It’s a momentous occasion in Snock history: Folk singer Michael Hurley — Elwood Snock, to his friends — has released his 20th full album, his first for Devendra Banhart’s Gnomonsong label. Banhart’s enterprise, which he co-founded with Vetiver’s Andy Cabic, is an entirely suitable home for Hurley, whose eccentric, countercultural brand of folk music has [...]

People seemed oddly resistant to Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s roots-heavy, largely acoustic third album, 2005′s remarkable Howl. To some, it was a drastic departure from their more youthful and aggressive sound; to others, the dabbling in blues and gospel felt calculated. Neither was true. Although the sonic balance may have shifted away from the sludgy [...]

“Who would have thought that life would be this good?” Jorma Kaukonen asks in the liner notes, written on his 66th birthday at his farm in Ohio. Apparently, he’s as surprised as anyone. On his Red House debut, Kaukonen augments his trademark mix of blues, rags and spirituals with a slate of original songs that [...]

Let’s just say Willie Nelson is no stranger to collaboration. His rolodex extends from Bob Dylan to Toby Keith. The 73-year-old troubadour is as active as ever, having released the quietly charming Cindy Walker tribute You Don’t Know Me earlier this year. (And leave him alone, Louisiana, he’s an American hero, for goodness sake.) As [...]

Is there such a thing as distinctly Canadian music? If so, the Sadies would be among its foremost purveyors. One thing’s for sure: This eclectic band has no intention of carpetbagging in the States. The double-disc In Concert Vol. One has a conspicuously Canadian flavor. Recorded during a two-night stand in February 2006 at Lee’s [...]

If you’ve been to Reno, Nevada, recently, you know that the “Biggest Little City in the World” is long past its heyday — as much as it ever had one. Even in its prime, Reno (pop. 180,000) was best-known for the twin pillars of gambling and divorce (they go quite well together, don’t they?). Reno [...]

It hasn’t taken Sam Beam very long to overhaul his guy-at-home-with-guitar persona. If you’d heard The Creek Drank the Cradle, Iron & Wine’s spare, lo-fi debut, in 2002, it would have been rather difficult to imagine this musical evolution. Creek was a quiet, unassuming acoustic affair focused squarely on Beam’s vivid and engaging storytelling. Yet [...]