1969: A Watershed Year For Americana Music Half a century ago, in a single calendar year, an avalanche of albums were released that would go on to have a lasting and monumental impact on what would become known as alt-country and more recently Americana music. Looking back at 1969 and pursuing the list of albums …
Jeff Tweedy with Jen Cloher Metro Theatre, Sydney May 20th, 2019 By Chris Familton In 20 years of attending gigs at the Metro, this was the first time I’d seen seats in the venue. There were mixed comments from the audience but it worked well, creating a more intimate atmosphere in the room, which in …
SONGS OF TRIBUTE For my Waitin’ Around to Die column in Rhythms I recently took a look at some of the outstanding releases in the field of tribute albums. Specifically those that fall under the umbrella of Americana and alt-country, whether it’s in recognition of an artist’s body of work or a fundraiser to assist them …
THE MIRROR OF TRUTH On his new album The Crossing, Alejandro Escovedo takes an unflinching and poetic look at America and the immigrant experience. By Chris Familton Alejandro Escovedo has been surrounded by music his entire life. His father played and listened to Mexican music, his mother loved big band jazz music and his rocker …
Big Thief U.F.O.F. 4AD What started with a debut album in 2016, that introduced a fragile and poetic songwriter and her band, has blossomed into a fascinating and quickly evolving career for Adrienne Lenker and the rest of Big Thief. They’ve been touring relentlessly, Lenker even having time to record a well received solo record … Continue reading
Melbournians Danny Walsh Banned have today revealed the video clip for their brand new single ‘Old Disco’, a old-time, cosmic and alt-country blend that swings and sways on the back of some beautiful pedal steel and fiddle (Chris Altmann and Kat Mear of Cash Savage &The Last Drinks). There’s a really nice weary/melancholic undercurrent to the … Continue reading
Tiny Ruins Olympic Girls Milk! Records “We were only inches away but still I had a long way to go” sings New Zealander Hollie Fullbrook on the opening title track of her new album. It’s a hallmark of Tiny Ruins songs, those lines that hang in the air with poetry and grace, cutting to the … Continue reading
Hailing from Auckland, New Zealand, Albi & The Wolves hit a sweet melodic strain of folk music on their new single ‘This Is War’. It bristles and keens like dancing firefly, circling a relationship in dissolution and emerging with resolve and optimism. The acoustic trio will be over here in Australia in a couple of … Continue reading
Matt Andersen Halfway Home By Morning True North Records/MGM Canadian Matt Andersen is a big man with a big voice and going on this collection of 13 songs he’s also got a big heart. Whether it’s singing devotional love songs or conveying the pain of loss, he invests heavy emotion and a believable sincerity in … Continue reading
Purple Mountains Purple Mountains Drag City / Spunk When indie rock and Americana music crossed paths and found common ground in the 90s, a group of songwriters emerged who shaped exquisite songs from literate, clever, dark and humorous poetry – blending it with electric and acoustic instrumentation. It was a new kind of country rock and … Continue reading
Slow and sad folk music is something we love and Canadian Zach Kleisinger fits the bill perfectly with a sound that recalls Tindersticks, Dan Michaelson and Will Oldham. There’s a twist of country in the mix as well, in the way the song rolls along with a pastoral quality amid the harmonica and pedal steel … Continue reading
Jim Lauderdale From Another World Yep Roc Records By all accounts this is Jim Lauderdale’s 32nd album and it follows hot on the heels of last year’s excellent record Time Flies. From Another World shares many sonic similarities with its predecessor but as the title suggests there’s even more of a cosmic vibe to these … Continue reading
Will Johnson‘s name may be more familiar to you as the main guy behind the alt-country bands Centro-Matic and South San Gabriel and as drummer for Monsters Of Folk. He was also part of the fine 2009 LP Molina and Johnson with Jason Molina of Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co. Here’s his latest single … Continue reading
Perth alt-folk femme trio, The Holy Smoke have just released their new EP The River, featuring the exquisite harmonies of the gospel-flavoured opening track ‘Down To The River’ and the closing cut ‘Will There Be a Light’. The latter is an earthy and soulful folk reverie that again highlights the symbiotic vocal connection that Delilah … Continue reading
Hard grooves aplenty on this Americana soul track, the title cut from Toronto native Jeremie Albino‘s debut album Hard Time, out August 9th. It’s a more polished and more tightly produced sound than another of our current favourites, Charley Crockett. Albino has a folk voice but he’s doing some interesting things by placing it in … Continue reading
Texan Kathryn Legrande has released two superb new tracks. The first, ‘Going Crazy’ is a wonderful Loretta Lynn and Merle Haggard-channeling, hard honky-tonk song topped off by Legrande’s fine vocal. There’s a touch of Nikki Lane in her sound too but less floorboard-stomping extrovert. ‘Making It Up’ takes a smoother and more wistful approach, soaked … Continue reading
‘Sweet Lucinda’, the new track from West Virginian Tony Harrah starts off pleasingly, in a burly troubadour kind of way but when it hits the chorus it locks you in. The shift of the drums and the upward melodic surge will win you over instantly. “Ah yes, this is great,” you’ll nod to yourself as the … Continue reading
Sean McMahon You Will Know When You’re There Blind Date Records Melbournian Sean McMahon’s new album is a beguiling affair. It occupies a gently rolling middle ground where songs never explode into wild extremes. Instead, they nestle into a warm and gently rocking vibe. McMahon’s sound is bucolic and forlorn singer/songwriter alt-country, with a dash … Continue reading
Here’s a new song from Sara Rachele, a songwriter from Decatur, GA who trades in some wonderfully atmospheric torch-song, Americana, soul noir. Think Mazzy Star (who she’s covered), Lera Lynn, and Katie Brianna. The new single ‘Allelu (I Found You)’, from her forthcoming album Scorpio Moon (August 2nd), was recorded live to tape in Brooklyn, … Continue reading
