Bruce Springsteen: Letter To You [Album Review]
Bruce Springsteen Letter To YouColumbia Records [2020] Bruce Springsteen, the very guy who wrote “Glory Days” about folk who spend their adult years looking back … Read more
The Mountain Goats: Getting Into Knives [Album Review]
The Mountain Goats Getting Into KnivesMerge Records [2020] The Mountain Goats’ singer/songwriter John Darnielle may be thought of by some as the poet laureate of … Read more
Kathleen Edwards: Total Freedom [Album Review]
Kathleen Edwards Total FreedomDualtone Records [2020] Kathleen Edwards, Canadian singer/songwriter, returns after 8 years of relative silence with another fine album of exemplary folk/pop songcraft. … Read more
William Elliott Whitmore: I’m With You [Album Review]
William Elliott Whitmore I’m With YouBloodshot Records [2020] You would likely be forgiven if you mistook Iowa-based singer/songwriter William Elliott Whitmore for someone much older. … Read more
Tom Petty: Wildflowers & All The Rest [Album Review]
Tom PettyWildflowers & All The RestWarner Records [2020] As the story has been told, in 1994 when Tom Petty released his second solo record, Wildflowers, … Read more
Laura Jane Grace: Stay Alive [Album Review]
Laura Jane Grace Stay AlivePolyvinyl Records [2020] If 2020 had gone as planned, Laura Jane Grace expected to have recorded a new album with Against … Read more
Travis: 10 Songs [Album Review]
Travis 10 SongsBMG [2020] Scottish quartet, Travis, while often credited for breaking ground for bands like Coldplay and Keane, has always been a bigger deal … Read more
Throwing Muses: Sun Racket [Album Review]
Throwing Muses Sun RacketFire Records [2020] When Kristen Hersh finds a certain metallic tonality on her electric guitar and settles into a steady driving groove … Read more
Sufjan Stevens: The Ascension [Album Review]
Sufjan Stevens The AscensionAsthmatic Kitty Records [2020] By now, fans of Sufjan Stevens have learned to approach each new project with an open mind. On … Read more
Lydia Loveless: Daughter [Album Review]
Lydia Loveless DaughterHoney, You’re Gonna Be Late Records [2020] In the nearly four years since Lydia Loveless’ last album, Real, the country rock singer/songwriter has … Read more
Fleet Foxes: Shore [Album Review]
Fleet Foxes ShoreANTI- [2020] There are a handful of songs in the middle of this fourth album from Fleet Foxes that feel very much in … Read more
Bob Mould: Blue Hearts [Album Review]
Bob Mould Blue HeartsMerge Records [2020] Bob Mould was raging against the machine a full decade before Rage Against the Machine was a band. Early … Read more
Semisonic: You’re Not Alone EP [Album Review]
Semisonic You’re Not AlonePleasuresonic Recordings [2020] Google the Minnesota power/pop trio Semisonic and the first listing will always be their big hit single for 1998, … Read more
The Texas Gentlemen: Floor It!!! [Album Review]
The Texas Gentlemen Floor It!!!New West Records [2020] The first time I listened to The Texas Gentlemen’s newest release, Floor It!!!, I had a flashback … Read more
Lo Tom: LP2 [Album Review]
Lo Tom LP2Self-Released [2020] Lo Tom’s 2017 eponymously-titled debut proved an unexpected delight. In an age of political and emotional dysfunction, it just felt so … Read more
The Flaming Lips: American Head [Album Review]
The Flaming Lips American HeadWarner Records [2020] Described as a reflection on singer Wayne Coyne’s youthful upbringing in Oklahoma City, The Flaming Lips’ 16th album, … Read more
DMA’S: The Glow [Album Review]
DMA’S The GlowInfectious Music [2020] In the half a dozen years that DMA’s have been together, they’ve proven to not only be productive, with an … Read more
Kllo: Maybe We Could [Album Review]
Kllo Maybe We CouldGhostly International [2020] These cousins from Melbourne Australia, Kllo (rhymes with “flow”) return with a follow-up to their 2017 electro-pop debut, Breakthrough. … Read more
Moby: All Visible Objects [Album Review]
Moby All Visible ObjectsLittle Idiot/Mute Records [2020] The fact that we’re talking about the 17th album by Moby says a lot. Few artists have the … Read more
Old 97’s: Twelfth [Album Review]
Old 97’s TwelfthATO Records [2020] The Old 97’s have been plugging away since forming in 1993, playing alt-country with such consistency that it might be … Read more
Bright Eyes: Down In The Weeds, Where The World Once Was [Album Review]
Bright Eyes Down In The Weeds, Where The World Once WasDead Oceans [2020] It’s been 9 years since the last album of new music by … Read more
The Chicks: Gaslighter [Album Review]
The Chicks GaslighterColumbia Records [2020] With women coming on strong in popular country music last year via strong feminist empowerment anthems from the Highwomen collaborative … Read more
My Morning Jacket: The Waterfall II [Album Review]
My Morning Jacket The Waterfall IIATO Records [2020] Back in 2015 when My Morning Jacket was releasing their well-received seventh studio album, The Waterfall, singer/songwriter … Read more
Kansas: The Absence Of Presence [Album Review]
Kansas The Absence Of PresenceInside Out Music [2020] It’s one thing to find the right musicians to fill in key slots in a classic band … Read more
Chris Taylor: Born On The Beat [Album Review]
Chris Taylor Born On The BeatSelf-Released [2020] Chris Taylor, a San Antonio artist, both a singer/songwriter and painter, is exemplary of how real indie rock … Read more