No Depression Releases Online Archive

  • Just in time for their return to the stage the Minneapolis-based Jayhawks Music From the North Country: The Jayhawks Anthology, their first ever compilation reflecting 20 signature songs and album tracks that span from their 1989 debut, Blue Earth, to 2003’s Rainy Day Music, is released today on American/Legacy Recordings.Reda a blogcrtics review of the album here.
  • Texas music legend George Strait will release his new album Twang (great name!) in stores and online August 11th. Out Of Sight Out Of Mind and Living For The Night were co-written by George’s son Bubba and Arkansas Dave was solely by Bubba. The title song and I Gotta Get To You is co-written by Americana legend Jim Lauderdale.
  • HearYa.com reviews Texas musician Scott H. Biram’s latest Bloodshot Records release Something’s Wrong/Lost Forever.
  • Remember that old article on the Bottle Rockets you saw in No Depression years ago? Now where do you put that darn thing? No need to fret, NoDepression.com has released their full archives online for your reading pleasure.

First Ever No Depression Festival Lineup Announcement

The news of No Depression’s death have been  greatly exaggerated. In the wake of their widely successful community website the purveyors of all things Americana/roots/alt.country will hold the first ever (that’s hard to believe) all-day festival Featuring Patterson Hood & The Screwtopians, Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter, Justin Townes Earle, Jessica Lea Mayfield, Seattle Roots-Music All-Star Revue, and Zee Avi. The festivities take place Saturday, July 11 at Marymoor Park, Redmond, WA.

Tickets, $45.00 (not including applicable fees), are on sale Friday, May 15th at noon at all Ticketmaster outlets.

No Depression Debuts First Live Chat with Justin Townes Earle

If your part of the No Depression community (and if you’re not and your at this site more that 5 minutes then you ought to be) then you know that chat function on the bottom panel if the online equivalent of Siberia. Well no more friends.

On May 17th (2pm Pacific) that all changes as No Depression hosts its  first live chat with Justin Townes Earle. So tune in and dial up and make the first ND chat session a great one.

Star Anna Readies The Only Thing That Matters (Apr. 14)

Star Anna has been a favorite here at Ranch Twang for some time and I’m happy to announce that her new CD The Only Thing That Matters will be independently released online and in stores on Tuesday, Apr. 14. The album was created with her spectacular band, The Laughing Dogs, and recorded at Death Cab for Cutie drummer Jason McGerr’s Two Sticks studio  in Seattle.

No Depression’s Kim Ruehl has posted a great Q&A on the Seattle Sound website with Star Anna as she prepares for the new release and a Spring tour that kicks off with a free performance at Easy Street Records this Tuesday night at 7 p.m., and a release party at the Tractor on Saturday (Apr. 18) with Kristen Ward and Hurricane Chaser.

MySpace |  Official Site

No Depression Stops Editorial Operations, Focus Now On Community

In another chapter of the ongoing struggles for No Depression, publisher Kyla Fairchild has posted that operational expenses has forced the new website incarnation ” to discontinue the editorial budget at the present time.” In other words, no more original content, record reviews, interviews, and stories.

ND was THE editorial beacon for the growing alt.country/roots/Americana music scene between 1995 and 2008. Their print operations ended last June due to revenue slowdown from declining subscriptions and advertising. A new web site tobring content and news to fans and persue a different business model was announced at the 2000 Americana Music Association conference and was unveiled that October.

Fairchild states that NoDepression.com will continue as an online presence with more focus on community contributions to provide content. As indicated preciously, here is also plans to make its entire archive of 75 issues  available online. (via the 9513)

As Americana music starts to move more into the mainstream with artist like Robert Plant and Allison Krauss winning Grammys and indy-popsters like Ben Kweller releasing country-tinged albums I hope some of that popularity finds its way to the publication that helped hold the many genre threads together for so long.

