One of the signs that it’s a new day in country music is how a host performers who started as street buskers, train hoppers, and hitchhikers have now become some of the premier names in genre.
They’re Americana anti-stars, working in obscure dialects that sit between the margins of more popular styles, taking up the influences and sounds that have been orphaned by the rest of music and making them feel loved.
In the minds of many, Benjamin Tod of the Lost Dog Street Band is already a master of old-time Appalachian roots mixed with a punk attitude and DIY spirit. So now he’s setting his sights on tackling old school country.
On “Borned In Ya,” Melissa Carper leans into her strengths even more by worrying less about genre, and more about era, while emphasizing what is quietly brilliant about her approach to songwriting.
The carpenter/contractor, old-time banjo enthusiast, and sometimes full-time touring musician is officially back, releasing a couple of new songs, and announcing the release of his latest album “JP Harris is a Trash Fire.”
“People call me retro or throwback, and I’ve been OK with that,” Carper says. “But, I feel like I’m still creating something new. I’m taking styles and blending things in a way that maybe hasn’t been done before.”
Tyler Childers once said of John R. Miller, “A well-travelled wordsmith mapping out the world he’s seen, three chords at a time.” Miller is the kind of true-to-life road dog that a lot of musicians wish they had the free spirit of…
An important subset of the country/roots revolution we’re currently enjoying is women who are fearlessly hearkening back to the very earliest times of American music before it was all corrupted by fads and financial incentives. This is where Sierra Ferrell has found fertile ground, and so has Melissa Carper.
Ian Noe is a master craftsman of character and setting, manifesting men and women that feel as real as rain in the mind’s eye, and casting them in scenarios that make you materially and emotionally invested in them, all within a three minute interval.
The elusive and enigmatic Ian Noe from Kentucky stunned many and left them hungry for more with his debut album Between The Country from 2019. But aside from some scant touring and appearances, the songwriter has been mostly out of the spotlight.