by Mark Saleski No harm meant by this remark: I’d rather listen to John Mayer than Elliott Smith. So there, I’ve said it. Not to illustrate that I’ve got no indie cred. That I apparently have no taste in music. Not even to piss off the legions of Smith fans.Read More

There’s an irresistible swagger to old-fashioned, grease-popping soul jazz records, something so far removed in this hidebound era of button-down classicists. You May Also Like: No related posts.

As I await the release of Anthrax’s Worship Music, the band’s reunion with 1980s singer Joey Belladonna, I’ll try to drown out the soap-opera drama with changing lineups and re-records surrounding it by cranking up their last record You May Also Like: Anthrax, Sept. 23, 2016: Shows I’ll Never ForgetRead More

Bill Frisell discusses his John Lennon tribute project, notable career moments – and how to craft a signature sound out of what you can’t do.

You might read the artist name and album title and think this is a record of Italian music but, no, not exactly. 5AFTER4 is a rock-jazz outfit out of Toronto You May Also Like: Porterfield – ‘Rome’ (2021) Dark Monarchy, “Drain the Sea” from ‘All Roads Lead to Rome’ (2021):Read More

Circa has every right to sound like Yes, considering that its two principal creative forces are former members of the band, and this is the tune that makes the most of that prog-rock promise. You May Also Like: No related posts.

With Never Falling Again, Clear explores the devastation left behind as relationships end – yet somehow comes away with a collection of songs that’s startlingly beautiful. That’s no easy feat. You May Also Like: Dario and the Clear – ‘Optic Nerve’ (2021) Presley’s Beatles, “Can’t Help Falling In Love /Read More

by Mark Saleski This song, from Captain Beefheart’s Trout Mask Replica, wouldn’t feel out of place on Harry Smith’s Anthology of American Folk Music. Part field holler, part rambling genius. Well I put down my bush ‘n I took off my pants ‘n felt free The breeze blowin’ up meRead More

As a musician, Collins is the complete package: performer, composer, bandleader. This we know from his 2007 debut Valcour, when he was largely introduced to the world as a vibraphonist with great range and inventiveness in the manner of Bobby Hutcherson. You May Also Like: No related posts.

They used to call what Muddy Waters did electric blues. What would that make this sizzling new arc-flash of Todd Rundgren-played Robert Johnson tunes? Electrocuted blues? You May Also Like: Why Todd Rundgren’s ‘Back to the Bars’ Remains So Powerful