Swedish sister singing duo First Aid Kit has announced their latest album “Ruins.” “Finally,” the duo said on Friday (10-27) as part of the announcement. “Words can’t possibly describe how thrilled we are to announce our upcoming record. We poured our hearts and souls into this. Soon it’ll be yours.”
Hellbound Glory’s latest record Pinball comes across as brash and unapologetic, and it’s underpinned by one of the highlights of the project, the song “Hellbound Blues.” But at the heart of the song is how the scourge of addiction can rule and ruin one’s life, especially in the throes of the dark hours.
It’s funny. You mention Lee Ann Womack to certain segments of traditional country music fans, and you’re liable to get a sideways glance, or downright gruff. Little do they know the leadership Lee Ann has exhibited over the last decade plus in keeping the roots of country music alive.
What’s great about Dillon Carmichael’s “Old Songs Like That” is it doesn’t focus on the negative, it accentuates what is positive about all those old country songs. It preaches their virtues, attempts to explain their importance, and pays homage to them not just in name, but in style.
Tired on hearing people whining about the lack of women on country radio? Perhaps it’s because despite all of the protestations and constant focus on the issue, it still is a huge lingering problem that continues to get worse instead of better. And now Miranda Lambert, who has spoken out about the issue before, is getting hopping mad.
At a time when American pop was nascent and looking for strong shoulders to build its foundation upon, Fats Domino helped us find our thrill. Unfortunately that thrill mostly ended after a visit to Music Row.
If you ever thought that there was a chance that Kid Rock was going to run for the United States Senate, then you probably don’t deserve to be offering opinions on music or politics at all.
Give it some thought Timberlake, if the wheels aren’t already in motion. Give the fans of true country and good music in general a reason to tune into the Super Bowl halftime show in 2018, even if it’s just for a few minutes. That’d be much more entertaining that a few seconds in the audience of a nipple tassel.
“If I ever meet that guy from Saving Country Music he is gonna see just how Country I really am!” says Mark Wystrach of Midland, while calling Saving Country Music’s coverage of the band “lies” and “click-bait.” But it was never about how “authentic” Midland was. It was about their attempts to unnecessarily embellish their back story.
Though there are an incredible amount of songs about wanderlust and road life in the annals of country and classic rock, a true travel album articulated just as much as a journal as a work of fiction is hard to come by. That’s what you get with singer and songwriter Ira Wolf’s “The Closest Thing to Home.”
We have failed at even making a dent in this female dilemma. So why not think outside of the box? Why not throw out all the old notions that to break down the gender barrier we should just start serving up eye candy singing bubblegum pop? Besides, that’s not the trend we’ve been seeing take hold recently.
In recent years, concerts at The Ryman Auditorium in Nashville have become an important bellwether for just how well a band or artist is doing in the grander scheme. Trying to fill the 125-year-old landmark with its 2,362-seat capacity is one of the biggest tests a country music artist can take.
Dori Freeman is separating herself from the gaggle of country’s most encouraging prospects by mining the simple beauty from Appalachian dialect, taking deprecated compositions in outmoded tongues and making them feel more relevant than the most modernized hip-hop beats, and then contribution her own original expressions.
On Sunday, October 22nd, 2017, Alan Jackson will officially take his rightful place in the Country Music Hall of Fame right beside all the other greats of country music. And ahead of it, Jackson has released the first taste from a new, upcoming album in the form of a song called “The Older I Get.”
Before the accolades start to feel like platitudes, and the reasons become excuses, the Turnpike Troubadours should find their place in the national narrative. Because country music needs them. The Turnpike Troubadours are the band for right here, right now, delivering everything you want, saddled by nothing you don’t need.
Now there is an entirely new reason to consider transitioning from ad-based streaming to a paid account, and it’s based off the greater commitment paid subscribers show to the music they listen to as opposed to the free-siders. Announced on Thursday (10-19), Billboard has made it known they are tweaking the way their charts work in 2018.
“The results are absolutely exquisite,” Marty Stuart says. “I invite the viewer to come along with me and the Superlatives to Pine Ridge. By way of Reid Long’s camera, we’ll take you deep inside of a world filled with wonderful people, that most people don’t even know exist.”
I don’t care if Walker Hayes is the most upstanding citizen from his affluent suburb, donates to charity, is sweet as pie to his fans, and gives mouth to nose resuscitation to orphaned puppies. This is not the type of incendiarily vapid stuff we need infecting anything being sold as “country.”
Pony up you cheapskate. It’s a mere pittance to sign up for a premium account through Spotify, Pandora, or whomever, and you get a commercial-free experience, sometimes with better audio quality, and the creators and industry that served you that music will get a little more money compared to the commercial-supported side.
The Ameripolitan Awards will be marking their 5th year by moving from Austin to Memphis where so much of the music celebrated by the emerging genre originally emanated from. And now one of the individuals seminal to revitalizing the Memphis sound starting in the late 70’s has been announced as one of the main performers for the event.
Make no mistake about it, the reason a song like this came about is because of the continued criticism coming at artists like Luke Bryan that question their legitimacy as country performers. This means the spirited dissent being logged by literally millions of country fans at this point is being heard, and making an impact.
With only two people and one mic, Mapache can fill up a room with more soul soaring harmony than most symphonic assemblies, carried to great heights by melodies that are incredibly supple and bursting with delight, timeless in their textures and delivery, yet with subtle new turns that give Mapache the benefit of originality.
Add another landmark accolade to the growing list of acknowledgements for Americana stalwart Jason Isbell. After just finishing up an incredible 6-night sold out run at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville last week, it was announced Monday (10-16) morning that Jason Isbell will be the next Artist-In-Residence at the Country Music Hall of Fame.
From the very beginning, there has always been a Gothic side to country and roots music. From the murder ballads and ghost stories of the Ralph Peer-era pioneers of country, to tales of struggle and lunacy from more modern underground artists attempting to keep those haunting spirits alive, Gothic country never gets its due credit.
