Category: A Rock and a Roll

Five Cool Ones: Five New Records Released This Week (February 7, 2025)

Need a palate cleanser from the Grammys? There are some cool new records to envelope your ears this week.

Ricky Warwick is out with his solo single “The Crickets Stayed In Clovis.”

Manic Street Preachers are tickling our ears with “Brushstrokes of Reunion.”

And finally, Ginger Wildheart, overcoming some mental health issues, is front and center with this single in advance of what might be his best record yet, and that’s saying something.

The Jellybricks – Dreaming In Stereo

Released on Wicked Cool Records, so it must be great, the Harrisburg, PA power popsters continue to impress with their own brand of melodic, harmony-driven coolness.

The title track would make Cheap Trick blush, “Let You Down” carries a whiff of The Knack in its essence, and “Shine On” could have been a lost Raspberry’s classic.

The only band with four songs from one album ensconced as one of “The Coolest Songs In The World” on Little Steven’s XM radio show. The Jellybricks should be firmly take residence on your radar.

Joe Ely – Love and Freedom

On the pantheon of the living legends of Texas Troubadours Joe Ely stands tall right up there with Willie Nelson, Ray Wylie Hubbard, and Terry Allen, and with Love and Freedom, his latest release, culled from his immersive archives, Ely cements his legacy.

“Adios Sweet Dreams” is a ripped from the headlines treatise on the immigration issue from the perspective of those fleeing their country to find a better life for themselves, and Ely Rips the heart out of the Townes Van Zandy staple “Waiting Around To Die” creating an instant cover classic.

Here, with nine originals and four covers Ely is in fine voice with a lot of miles still left in the saddle.

Horsebath – Another Farewell

As debut albums go Another Farewell courtesy of Canadian Americana rockers Horsebath should get serious consideration for best debut record once the end-of-the-year lists come around. The band combines the vintage Tex-Mex of the Sir Douglas Quintet, the Canada-centric songwriting of Gordon Lightfoot, and the vintage refrains of Lee Hazelwood all rolled up into one hell of a bar band.

The opener Hard to Love has a Lukas Nelson feel about it and would have fit in quite nicely on the B side of a Doug Sahm single, and if the closer “Turn My Lover Loose” is not autobiographical it will be soon.

Listen to the entirety of this record from an exciting new find.

Thundermother – Dirty & Divine

In yet another glorious redemption story for Thundermother, front-woman Fillipa Nassil has assembled yet another band of Swedish femme-fatales with her latest version of the band that wouldn’t die.

The record had us at Cowbell from the ripping opening track, “So Close,” “Speaking of the Devil” is a lover-scorned rampage that would have fit in quite well blaring from the bars on the Sunset Strip,” and “Bright Eyes” sound likes it could have come from the vaults of the early days of Def Leppard when they rocked heavy, and “American Adrenaline” is Van Halen fronted by the kick-ass version of Suzi Quatro.

Did the rock record of the year just rear its head? You heard it here first.

Gyasi -Here Comes The Good Part

At first, from the opening salvo of “Sweet Thing” from the latest album from Gyasi (pronounced Jah-See), yours won’t be the first set of ears to think that you have fallen into a very deep rabbit hole of demos and B-sides from a deluxe box set of David Bowie’s Jean Jeanie album.

This is one hell of a wham-glam thank you, ma’am rock and roll record. No band this side of Luke Spiller and the Struts or Darkness is putting the glam vibes out into the ether with the ferocity of Gyasi, and its a wonder to behold.

With so many great songs and more hooks and earworms than an episode of Dangerous Catch, this is the foot-tapper, feel-good record that you have been waiting for.

Five Cool Ones: Five New Albums Released This Week (January 31, 2024)

We’re in the waning hours of the first month of the year, and for those that say that there is no new music released anymore we at Rock is the New Roll say: nay nay.

If you don’t believe us, The Darkness is out with their latest single “Rock and Roll Cowboy Outlaw,”

Skunk Anansie is prepping up a new record, and if An Artist is An Artist” is any indication, the record is going to be a banger.

And, after retiring from his main gig as bass player for Aerosmith, Tom Hamilton is out front and center with his new band Close Enemies.

And now, strap on those earbuds, plug in that Marshall stack, and envelope yourself in these Five new records released into the wild this week.

Thorbjorn Risager – House Of Sticks

Dutch Blues Rock is a pretty big deal these days and Thorbjorn Risager and the Black Tornado are the torchbearers.

Blasting a high-energy blend of Swamp Rock, cinematic Blues-Rock, and Soul Ballads, “Already Gone” is a great way to gain an introduction to the band. “Light of You Love” mourns along like Robert Cray’s best single, and the closer “Fine Summer Night” resonates like a later Day Eric Clapton album.