Rachel Brooke and Lonesome Wyatt to Release A Bitter Harvest

  • According to a post on her MySpace page Rachel Brooke will be collaborating with  Lonesome Wyatt from Those Lonely Bastards. The release is entitled A Bitter Harvest, and will be released around May, and will be available on CD and vinyl.
  • Daytrotter has three new Joe Pug cuts; Bury Me Far From My Uniform, Unsophisticated Heart, The Door Was Always Open.  Seriously,  Joe’s Pub tonight!
  • Washington Post staff writer J. Freedom du Lac reviews Willie and the Wheel. A new collaberation by Willie Nelson and Western swing preservationists Asleep at the Wheel, and he like what he hears.
  • Alejandro Escovedo’s Real Animal comes out the big winner in No Depression’s Readers Poll.

Dolly Parton to Play Nashville’s Wildhorse Saloon for Charity

No Depression’s Lloyd Sachs looks for reasons for Americana/Roots leaning folks to tune into the Grammy Awards on February 9. Maybe it’s reasons not to tune in…either way it’s pretty darn funny.

Americana music blog Music Fog posted interviews and performances by Cross Canadian Ragweed, Jack Ingram, Gary P. Nunn, Dale Watson and Sunny Sweeney. (via the 9513)

On February 2nd Country music legend Dolly Parton will play a charity show at Nashville’s Wildhorse Saloon to benefit the W.O. Smith Nashville Community Music School.  Other Sony BMG artists will also perform – Ronnie Dunn, Kellie Pickler and Keith Anderson. Tickets are only $45 for this general admission event.  (via Music City TV)

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville is partnering with Ford Motor Company Fund for the second consecutive year to offer free admission to the Hall on Saturday, Jan. 24. (via Country Weekly)

Pitchform.com‘s  Stephen M. Deusner really, really does not like the newly released Johnny Cash Remixed.

No Depression Magazine to End Publication

Due to financial and music industry self-inflicted mortal wounds No Depression Magazine will cease publication after 13 bi-monthly years of bringing it’s readers to best of “Alternative Country (Whatever that is)” From the March-April issue publishers Grant Alden, Peter Blackstock and Kyla Fairchild as its Page 2 “Hello Stranger” column and from their site

Barring the intercession of unknown angels, you hold in your hands the next-to-the-last edition of No Depression we will publish. It is difficult even to type those words, so please know that we have not come lightly to this decision.

It’s no understatement to say that the humble blog you are currently reading and others like it would not exist if not for No Depression. ND showed that country and roots music and mutated into many interesting and thrilling varieties. You could enjoy your Grandfather’s music in a new and souped up form and there was music out there that still had the heart and soul of Cash and Haggard and might be doing it with a arm full of tattoos and a energy of any punk or metal band. Many of the bands and artists I could not live with today, the Drive By Truckers, Hank III, Meat Purveyors, Scott H. Biram…the list goes on and on.

The gaping cultural void left by ND’s sad demise will be felt directly and indirectly by fans and bands struggling against an American idolized world. ND was the place to look for inspiration and the place to hope to be featured when you had “made it” If you were featured or reviewed in ND you had cred! Fans and bands that otherwise thought they were pissing in the wind and making and enjoying music brazenly against the formulaic bile reflected everyday on the charts found a home in the pages of ND.

The passing of ND is a blow but their very existence in was a blessing. Now the Americana roots music goes back underground where it will mutate, rage and burst out once again like some dreaded cultural beast.

Adios amigos. Thanks for showing me the way.

Miranda Lambert Makes The Cover of No Depression – Hell Reports Snow

I don’t know what it is, the end times, global warming, whacked mojo…but Miranda Lambert seems to be winning the hearts and minds of Nashville pop lovers as well as the alt.country crowd. I mean she’s on the cover of the yall’ternative bible “No Depresssion” for crips sake! (Yeah that her swinging her hair all rocking out like.) First the white trash American Idol (I mean that in a good way), a performance at the ’05 CMA Awards and now ND?
I mean ND has indy darlings The Shins on the last cover. What are they trying to do? Rise from relative obscurity and sell magazines?

I mean what’s next? Toby Keith on the cover of Spin? Carrie Underwood on the cover of Playboy? Okay, I could actually imagine that last one.

Good on the fellow Texan on all the good vibes and good on No Depression for risking their hipster cred to feature great music!