SavingCountryMusic.com) this will be the first time the trio has collaborated on the same project. Nelson is the common bond as he recorded the Townes Van Zandt’s classic, “Pancho & Lefty,” with Haggard and worked with Kristofferson in The Highwaymen alongside Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings.

Given Kristofferson and Haggard’s recent health concerns a collaboration album released this year might be the last we hear from these gentleman. I certainly hope not.

But going out among friends would be a fine adios.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SspAWnLvUFc

Mary Sarah to Release “Bridges,” duets with Dolly, Willie, Merle, Ray Price

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

Sarah Mary

It’s fashionable to gripe about the current sorry state of contemporary country music and for good reason. In it’s single-minded obsession for hits and radio charting Music Row often appears to be like an Chinese iPad factory (with better clothes.) A casual listen of country music hits from the last 40 years clearly shows that the industry often tilts the cultural scales toward stacks of commerce over the beauty of craft.

Mary Sarah has the looks and the pipes to shoot for the denim and glitter of Country Music stardom. She even toured with the lucrative Kidz Bop franchise as a singer and dancer when she was 12 years old. The lady’s got options

But performing in the Texas near her home in Richmond TX home (outside Houston) put her in a unique position to be steeped in tradition and to meet some of the legends that created that music.

Her upcoming release, “Bridges,” is a collection iconic songs done as duets with the legends that made them famous. Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Vince Gill, recorded over the last two-and-a-half years.

“I never imagined that singing these songs in the Texas Oprys would lead to one day recording them with some of the greatest country legends of our time,” Mary Sarah says. “Working on this album and with these legends has changed my life. Not only did I learn more about traditional country music, it has led me to have a clearer vision of what I want to accomplish in country music.”

That doesn’t sound like a crass money grab to grease the path to maga-stardom. It does sound like a smart move in a genre starving for substance to set herself up for longevity and, dare I say, a shot as legend.

Yes, Loretta there is hope for Music City.

“Bridges” is expected to be released in early April.

“Bridges” track listing

“Jolene” with Dolly Parton
“Crazy” with Willie Nelson
“Fightin’ Side of Me” with Merle Haggard
“Heartaches by the Number” with Ray Price
“What a Difference You’ve Made in My Life” with Ronnie Milsap
“Texas, When I Die” with Tanya Tucker
“Rose Garden” with Lynn Anderson
“Go Rest High on That Mountain” with Vince Gill
“Dream On” with the Oak Ridge Boys
All I Wanna Do Is Sing My Song” with Freddy Powers
“Where the Boys Are” with Neil Sedaka
“My Great Escape” with Big & Rich (original song)
“I’m Sorry” (solo version of Brenda Lee classic)