Steve Earle & The Dukes Ghosts Of West Virginia New West Records The first sound you hear on Steve Earle’s new album is his solo voice, all gravel and grit as he leads a group chant which sits somewhere between the church and the railroad. It sets the scene magnificently for an album of songs … Continue reading
Courtney Marie Andrews Old Flowers Fat Possum Records / Inertia The evolution of one of the most consistently rewarding songwriters in recent years continues with this devastating treatise and rumination on heartbreak, despair and emotional renewal. Courtney Marie Andrews has taken the tried and true subject of the end of a long-term relationship and bled … Continue reading
Melbourne songwriter Sunset Stranger (Stephen E. Stanisic) has a brand new single, the final one ahead of the digital, CD and limited vinyl release of his new sophomore album Your Home Town on Friday September 4th. Previously recording under the name Eddie Nuardo, Stanisic has proven he’s a consummate songwriter and player, bringing an authentic … Continue reading
JAIME WYATT NEON CROSS New West Records Back in 2017, Jaime hit the scene via her Felony Blues EP which documented her rocky road through drug addiction and jail time. She’s taken that statement of honest and raw songwriting and put her name up in lights with its exceptional followup Neon Cross. Produced by Shooter … Continue reading
D.C Cross Terabithian No Drums Records Bridge To Terabithia is a 1977 novel (and 2007 film) about two kids who discover an abandoned treehouse and create their own fantasy world to escape the trauma of their daily lives. Darren Cross has dialled into his own sonic Terabithia, in this unprecedented time of upheaval, and created … Continue reading
We’re digging the sound of this track from Molly Maher, a song that blends western and Mexicali styles in a way that tumbles and clatters around with a loose and graceful quality. It’s like Tom Waits, light-headed on tequila, jamming with Calexico in a dusty backstreet on a sunny afternoon. Lovely stuff and there’s more … Continue reading
Lilly Hiatt Walking Proof New West Records, 2020 With her famous surname and the album’s opening shimmering tremolo guitar chords you’d think you were in for a straight country trip. There’s certainly a strong country streak, of the Nikki Lane kind, that runs through Walking Proof, but just as equally there’s an indie rock aesthetic … Continue reading
Melbourne alt-country/Americana songwriter Mitch Dean released his debut solo album Holding Back The Levee last Friday. “I wanted to make something that sounded like all the albums I love to listen to. From Neil Young through to The Jayhawks.” Evocative storytelling, rich musicality and the heartfelt conveyance of human emotion. Those are some of the hallmarks … Continue reading
Lucinda Williams Good Souls Better Angels Highway 20 / Cooking Vinyl Australia After a year spent looking back with her Car Wheels On A Gravel Road 20th anniversary tour, Lucinda Williams has now turned her mind to the modern world in the here and now, from internal battles of individuals to the heartless idiocy of … Continue reading
‘The Lonely Hunter’ is the third track released from The Wine of Youth, the new album by San Diego-based singer-songwriter Zach Phillips. Based around a simple repeating guitar motif, Phillips weaves some sublime vocal melodies that rise and fall, circling those exquisite guitar notes and the subtle rhythm section. Lovely stuff. “The Wine of Youth” is … Continue reading
James Chapman and the Blue Moon have a new single out called ‘I Don’t Try’, an excellent rumbling rabble rouser of a track that channels Dylan and Elvis and was apparently recorded live and late at night on an abandoned US air base. The song is one of three on their new self-titled EP of … Continue reading
Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit Reunions Caroline Australia Jason Isbell cemented himself in the pantheon of 21st century songwriters with his Southeastern album in 2013. Since then he’s continued to release strong records but Reunions stands as his most consistent set of songs to date. Sure it might not have the exquisite emotional songwriting … Continue reading
We love the nexus between alt-country, dark folk, post-rock and slowcore music. That rarefied air that people like Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Jason Molina, Bon Iver and others have all breathed and created in. When we heard ‘Mountain Kin / Anodyne‘, by group State Park Ranger, we knew they were kindred spirits of those musicians and … Continue reading
Brandon Dodd What A Way To Die Independent ‘Absolute’, the opening track on Brandon Dodd’s debut solo album sets a high standard with its warmth and intimacy, a wonderful blend of country, folk and heart-on-sleeve soul. The subtlety and restraint in the guitar playing and Dodd’s voice introduce a solo artist who has treaded the … Continue reading
Kansas City native Fritz Hutchison has just released Wide Wild Acres, an album that bristles with heartfelt intent and cascading melodies that tumble across a landscape of Americana and indie rock. ‘Fortunate Flaws’ sounds like a lost Creedence Clearwater Revival meets Wilco gem, built on the back of Hutchison’s gloriously lazy and wide-ranging voice. The push and pull … Continue reading
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