Major Layoffs Hit ACM Awards, MCA Nashville
22 Comments
Is something amiss in the major label world? Two of country music’s major entities are cutting staff, and no matter how they spin it, when you’re downsizing as opposed to growing, it’s usually not a good sign.
The Country Music Anti-Christ Crosses Line Into Creative Control
31 Comments
Ever since I first christened Big Machine Records owner Scott Borchetta as the “Country Music Anti-Christ” I have gone out of my way to stipulate one important positive, that he extends his artists creative control over their music. But all of that might have just changed, and that change may change the way the whole country music business conducts itself.
Lucky Tubb & Don Maddox Share Stage for Halloween
13 Comments
From all the music festivals I attended this summer, from South by Southwest this Spring, to all the other musical events intermixed throughout the year, few rival the magic that transpired Halloween night when Lucky Tubb and the Modern Day Troubadours pulled their tour van up to Johnny B’s in Medford OR all the way from Austin, to share a night of music with the legendary Don Maddox.
Saving Country Music 2012 Official ANTI-CMA’s Live Blog
74 Comments
Alright folks, so here we go! If you’ve never done this before, this is an exercise for old souls to find solace in humor from the ridiculousness that is a country music awards show. As the icon on the left tells you, this is “country music’s biggest night.” So we’ll make sure that ALL the perspectives on country music get their say. Please feel free to check back and refresh your browser as the blog is updated in real time.
A Critical Time in Country Music
38 Comments
Over the last few months, and the last few weeks specifically, we have been going through a country music Cambrian Explosion of sorts, with massive, earth-moving events completely re-shaping the style and infrastructure of a genre that has been around for over 70 years. Arguably there’s been more significant events in a short period than any other time in country’s history.
Lindi Ortega Breaks Out with “Cigarettes & Truckstops”
28 Comments
Lindi Ortega evokes the ghost of Patsy Cline and the cool factor of Wanda Jackson. Like with Elizabeth Cook, you almost can’t believe that an artist whose beauty is so stark would find appeal in the lower rungs of the music world; that they would settle on being real instead of real famous. But don’t let the beauty fool you, Lindi is the real deal.
Album Review – Taylor Swift’s “Red”
77 Comments
The first thing that needs to be pointed out is Red is not country. Red is really the tale of two albums: A gorgeous evocation of human emotions set to enchanting music and delivered in elevated modes, and awful pop shit that leaves you almost embarrassed for Taylor from the sheer obviousness of the ploy. To Taylor’s credit, it is the good stuff that makes up the majority of this album.
Song Reviews For Taylor Swift’s “Red”
14 Comments
So here are some specific thoughts on the songs of Taylor Swift’s album Red. This is meant to be an addendum to the more broad album review posted, so please read that first or in addition to this for the context of these reviews. As a general thought on the songs overall, I thought there were too many of them. If you are going to release an album of 16 tracks, they need to be solid. Instead, Red has some fat.
Barry Zito, The Wahoos, and Willy “Tea” Taylor
5 Comments
They say that great singers can sing the phone book and make it beautiful. If that’s the case, great songwriters could write about the phone book and make it beautiful. baseball seems like such a mundane topic to delve into with such depth for a whole song. But in other ways, this presented the greatest challenge to Willy’s songwriting, and by the success of the song, it presents one of his greatest feats.
Muddy Roots Announces Spring Weekender & European Lineup 2013
9 Comments
The Muddy Roots Festival has just announced that they will be heading back over to Europe once again this summer for the 2nd Annual Muddy Roots Europe June 14-16, 2013 at Cowboy Up Saloon Waardamme Belgium. Muddy Roots will also be adding a brand new domestic show called the Muddy Roots Spring Weekender on May 10-11 in Adams TN, just north of Nashville.
Ocean Breeze Making Signature Line of Country Douches
7 Comments
Just when you thought you’d seen it all, a feminine products company out of North Carolina called “Ocean Breeze” announced Thursday they are launching a new line of products pandering to the country world. Yes, country music is officially going….there. “This ain’t your grandmother’s douche, so to speak. Put the fiddles, steel guitars, vinegar and water mixes, and bulky, awkward applicators away.”
Hank Williams’ “Lost Concerts” Reveal The Real Hank
19 Comments
the most rewarding thing Hank Williams fans will walk away with from this collection is a more intimate understanding of the man through the introductions and stage banter that is captured with such breadth in these recordings. Never before has Hank been brought to life in such a real, cognitive way, making this project a provocative, essential listen for the serious Hank Williams fan.
Apolitical Country Songs To Help Survive The Political Season
32 Comments
About this time every four years the political rhetoric reaches critical mass as TV, radio, and the internet are permeated with political ads, while your personal social network feed is filled with political memes and other such oversimplification of issues we’ve been fighting to resolve for decades. Here are some apolitical, or anti-political songs to help survive the political season.