A DECADE OF MAKING SWEET SOUNDS After a decade of relentless touring, from street corners to bars and festivals, The California Honeydrops have forged a strong bond with their audiences. Drummer Ben Malament discusses the band’s achievements with Chris Familton, ahead of their return to Bluesfest in 2019. This will be the third year in … Continue reading
Here’s a voice that will grab you right from the outset. Agata Karczewska is a Warsaw-based singer-songwriter with a deep American sound. Bluesy gothic Americana folk is the order of the day on ‘Envy Is My Sin’, a song that showcases her bold and rich voice and makes for a strident and soulful sound. Recommended. … Continue reading
When a genuine old soul inhabits a voice it conveys genuine emotion and a lived-in rawness to the sound of a song. That was what struck us when we heard this version of ‘House Of The Rising Sun’ by Swedish gothic folk and blues musician Old Kerry McKee. McKee has a history in punk and … Continue reading
Something a bit different today, this track ‘Drugstore Cowboy’ from Swiss duo John Dear and drummer Alma June. It’s a howling stomper, a mix of the urban angst and hollering backwoods blues. There are shades of The Black Keys in their sound which isn’t afraid to get noisey and raucous with heavily reverted guitars and … Continue reading
Copperline Rusty Fords And Weatherboards Independent The members of Sydney band Copperline have been playing in various bands dating back to the 90s and after ten years they’ve finally recorded their debut album together, one that certainly feels like a collective gathering of likeminded musicians and accomplished players. Led by songwriter Brad Christmas, the band … Continue reading
Kicking off the new week with some raw blues from Willie Farmer. Fat Possum Records are releasing a new album of his recordings via their imprint Big Legal Mess on March 1st. Willie Farmer is ready to stop being an auto mechanic. He’s had his own shop in Duck Hill, MS (slightly to the east … Continue reading
Just before the end of last year I came across this track from Swedish songwriter Lina Horner and have been meaning to write about it and spread the word about her music. ‘Where To Go?’ is a smoky, soulful bluesy track that at times reminds us of Joan As Police Woman but also has filigrees … Continue reading
For Kevin Welch, it seems like a lifetime ago that he rolled into Nashville in the late 70s, one of the countless budding songwriters seeking fame and/or fortune. In the cut-throat country music capital it’s usually the best that survive and it wasn’t long before Welch became recognised for his songwriting and gained respect from … Continue reading
Album number three for Melbourne-based songwriter Matt Joe Gow and this one finds him hitting his stride with his most compelling and realised set of songs to date. Gow co-produced the album and it certainly sounds world class with space for the songs to breathe and backed up with some wonderful and stylistically varied playing … Continue reading
BEYOND THE BORDERS OF ALT-COUNTRY From alt-country to blues to soul, Matt Joe Gow covers all bases on his third album. Across his first two albums, Matt Joe Gow laid down some accomplished alt-country, the kind that showed a lifetime growing up on the songs of Whiskeytown, The Jayhawks and Wilco alongside his parents’ record … Continue reading
Sydney quartet Copperline recently released their debut album Rusty Fords And Weatherboards and celebrated with a wonderful night of music at LazyBones Lounge in Marrickville, NSW. We’ve got a full review coming soon but both the album and their live show highlights the band’s fine musicianship and the range of styles they bring to their music, … Continue reading
This is the latest single from Melbourne songwriter Hamish Anderson who has been picking up a fair bit of buzz in the US over the last few years. It’s a bluesy alt-country track that would sit comfortably alongside the more recent work of Ryan Adams. Clean production and definitely polished but it still has enough alt-country … Continue reading
Originally from from the small southern town of Bolton, Mississippi, Robert Connely Farr is now based in Vancouver, British Columbia and with his group The Rebeltone Boys he’s released the excellent new album Dirty South Blues. It’s chock full of heavy blues-rock, primarily originals plus a cover of Skip James’ ‘Hard Time Killing Floor Blues’. ‘Ode To … Continue reading
Hillstomp are a due that tear up the folk blues handbook and let the torn pages scatter across the stage in a whirlwind of stomping rhythms, breakneck picking and strumming. They’ve got a new album called Monster Receiver, which is set to be released through Fluff and Gravy Records on October 19th. The LP features guest … Continue reading
“Iggy, oh Iggy, I wanna be your sweet sixteen, even though I’m almost 29” sings Mary-Elaine Jenkins on this excellent crunchy blues and struttin’ country rock track, taken from her debut album Hold Still, due out on September 28th via Good Child Music. She’s got one of those lived-in smokey voices, perfectly suited to the blues … Continue reading
