by Mark Saleski On paper it looks like a mess. A mess that has been done before. For lyrical source material, take a bunch of words written by a cast of poets both famous and not. Set the poetry to music. Then, record the songs with a huge assortment ofRead More

by Nick DeRiso For me, the traditional year-ending Top 10 list has a more utilitarian standard: Which albums did I add to my permanent rotation? See, it’s the rarest of rare items that actually becomes a member of the collection. That’s the kind of standout recording we’ll be talking aboutRead More

by Nick DeRiso Erik Hartley can’t decide about things, and that uncertainty creates an interesting tension on the new EP Not Me Being Nervous. The in-joke ends up being that he’s anything but “not nervous.” Hartley, instead, couldn’t be less settled, with looming questions about girls, about life, about gettingRead More

by Mark Saleski Captain Beefheart died yesterday at the age of 69. The reclusive musician and visual artist has been missed by his fans for many years, and now we feel that absence even more. For many year, Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet) was a part of my life evenRead More

Nobody plays it like Buddy, as his Living Proof testifies. by Pico This part of the Year End series is typically the shortest, and not because there’s less excellent blues and roots records than other kinds of music, but because I regrettably have little time leftover to delve into theseRead More

by Nick DeRiso On Triangulation, Boston-based guitarist Mitch Seidman has complete command of both the bebop R&B fission and the gentlemanly poise of early idol Kenny Burrell. That means tunes of lyrical strength and technical skill, linked by this remarkable ability to blend seamlessly with his fellow musicians across aRead More

We begin this series by covering the kind of music most music critics cover when making lists: the Great Mainstream.

Photo by Autumn de Wilde by Mark Saleski It’s that time of year again. The time when you’re afraid to go into that store, afraid to watch the television, afraid to turn on the radio — for fear of hearing “Jingle Bell Rock.” Or “The Christmas Song.” Or “Grandma GotRead More

What kind of a year was it for music? It was so good that very often, I had a tough time figuring out what to listen to next. The proper cliché to be applied is “an embarrassment of riches.” Not only was it a great year for music, it wasRead More

Photograph by Clayton Bozard by Nick DeRiso Haley Dreis likes to fiddle with expectations. You wouldn’t expect a classically trained violinist to dabble in pop music. And you wouldn’t expect the self-confident nuance of “All For You” from someone who only began writing mainstream songs three years ago. Yet sheRead More