With his second album, Fools And Fine Ladies, John Shain renews his commitment to the blues, and along the way suggests some interesting new possibilities for the evolution of his trio.
Shain, an accomplished singer-guitarist in the Kaukonen-Hammond mold, and bandmates John Currie on dobro and F.J. Ventre on bass, have established a group identity rooted [...]

Remember the Rainmakers? A little bit Replacements, a little bit Jason & the Scorchers, with some Waco Brothers tossed into the lyrical mix. Remember Government Cheese? That potent, adrenaline-sparking roots-rock vibe lives on, with a degree more fuzztone, in the Welterweights, who hail from the Rainmakers’ home region of Kansas City, Missouri.
The twin driving forces [...]

After establishing himself in the fine Duluth, Minnesota, band the A.T.F., Jamie Ness ventured into the studio this past winter to record a solo album that revealed his talent for charming, unpretentious songwriting. Dodging The Landlord is basic and unpolished, with a comfy vibe, that makes for an impressive rootsy-folk ride.
His true talent lies in [...]

Travis Tritt once dismissed Billy Ray Cyrus as a performer of “ass wigglin’ music.” While the achy breaky one and his ilk are prone to cutesy shallowness, there’s certainly nothing wrong with music that prompts an ass to wiggle. The six songs on Hobart Willis & the Back Forty’s debut EP do that and a [...]

If you’ve ever felt out-of-place in your hometown, the Stelle Group would like to commiserate with you. On their debut, they use the Stones and Big Star as jumping-off points for songs that explore getting out from a romance, a locale, or just a particular situation.
The title reference to a sort of localized alienation is [...]

When Julie Elkins took the stage in her home state of Montana, audience members could be heard exclaiming, “That girl sings like Alison Krauss and plays the banjo like Ron Block.” It’s true that Elkins, still in her 20s, plays some powerful, driving banjo, and sings with a beautiful voice that is both strong and [...]

The debut CD from Boston collective the Weisstronauts does indeed feature a song titled “Jaunty”. Featuring Jaunty also features plenty of twang; even the jazzy “Jaunty” is twangy.
Yet there’s more here than that. From the easy-natured slick-hick flow of “Mornin’ Ma” and the richer banjo, accordion, and acoustic/electric guitar mix of “Go Down, Moses”, the [...]

Originally from Ohio and now based in New York, The National has created nearly a dozen picture-perfect Americana bar-soaked gems with its debut album. From the opening notes of “Beautiful Head”, the delicate line between polished roots-oriented pop and alt-country has rarely been walked so deliberately with the payoff so favorable.
Singer Matt Berninger will draw [...]

Ex-Souled American guitarist Scott Tuma takes an ambient and painterly approach on his debut solo album, the all-instrumental Hard Again. Given the increasingly abstract direction taken during the past few Souled American albums, this doesn’t come as much of a shock.
Guitar and organ apply the primary colors, joined by occasional banjo and percussion from the [...]

Great songs: Every record should have a least one, the kind that makes you want to jump up and riff madly on your air guitar — or at least cue up the track over and over. “Great Divide” may not have a stylistic connection to the similarly-titled Band tune, but perhaps in its purebred Americana [...]