"Looking back, it was such a dumb idea," Kathleen Edwards sings on her new album, a line that sounds kind of dumb itself when it's typed out, but that in context — between laments for a lonely marriage and the ill-advised wedding that spawned it — renders "Pink Champagne" the most gutting track on Edwards's fourth record Voyageur, possibly of her entire catalog. In a general way that song, and the entire album, are about Edwards's… more »
How exactly does one identify "folk-punk"? There's no easy answer, as different artists within the subgenre's horizons arrived at its intersection via different journeys. One could argue that Woody Guthrie was not only the original folkie but also the original folk-punker; look no further than the iconic photo of Woody with a guitar bearing the slogan "This Machine Kills Fascists." Boiled to its essence, folk punk is generally tradition-based acoustic music delivered with a… more »
Heard over the radio, “Am I the Only One” was a song to relate to, a pick-me-up to bridge the early evening transition from work to play. Now, as the first track off Home, Dierks Bentley’s sixth major album, it’s a challenge: Dierks wants to have a little fun tonight — do you? The party continues with “Gonna Die Young,” an uptempo ode to lust at first sight, and even the unexpectedly melancholy “Tip It on Back,” before slowing on “Home,” a theoretically apolitical America tribute that easily surpasses Modern Day Drifter‘s “Domestic, Light and Cold” as the most outwardly patriotic number in the Bentley catalog.
On the record’s backside, the man who made a Country No. 1 out of “Come… more »
Heart Like Feathers marks Seattle songwriter Robert Deeble’s return to the studio after a six-year hiatus. In contrast to the weightlessness suggested by the album’s title, Deeble’s heart is anything but light. Instead, on these 10 songs he sounds positively world-weary. Whether it’s the guilt and shame of infidelity (“Undertow”), or the existential ache of “Eucharist” (where he sighs, “Bless me Father, I’m a mess”) Deeble mostly comes off heavily burdened by emotional deadweight. Given this full-length recording’s sparse percussion, empathetic and harmonic female backing vocals and mournful, gypsy-like violin fills, the pained and yearning Deeble comes off like a worthy descendent and disciple of Leonard Cohen. Deeble is also unafraid to stretch his compositions beyond the familiar alternating verse-chorus… more »
With Nothing Here Seems Strange, Buxton joins the ranks of folk/rock outfits that prove the deep well of Americana still has a few untapped springs. Nothing Here is swelling with boy/girl harmonies, sweeping strings and a shortwave radio texture that swaths lead singer Sergio Trevino’s voice to moody effect. Flare for ambience isn’t the band’s only trick, though. For every finger-picked guitar or lilting melody, there’s a counter balance: a wailing lead riff (“Down in the Valley”), a shuffling beat (“Lynchburg Ferry”), a breakout jam session (“Broke from Bread”). Whatever elegance they conjure is cluttered with distortion and verve more befitting garage rockers than a group of poetically-minded Texans. Their focus as tunesmiths results in a thankful lack of attitude.… more »
Laura Gibson’s third album is named for a northeast Oregonhamlet just a few hours west of her Portlandhometown. Considering that Portland has, over the past few years, grown nearly as stereotyped as Seattle circa 1993, Gibson might be forgiven for picking this moment to put some distance between her and her roots. It is typical of La Grande‘s boldness and confidence that Gibson instead chooses to point straight back at them.
Luckily, La Grande isn’t a return home as much as the closing of a chapter. On her previous albums, Gibson cleaved perhaps too closely to the popular caricature of a Portland folk balladeer — prim, precious, possibly a little bit too pleased with the sound emerging from her own monitors.… more »
The office folks at Righteous Babe Records put this playlist together for eMusic. It has some choice songs from the Righteous Babe catalog but also some friends, openers and influencers we either work with or just plain like to play. Hope you enjoy! more »
