Category: Americana

Song of the Day: The Delines – Maureen’s Gone Missing

The Delines latest, Mr. luck and Ms. doom, is set to see the light of ear on February 14, and if this latest output is any indication with the opening lines “first, there was a man with missing fingers, and he was in a mood” the record is shaping up to be pure Willy Vlautin noir at its best.

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 Records Released This Week (January 10, 2025)

Amazingly, 2024 is in the books and we are ready to do the work since you don’t have to to find the best music, according to us anyway, to hit your ear-waves.

The new record comes out in March, but in the meantime check this out with vocal help from Fivers Simone Schmidt. This one is the leader in the clubhouse for video of the year.

Youth Lagoon, the project of Idaho-based singer-songwriter Trevor Powers has released a single in advance of his February 21 record, Rarely Do I Dream.

And, Horsegirl has released a new single, “2468” in advance of the Chicago-based trio’s album Phonetics On And On

But wait, don’t jump off the train just yet. Here are five new records to keep the toes moving and the heart beating.

Lambrini Girls – Who Let The Dogs Out

Labrini Girls will remind you of the night you left the party with that wild girl and ended up in the alley with a ripped shirt and no socks on top of a pile of beer cans and cigarette butts.

“Big Dick Energy” careens down the black diamond slope like a ski racer with Tourettes, and “Filthy Rich Nepo Baby” is the GoGos on steroids. And, thankfully there is nary a cover of “Who Let The Dogs Out” to be found in this rambunctious set.

Ringo Starr – Look up

Not since the iconic Buck Owens cover of “Act Naturally” have we heard Ringo Starr embrace country music with the fervor that he does here with his lasted record, Look Up.

Guest spots abound, both country and laymen, with Molly Tuttle, Alison Krause, Billy Strings, and Larkin Poe leading the way.

This one is a listenable record that we can put in our pocket waiting for the next Paul McCartney album.

Franz Ferdinand – The Human Fear

Scottish Indie rockets Franz Ferdinand shows whats under their kilt with their latest, The Human Fear. Buoyant and danceable, there is nothing not to like on this one.

“Everdaydreamer” sounds like U2 if Bono actually decided that he wanted to have fun, “The Doctor” bounces like Duran Duran on the bumper cars at the amusement park, and “Hooked” is Devo set to 78rpm at the disco with their side piece The Talking Heads.

A ray of sunshine in a gloomy world.

Early James – Medium Raw

With Medium Raw, his third effort for Dan Auerbach and his Easy Eye sound label, Early Janes takes things low and slower with this set recorded at a 100-year-old house in Nashville dubbed The Honky Chateau using an old tube console mostly recorded in one take.

A young man with an old soul, the record brings out the blues side of the singer mostly known for his Americana leanings. This stripped down affair may not be as favored as its more polished predecessors, but discovering another layer of this still-up-and-coming artist bodes well for the future.

Joan Armatrading – How Did It Happen And What Does It Now Mean Now

Having never really gone away, with her latest, How Did It Happen And What Does It Mean Now, Armatrading combines disco-light, yacht Rock, and straight-up pop on a set that is pleasant enough fare albeit lacking a bit of the heart that we are used to from an iconic artist.

Wholly produced in her home studio, sometimes adding polish to silver doesn’t make it shine any brighter.