There’s something sleight-of-hand-ish about Slaid Cleaves’ new CD. While thematically and even in mood, the songs reflect the album’s dour title, it’s impossible to listen to these tracks and not feel a sense of uplift and hope. Part of that optimism stems from Cleaves’ voice, a boyish, casual, slightly scuffed tenor that belies the Austin [...]

It’s not surprising that there’s a smattering of punk-band history on Graham Lindsey’s resume. While Lindsey’s calling card is scruffy folk blues, his work contains no trace of the cloying earnestness which is often the bane of the modern troubadour. That’s not to say Lindsey doesn’t have the soul of a poet. It’s just that [...]

Trying to pick the best among the Replacements’ three mid-period masterpieces – Let It Be (1984), Tim (1985), and Pleased To Meet Me (1987) – is a bit like trying to select a favorite season. Springtime brings balmy temperatures and baseball, but then again, don’t those fall colors look great? Of the three, however, there’s [...]

One thing about Mark Erelli: he leaves no doubt regarding his stance on the largest issues of our day. Whether addressing the war in Iraq, the nation’s widening economic divide, or the small-mindedness of right-wing Bible-thumpers, the veteran singer-songwriter lays it out with sparkling clarity and little regard for analogy. In Erelli’s case, that’s an [...]