Author: Linda Ray
Record Review from web archive December 26, 2008
Calexico
Many folks, often with a sigh of relief, considered Carried To Dust a return to form for Calexico after 2006′s Garden Ruin. Certainly the signals are there: cover art by Victor Gastellum, recording at Wavelab Studios, production by Calexico with a Craig Schumacher assist. Aesthetically, the subtle effect of rustic textures and open spaces on [...]
Live Reviews from web archive November 10, 2008
Vic Chesnutt & Elf Power
Does Vic Chesnutt apologize wherever he goes? Or was there some embarrassment last time he came to town? At the brink of launching their set, Chesnutt signaled for Elf Power to hold back as he riffed, solo, a musical apology: “Hello, everybody. It’s good to be here, again. Last time I got too drunk. Sorry.” [...]
Column from web archive October 20, 2008
Squeezing out sparks from
the modern music marketplace
Whatever other factors may have contributed to the recent collapse of mail-order distributor Miles of Music, it’s hard not to see it simply as more detritus of the ongoing fireworks display of options for music consumers – colorful, exciting, changing almost minute to minute. For years, Miles of Music advertising was a fixture of the [...]
Record Review from web archive October 17, 2008
Cuchillo
It’s a dark romance that Cuchillo plies with Israel Marco’s supple guitar swooning and delicate fills. And it’s as alluring as parts unknown. Mystical seascapes give way to desert drones; a lolling drum tattoo may yield to the snaps of maracas. The Barcelona duo refers to their music as “psychedelic folk rock experimental,” but that’s [...]
Live Reviews from web archive October 1, 2008
Barcelona Accio Musical
Thousands thronged Las Ramblas and strolled the ancient blind alleys among the sepulchral stone walls of the Barri Gotic as the final night of the Barcelona Accio Musical (BAM) played out on the eve of the citywide Merce holiday. Every language could be heard on the streets, and nearly every genre could be found on [...]
Waxed - Record Review from Issue #75 May-June 2008
Chris Mills – Living In The Aftermath
Pow! Biff! With a pounding rush of fear-fueled adrenaline, we “run with out sabers and our guns” in a futile attempt to escape the apocalypse. We feed the war machine to save our wives and babies from the vampires and the aliens, until we break ranks and escape to an even worse fate. Chris Mills [...]
Town and Country - Shorter Artist Feature from Issue #75 May-June 2008
Whipsaws – One up on the Lower 48
The Whipsaws may be the most popular bar band in Alaska. Certainly they have logged the most miles across the tundra, with the deepest repertoire of original music, routinely playing four-hour gigs in the live-music-starved watering holes of the hinterlands. In the process, they’ve engaged a broad array of Alaska’s more colorful characters, several of [...]
Waxed - Record Review from Issue #74 March-April 2008
Mando Saenz – Bucket
Mando Saenz is that guy: that seductively, entirely incidentally, totally wrong guy. He’s the dreamer, the brooder and, ultimately, the heartbreaker, but at least, for all the good it’ll do you, he’s right up front about it. “Wrong Guy” spells it out in the opening track, just as clearly as “Go Away From My Window” [...]
Town and Country - Shorter Artist Feature from Issue #73 Jan-Feb 2008
Ha Ha Tonka – Ozark Highs and Lows
Ha Ha Tonka State Park, which rests near the center of the Ozark Mountains, is a sprawling testament to how awe-inspiring highland natural phenomena can be. Culturally, the Ozarks’ scattered population shares many traditions with the Appalachian region: rugged individualism, deep and sometimes exotic manifestations of faith, and an influential heritage of music. Ha Ha [...]
Waxed - Record Review from Issue #73 Jan-Feb 2008
Namoli Brennet – Singer Shine Your Light
A tireless troubadour, Namoli Brennet has criss-crossed the country’s coffeehouse circuit through five albums of original material. No doubt she’s surprised a few of the regulars on that route; she’s not your average, self-absorbed folkie. In fact, she’s as apt to swing out a rockin’, soulful keyboard as a cozy, sweet-sounding guitar, and her lyrics [...]
