Dan + Shay Cover Taylor Swift’s “Back To December” (A Rant)
80 Comments
You crave hearing a new song from Dan + Shay like you crave hearing Christmas music before Halloween. The emasculated tones, the aggressive use of AutoTune, the entirely soul-bereft delivery…
Saving Country Music’s Official Stance on “The Voice” Winner Sundance Head
68 Comments
Yesterday amid many calls for my opinion and participation, I finally tuned into The Voice finale to see what all the hubbub was about … just in time to see Sundance Head performing with KISS. I promptly returned to the Dolly Parton telethon.
The Best of Mainstream Country Music in 2016
56 Comments
If 90% of mainstream country music is garbage, then it stands to reason that 10% of it is at least decent, if not good or great. That calculus hasn’t really changed much recently, even as mainstream country has improved. What has changed is that 10% is actually finding traction on radio, at awards shows, and is making fierce inroads into the 90%’s monopoly.
Ned Ledoux Carries On Father’s Legacy with “Forever A Cowboy”
23 Comments
Chris LeDoux’s son Ned, who started playing drums in his father’s backing band Western Underground way back in 1998, has stepped up to take the reigns from his father. Though first a bit timid to take center stage in his father’s absence, he now sees it as his duty to introduce a new generation of country fans to his father’s music.
The Ameripolitan Awards Announce 2017 Nominees
20 Comments
The 4th Annual Ameripolitan Awards will transpire at the Paramount Theatre in Austin TX on February 15th, 2017, and Tuesday morning the organization that looks to shine a spotlight on American music with a heavy roots influence announced the nominees for the 2017 awards. Awards are handed out in four primary categories.
The Prospects of Sturgill Simpson Actually Winning the Grammy’s Album of the Year
19 Comments
Yeah yeah, it’s awesome that Sturgill Simpson received an Album of the Year nomination from the Grammy Awards for A Sailor’s Guide to Earth and everything, and just the nomination itself feels like an awesome victory overcoming insurmountable odds for an underdog record and artist. But what are the prospects that Sturgill Simpson could actually win this thing?
Album Review – Reckless Kelly’s “Sunset Motel”
19 Comments
It’s hard to know if you should call Austin, TX’s Reckless Kelly Red Dirt, Southern Rock, Texas country, or something completely different. Part of the problem is they’ve been so damn good for so damn long, everyone wants to claim them in their cadre, and because they had a hand in forming nascent scenes that are now the standard bearers for country’s subgenres.
Saving Country Music’s WORST Songs of 2016
122 Comments
Everywhere we turn, there are signs that the tide is turning in country music for the better. Chris Stapleton and Sturgill Simpson are turning the tables on the awards shows, a new generation of traditionalists like William Michael Morgan and Margo Price are finding surprising traction. But it’s not all rosy.
Country Talent Coming Together for Randy Travis Tribute Concert
25 Comments
In the mid 80’s, it was Randy Travis and his neotraditional sound that led country music out of the great abyss of the earlier decade and returned country to its rightful place as a powerful voice for rural people in popular culture. With over 20 million records sold and his recent induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame…
Miranda Lambert Shows Support for Fellow Texas Songwriters on Hard Candy Christmas Tour
19 Comments
You only have to pay mild attention to Miranda Lambert’s music career to know her support of true American songwriters is far from skin deep. Her latest record The Weight of These Wings has a monster list of contributing songwriters, and she’s been known to get a wild hair and drive for miles to see someone like John Moreland play a dive bar.
Chris Stapleton Is #1 Country Artist in All of 2016 According to Billboard’s Compiled Metrics
40 Comments
Though Stapleton may fall short of the touring numbers of names like Luke Bryan, or may not have the airplay of Florida Georgia Line, the incredible performance of his debut album ‘Traveller’ has put him in unprecedented territory, while still putting up a decent showing in touring and track sales too.
Live Nation Caves To Massive Public Pressure, Returns Jamboree in the Hills to Past Form
13 Comments
Chalk it up to a win for the little guy. In a shocking development, Live Nation—the biggest concert promoter in the United States—caved to public pressure after making massive changes to the 41-year-old Jamboree in the Hills event in Ohio, a.k.a. “The Super Bowl of Country Music,” and is re-implementing the original name, logo, traditions, […]
FAR Chart and NotSXSW To Continue On After Passing of John Conquest
1 Comment
When the fiercely-independent, renegade music journalist and publisher John Conquest passed away on September 30th, it left the fate of numerous important institutions Conquest had both founded and operated up in the air. Conquest was a dogged champion of independent artists, as well as independent music journalism.