MAGNET Says Mary Halvorson Is Essential
MAGNET says that Amaryllis and Belladonna, both released last year by Mary Halvorson on Nonesuch, are “essential.” The site writes, “Already a bandleader and guitarist of renown, [during the pandemic] Halvorson continued the self-challenging path that has led her, in recent years, to branch out from jazz in order to take on fresh instrumental combinations, lyric-writing and increasingly cross-genre composition. Halvorson doesn’t […]
Sunny War – On Tour and Surging at NACC – Performs for WNXP’s Sonic Cathedral
Nashville NPR affiliate WNXP is all in on Sunny War‘s newest album and recently featured the artist on its Sonic Cathedral series of live performances. They write, “Inspired by bands from AC/DC to Bad Brains, Nashville singer-songwriter Sunny War (the musical moniker of Sydney Ward) makes Americana music that blends everything from country to blues to punk and everything in between. Born out of an emotionally […]
June McDoom’s “On My Way” Is KEXP’s Song of the Day
Today the illustrious radio station KEXP has selected June McDoom‘s “On My Way” as their Song of the Day! If you’re going to listen to one new song and artist today, make it be this one. You can check out the full KEXP’s June McDoom Song of the Day feature here. “Singer/songwriter June McDoom taps into her family history for her […]
The Wild Is Calling Features Matt Holubowski’s “My Burrow”
The Wild Is Calling recently featured Matt Holubowski‘s single “My Burrow,” comparing the Québecois songwriter to Paul Simon, Dr. Dog, and Hamilton Leithauser. “There’s a line for everyone in this poetic masterpiece,” the site writes. “[It’s] an anthem for the modern dreamers, the ones buried in the crowd of viral vitriol… Swift movements of warped orchestration accent life’s chaotic turns. Much […]
New Music From Rose’s Pawn Shop
With a fusion of bluegrass instrumentation and folk-rock amplification, Rose’s Pawn Shop has spent the better part of two decades carving out an Americana sound that’s as diverse as the band’s native Los Angeles. Their past releases offer a melting pot of modern-day roots music, shot through with electric guitar, fiddle, raw percussive stomp, and stacked vocal […]
The Bluegrass Situation Reviews Sunny War’s “Stunning” New LP
The Bluegrass Situation writes that “Sunny War‘s stunning new album, Anarchist Gospel, is never preachy, because it doesn’t need to be. War’s evocation of both anarchy and gospel in this context is strikingly grounded, blossoming from everyday understandings and interactions with each concept. And deeper still, in these sweeping, grand arrangements built on sturdy bones of fingerstyle, […]
Week In Pop Covers Nima Kazerouni’s New EP
Week In Pop has a lovely, reflective feature on Nima Kazerouni‘s new self-titled EP. “Leader of the beloved So Many Wizards,” the site writes, “Nima shares songs that revolve around leaning into fatherhood, ballads from the heart, songs from the lockdown and songs dedicated to new re-emergences and newfound affinities.” According to Week In Pop, “the EP offers […]
New Music From SR2
The original 14-song limited edition vinyl LP of Tape Excavation was created to accompany the 2020 Independent Project Records coffee table book Savage Impressions (an arresting look back on Independent Project Records and Independent Project Press founder Bruce Licher’s career as a visual artist) published by P22. Tape Excavation was compiled by Savage Republic and Scenic founding member Licher after scouring through dozens of boxes of cassette tapes from rehearsals, demos, […]
Folk Alley Reviews Sunny War’s Anarchist Gospel
Folk Alley writes that “there’s a raw beauty on all the songs on Anarchist Gospel. Sunny War wears her emotions on her sleeve in her brilliant songwriting. With her stirring vocals and moving guitar, she calls forth the deep shadows that pass over the human heart, and the redemption that lies in wait.” Read the site’s full review of […]
Underdog Fanzine Praises Vic Ruggiero’s Versatility
Germany’s Underdog Fanzine is into the new Vic Ruggiero LP. “Vic Ruggiero is musically very versatile,” the site notes. “Be it [with] The Slackers, Rancid, [or] Transplants… With Stuff In My Pockets, Vic moves in completely different ways and is reminiscent of a troubadour who walks through the country and conjures blues, folk and Americana out of his pocket in retro sound. Vic is […]