As eclectic a record as you are sure to find this year, this one has everything you would want in a blues rock record.

Bonnie “Prince” Billy – The Purple Bird

Recorded in Nashville, Purple Bird, the latest record courtesy of Will Oldham under the Bonnie “Prince” Billy moniker, is a country-adjacent record in the John Prine mold.

Working together with Nashville OG songwriting veterans along with a wrecking crew of talented musicians, the resultant song set includes the rambunctious “Turned to Dust,” the spot-on Prine delivery on “One Of These Days (I’m Gonna Spend The Whole Night With You),” and the forlorn “Boise, Idaho.”

The songs presented here, with the lap steel guitar and electric mandolin, play to the old school soul of country music and can be compared favorably to the Johnny Cash American series.

For some artists relocation to Nashville signals the beginning of the end with the artist getting caught up in the machinery. For Oldham, the rebirth is refreshing, and if this one is any indication, there is hope for the Roger Miller, Tom T Hall, and Don Williams patois than the Post Malone and Beyoncé oeuvre that is all the rage today in country music.

The Hellacopters – Overdriver

Let there be Rock! And if the Swedish band Hellacopters have anything to say about it, 30 years in, good, pure rock and roll is back, and here to stay.

Burning down the highway, these retro-riffers deliver on a swagger of early-era Aerosmith, prime Stooges, and accessible Ramones.

“Don’t Let Me Bring You Down” is the best tune on the record and should be the leader in the clubhouse for rock song of the year, and “(I Don’t Wanna Be) Just A Memory” is the best song Cheap Trick never wrote.

This one is quite simply a great rock and roll record.

Lilly Hiatt – Forever

As the daughter of Americana legend John Hiatt, the talent apple doesn’t fall far from the talent tree for Lilly Hiatt as supremely demonstrated on her latest record, Forever.

A jaunty blend of rock and country with a voice that is both vintage and sultry Hiatt also demonstrates her songwriting chops on the Wilbury worthy “Ghost Ship” and the simplistic subject matter of “Evelyn’s House.”

Overall, this may not be her best, Walking Proof to our ears takes that honor, but this one is certainly a worthy record that our ears can get behind.

Circa Waves – Death and Love, Pt. 1

More than 10 years now into their Indie Rock career Circa Waves have evolved into a Vampire Weekend worthy band of evolving expectations and emotionally powerful offerings.

Given the mortality reckoning that the lead singer Kieren Shudall experienced following his diagnosis in 2023 of a heart condition, it makes sense that this record would be a sort of soul-soothing mantra grappling with the fragilities of life.

“We Made It” is a perfect festival-ready wave your hands in the air Indie Rock anthem, and “Let’s Leave Together” is as buoyant a pop song as you are likely to hear all year.

Ultimately, this is a record that extolls the virtues of living in the moment because it’s all we have.

Five Cool Ones: Five New Albums Released This Week (January 24, 2024)

The year is careening along and there are plenty of gems to savor this week, but don’t sleep on the one-offs.

ZZ Ward lays down some bone-rattling down home blues on her latest single.

Rock is the New Roll favorites Sunset Strip rockers Crazy Lixx are back and better than ever.

And, Lake Street Dive is releasing selective singles live from the road. “Walking Uphill” is spectacular.

But don’t put away those head phones just yet, it is a stellar week for new releases.

Larkin Poe – Bloom

With a consistently morphing sound, this time into the world of country-rock, the sisters Poe might be the best band you never listen to, but should.

“Pearl” is a proper country-glam rager, “Bluephoria” dips their toes into soul territory and “Bloom Again” is a tender ballad showing off their versatile chops.

If these descendants of Edgar Allen Poe are not your cup of musical tea, seek help pronto.

Matt Berry – Heard Noises

More widely known as the vampire Lazlo in the hit series What We Do In The Shadows, Matt Berry is more mostly known as a musician and has 13 Albums under his vampire belt.

Known for his 60’s influenced jazz-tinged beats and an Austin Powers esthetic, this record is set somewhere squarely in the late ’60s, early ‘70s

“Sky High” has a spooky vibe that would fit in perfectly in a remake of the X files, the hipness of “Stay on the Ground” comes across like a slightly stoned David Byrne, and “I Gotta Limit” soars in the Box Tops “Cry Like A Baby”Mold.”

With the hippy beats and unicorn song textures this one is the leader in the clubhouse for party recording of the year.

