ALBUM REVIEW: Wilco – Cruel Country
Album Artwork / Album Reviews / Alt-Country / Americana / Cosmic Country / Country / New Music / Stream

ALBUM REVIEW: Wilco – Cruel Country

WILCO CRUEL COUNTRY DPBM RECORDS ‘Country’ as in the USA or ‘Country’ as in the genre? Cleverly it’s a subtle blend of both on this new 21 track double album from the band that long ago took an experimental and ‘anything goes’ diversion, from alt-county to post-country. More than that it’s a wide-ranging, intimate and … Continue reading

HENRY WAGONS RELEASES NEW SINGLE OF COSMIC COUNTRY BOOGIE
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HENRY WAGONS RELEASES NEW SINGLE OF COSMIC COUNTRY BOOGIE

Henry Wagons has today released his brand new single ‘(Don’t Be) Down And Out‘, the first taste of his new solo album, his first for Cheatin’ Hearts Records, which will be out in 2023. The song hits an irresistible and strutting, country funk groove with nimbly spiralling guitar and Henry playing the role of hoedown … Continue reading

IRON & WINE ANNOUNCES LORI MCKENNA COVERS EP
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IRON & WINE ANNOUNCES LORI MCKENNA COVERS EP

LORI finds Iron & Wine drawing from the songbook of noted singer-songwriter and multiple Grammy winner Lori McKenna.  The whole EP will be available digitally worldwide on September 16th with vinyl to follow and pre-sales starting Sept 16th via Iron & Wine webshop.  Recorded at the famed Sam Phillips Studios (Memphis, TN) with producer Matt Ross-Spang, Iron & Wine’s … Continue reading

FULL POWER HAPPY HOUR (QLD) RELEASE CATCHY NEW SINGLE ‘MEASUREMENTS’
Americana / Cosmic Country / Indie Folk / New Music / Stream

FULL POWER HAPPY HOUR (QLD) RELEASE CATCHY NEW SINGLE ‘MEASUREMENTS’

As we hurtle towards the start of spring in this part of the world it’s always nice synchronicity when a song comes along that feels like the aural and sonic equivalent of that sense of warmer days, a skip in the step and new growth. Brisbane-Meanjin indie-folk quintet Full Power Happy Hour have a brand … Continue reading

KASEY CHAMBERS RELEASES LIVE VERSION OF EMINEM CLASSIC
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KASEY CHAMBERS RELEASES LIVE VERSION OF EMINEM CLASSIC

Kasey Chambers is not just an incredible songwriter and performer but she’s also a master of interpreting other’s songs. Not afraid to step outside the country realm, she’s taken Eminem’s classic hip hop track ‘Lose Yourself’ and transformed it into (initially) a haunting elegy to hopes and dreams. Not many can interpret and recontextualise the … Continue reading

1970 Creedence Clearwater Revival live concert set for release
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1970 Creedence Clearwater Revival live concert set for release

For decades, rumors have circulated among Creedence Clearwater Revival’s fans about a long-lost recording of their legendary 1970 show at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Now, Craft Recordings have announced that the rumours are, indeed, true. Available for pre-order today in multiple formats, the long-awaited Creedence Clearwater Revival at the Royal Albert Hall presents the concert in its entirety and finds CCR … Continue reading

EMILY FAIRLIGHT & THE SHIFTING SANDS EMBRACE A RAW AND EMOTIVE SWAY ON ‘HEAD ABOVE’
Alt-Country / Americana / Folk Rock / New Music / New Zealand / Stream

EMILY FAIRLIGHT & THE SHIFTING SANDS EMBRACE A RAW AND EMOTIVE SWAY ON ‘HEAD ABOVE’

Emily Fairlight and Mike McLeod of The Shifting Sands blend their guitars and voices in a gloriously intertwined wash of sound on ‘Head Above’, the first single from their forthcoming collaborative LP Sun Casts A Shadow, out now via Fishrider Records. There are some wonderful stripped-back folk and alt-country qualities to the song as the … Continue reading

VIDEO PREMIERE: Ernest Aines – Yellowstone
Americana / Blues / Folk / New Music / premiere / Videos