Nashville’s WNXP Does A Deep Dive Into Sunny War’s New LP
Nashville station WNXP featured Sunny War‘s Anarchist Gospel as its album of the week last week, writing that “This album is the balance between good and bad. It represents someone’s story through the worst parts of life, but also follows the story of someone preserving. Sunny War’s vulnerability on Anarchist Gospel is bold and brave, but for her it was needed to […]
Retro Pop Talks With Nina Persson
Retro Pop Magazine has reported on Nina Persson‘s recent involvement with James Yorkston and the Second Hand Orchestra, with whom she released the collaborative album The Great White Sea Eagle last month. The album is very different than Persson’s work as the frontperson of The Cardigans, as she explains: “This isn’t something I think I could have done back [when The Cardigans were […]
Dusty Organ Praises Matt Holubowski For Pushing Forward His Sound On New Single “My Burrow”
About the newest single “My Burrow” from Matt Holubowski, Dusty Organ writes, “Known for his atmospheric and unsuspectingly lush folk sound, the singer-songwriter continues to push his sound forward on his commanding new single ‘My Burrow.’ Incorporating hints of electronic influences, buzzing guitars, and a more invigorating spirit, ‘My Burrow’ balances regret and optimism with its philosophical […]
New Music From A Produce
Ambient cult LP The Clearing was originally self-released on vinyl in 1988 by A Produce, the moniker used by the late Barry Craig, who was a prolific artist operating on the fringe of the experimental and DIY music scene in Los Angeles from the 1980s until his premature death in 2011. As a lead-up to the album’s March […]
PopMatters Says Sunny War Is Both Promising And Exciting
According to Popmatters, “Sunny War is one of the most promising, exciting voices in American roots music” and her new album Anarchist Gospel, at radio now from New West Records, “is a testament to clear-eyed persistence and gritty hope… Raw and authentic but never preachy nor maudlin, Anarchist Gospel keeps life’s contradictory tensions in the forefront of our consciousness, whether […]
Vic Ruggiero Chats With The Kansas City Pitch
The Kansas City Pitch has a great interview with Vic Ruggiero, whose new album Stuff In My Pockets is now at radio from ORG Music. The conversation touches on Ruggiero’s love for “pissed-off sounding” retro music, like that made by Nick Lowe, his appreciation for ORG as a label, and the ebb and flow of his songwriting process. He says, “I […]
KCRW Gets Behind June McDoom
KCRW recently discovered June McDoom, including her track “The City” on this week’s edition of “Five Songs To Hear This Week.” The song appears as a bonus track on our digital servicing of her debut EP, at radio now from Temporary Residence Ltd. According to KCRW, “Dewy-eyed and sparkly fresh, relative newcomer June McDoom sings ethereal bedroom folk that’s […]
New Music From Nima Kazerouni
Nima Kazerouni is a Los Angeles based multi-instrumental artist who established the dream punk band So Many Wizards. From the start of the pandemic, Kazerouni concentrated much of his time working on a collection of songs and doing what he knew best; recording layers of melodies and counter-melodies with the arsenal of synths and analogue instruments he’s […]
Pitchfork Recommends Sunny War’s New LP
Pitchfork recommends Sunny War‘s new album Anarchist Gospel and writes that the “folk-punk singer-songwriter steps into a more expansive, considered sound, blending various strains of American roots music into a quietly idiosyncratic style.” According to Stephen Thomas Erlewine, “it’s the warmth of War’s delivery that lingers… Always an empathetic vocalist, War sometimes seemed a shade too earnest on her earlier […]
New Noise Says There’s “Not A Weak Moment” On Vic Ruggiero’s New LP
“On his latest solo effort, Stuff In My Pockets,” New Noise Magazine writes, “Vic Ruggiero shows he is so much more than just a ska singer, drifting into a wildly satisfying fusion of blues and folk with snatches of everything from rockabilly and soul to garage rock… Ruggiero seamlessly segues from raucous, garage rock numbers, like the […]