Jeannie Piersol – The Nest

A card-carrying member of the San Franciso psychedelic scene of the ‘60s Jeannie was a Grace Slick-adjacent singer and a founding member of the enigmatic band The Great Society.

And now, High Moon Records has released an anthology of her work that includes demos, outtakes, and performances.

With a quick listen it will become auditorially apparent why Piersol never reached the heights of her fellow scenesters Grace Skick and Janice Joplin, but since beauty is in the ear of the beholder there is a lot to savor here with a few spins of this record. The title track is worth the price of admission alone.

Rose City Band – Sol Y Sombra

If Poco, The Pure Prairie League, and a Grateful Dead cover band merged together they would sound suspiciously like Rose City Band. A self-professed space-aged country jam band their latest effort Soul Y Sombra would have been a ‘70s country rock fm radio fixture back in the day.

Opener “Lights On The Way” lives and breathes Grateful Dead’s “Sugar Magnolia showcasing Barry Walker’s stellar pedal steel guitar, “Open Roads” might be the driving tune of the year thus far, and “Seeds Of Light” is a hippy-dippy mellow wonderment.

Stop taking life so seriously for a minute and bathe yourself in this one Grateful-Dead style.

C Duncan – It’s Only A Love Song

Lush, atmospheric, and it couldn’t be more beach boy adjacent and without fighting with Mike Love, the latest fom C Duncan, the love child of Todd Rundgren and Brian Wilson is a smooth ride down a river of rose petals.

The opening title track introduces the piano-centric artist in all his Barry Manilow meets England John and John Ford Coley glory.

The understated vocals along with the lush orchestration will meander your ears back to a timeless era when pop was king and Carole was Queen.

Five Cool Ones: Five New Albums Released This Week (January 17, 2025)

With the new Eric Clapton, Rose City Band, and Delines records in the hopper, 2025 is shaping up to be a boffo year.

The Waterboys have a Dennis Hopper themed record ready to be released soon.

Swedish rockers The Hellacopters have a new record out on January 31. Overdriver.

And Frontier Records own, Perfect Plan delivers the AOR goods on their latest “We Are Heroes.”

And here, in an abundancy of riches, here are five new records that saw the light of ear this week.

David Gray – Dear Life

On his 13th album and first since 2021, David Gray gets a bit more sparse and introspective than we are used to from the artist that first hit our ears with the mega-hit “Babylon.”

Recorded mostly in his home London studio, this time out Gray reflects on things getting old on “Plus & Minus,” on “I Saw Love” he is heavily influenced by Raymond Carver short stories, and “Leave Taking” with its horns and intricate production is worth a headphone listen.

The Weather Station – Humanhood

With Humanhood Tamara Lindeman and Weather station doubles down on the jazz-inflected pop sound version of the band that she brought to our ears going back to the 2021 release, Ignorance.

“Body Movement” has a certain Joni Mitchell element to it, while “Neon Signs” will float you on a Suzanne Vega cloud.

The instrumentation on this record with bass, sax, and flute delicately dispersed throughout the record is next-level quality. Listening to this one while chemically induced will take you back to the ‘70’s sitting under a tree deep in a forest.

20/20 – Back To California

Think of the spawn of the Flying Burrito Brothers and The Little River Band and you will have a bit of an idea of what this band is all about.

In business under various configurations going back as far as 1979 and their eponymous record, these guys are all Laurel Canyon all the time.

The opening title track has an R.EM. bent to it, “The End Of Summer” could have been a Bodeans B side, and “Laurel Canyon” is pure power pop.

If you are looking for a record full of melodic nirvana wrap your ears around this one.

Mick Clarke – Bad Whisky Blues

Recorded entirely in his Surrey, UK studio Bluesman Man Mick Clarke delivers up a set of whisky-drenched songs that run the gamut from stone-cold classic covers to self-penned tumblers.

“Killing Floor” and “Smokestack Lightning” are adequately covered and “Watch Your Step” is a ZZ Top worthy jam.

This one is the perfect soundtrack for that next bender, but make sure that you cleanse the palette with a nice single malt before extinguishing the flame.

Ex Void – In Love Again

A behemoth of an Indie Rock record, everything that you thought of the genre is wrapped up for you in one tight package.

My Bloody Valentine, check. The Smiths Check, The Cranberries, Dinosaur Jr., check, check, check. Cobbled together from several indie-pop U.K. bands of stirling quality including Joanna Gruesome and The Tubs, the dual frontpeople consisting of Lan McArdle and Owen Williams take center stage on this one that is sure to be top 10 contender.

And, if you don’t believe us have your ears take a gander at the Lucinda Williams cover, “Lonely Girls.”