VIDEO PREMIERE: Ernest Aines – Yellowstone

We’ve had some great new songs and videos to premiere of late and that continues today with the clip for ‘Yellowstone’, the excellent new single from Ernest Aines. Aines is a singer-songwriter from Melbourne who released his first EP, Already Found, in 2019 before extensively touring the USA, Japan, Canada, Germany and Brazil and writing … Continue reading

VIDEO PREMIERE: Hillsborough – Comin’ Back For You
Alt-Country / Americana / Australia / Cosmic Country / New Music / premiere / Rockabilly / Videos

VIDEO PREMIERE: Hillsborough – Comin’ Back For You

Meanjin/Brisbane duo Hillsborough back up their excellent 2022 single ‘Trouble Finds Its Way’ with another freewheeling gem in ‘Comin’ Back For You‘. Electricity and twang rattle and roll their way through the song as Phil Usher and Beata Maglai hitch a grainy black and white ride on a train. The film stock perfectly suits the … Continue reading

VIDEO PREMIERE: Jen Mize & The Rough N’ Tumble – Elevator Ride
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VIDEO PREMIERE: Jen Mize & The Rough N’ Tumble – Elevator Ride

Jen Mize & The Rough N’ Tumble released their debut single ‘Elevator Ride‘ (AMRAP charts #1) a few weeks ago and now we’re very pleased to be able to premiere the video clip for the song, directed by Ashley Rees. A songwriting collaboration at a songwriting retreat between Jen Mize and Jeremy Edwards kick-started this … Continue reading

VIDEO PREMIERE: Joyce Prescher – Sleep Now
Americana / Folk / New Music / premiere / Videos

VIDEO PREMIERE: Joyce Prescher – Sleep Now

A haunting and delicate refrain signals the intro to Joyce Prescher‘s beautiful new single ‘Sleep Now’. Augmented by austere fingerpicked guitar, haunting cello and softly shuffling drums, Prescher sings of dreams, night and sleep as she explores the question “How much of yourself should you lose for someone else?” There’s a half-awake quality to the … Continue reading

Perth’s Mama Red & The Dark Blues ‘Going Down in Flames’ in fine fashion on their new single
Americana / Australia / Country / New Music / Stream

Perth’s Mama Red & The Dark Blues ‘Going Down in Flames’ in fine fashion on their new single

Super sweet harmonies and vocal melodies on this new single from eight-piece Perth group Mama Red & The Dark Blues. ‘Going Down in Flames’ rides a light and rolling groove – propulsive with a gently hypnotic quality. The vocals are the drawcard, recalling the 1970s golden age of pop-laced country, but don’t underestimate the fine … Continue reading

THE HERMIT WEAVE SOME ENGLISH FOLK MAGIC ON ‘SARAH WEARS HER PAINTED HAIR’
Folk / Folk Rock / New Music / Psychedelic / Stream

THE HERMIT WEAVE SOME ENGLISH FOLK MAGIC ON ‘SARAH WEARS HER PAINTED HAIR’

Hailing from Liverpool England, the folk trio The Hermit reimagine traditional Irish tunes and Old English ballads alongside their own compositions with a thread of improvisation running through the music. Across six minutes on ‘Sarah wears her painted hair’, Charlie, Lynny and Michael take a languid and exploratory journey through hypnotic and lightly psychedelic folk. … Continue reading

TEDDY AND THE ROUGH RIDERS HONOUR LITTLE RICHARD ON NEW SINGLE
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TEDDY AND THE ROUGH RIDERS HONOUR LITTLE RICHARD ON NEW SINGLE

If you’re a fan of classic melodic country/folk rock then this new single from Nashville group Teddy and the Rough Riders should hit the spot nicely. It comes from the band’s forthcoming self-titled, Margo Price-produced album, out July 1st via Appalachia Record Co. Teddy and The Rough Riders’s loving ode to the man—and the stories … Continue reading

A DELIGHT OF FINGERPICKED GUITAR AND GENTLE HORNS FROM AARON FISHER AND ROB STEPHENSON
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A DELIGHT OF FINGERPICKED GUITAR AND GENTLE HORNS FROM AARON FISHER AND ROB STEPHENSON

From my internet travels I haven’t been able to find out much about this New York duo but this track, ‘Merino Ghost‘, from Aaron Fisher and Rob Stephenson’s 2022 album Sightseeing, absolutely caught my ear and pulled me in deep with its dreamy, evocative soundscape. They navigate a beautiful space between American Primitive guitar stylings … Continue reading