Reckless Kelly (from the album The Last Frontier on No Big Deal Records) (by Lee Zimmerman)
 
Long known as one of the beacons of Austin’s much fabled music scene, Reckless Kelly have accumulated a formidable reputation in the nearly 30 years since first forming in Bend, Oregon prior to making their sojourn south. Four-time Grammy nominees, and Grammy winners in 2014, they’ve released some 17 studio albums with frontmen and multi-instrumentalists Willy and Cody Braun still at the fore and erstwhile collaborators Jay Nazz on drums and percussion, Joe Miller on bass, and Geoff Queen on lead and pedal steel guitars participating in the process as well.
 
After an absence of four years, The Last Frontier makes for a resounding return. It’s fueled by earnest intent, as exemplified by “Fired Up Ready to Go”, a commanding Rocker with an appropriate name, and two tracks that dominate the second half of the album, “I Know a Place” and “Romantic Disaster”. a pair of songs that find the band employing their riveting regimen. Likewise, a pair of somewhat sobering ballads, “Lightening in a Bottle” and “Long Lonesome Ride”, convey some sadder sentiment. Naturally, their Rootsy regimen remains intact, with “Keep Looking Down the Road”, the countrified “What’s Left of My Heart”, and the title track, which features a duet with Kelly Willis, each helping to further stake their claim to that fertile terrain.


While their handle may indicate otherwise, Reckless Kelly find no need to alter their approach. Theirs is a credibility and confidence that allows them to stay true to the template that’s sustained them over the course of their career. At the same time, they’re not above accepting an occasional assist. This time around they courtesy of contributions from Willis, singer Kelley Mickwee, keyboard player Bukka Allen, and Jonathan Tyler on guitar. So too, the songwriting is shared by Jeff Crosby along with Cary and Micky Braun, the Braun brothers who helm the band Micky & The Motorcars.
 
The family factor seems well in keeping with Reckless Kelly’s musical mantra, which, despite a lengthy history, has always maintained clear consistency. In that regard, The Last Frontier shares a setting that clearly provides a most welcome return. 
(by Lee Zimmerman)
 
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Michelle Malone (from the album Southern Comfort on SBS Records) (by Lee Zimmerman)
Georgia-based singer/songwriter Michelle Malone bares her soul and fully expresses her emotions on the aptly titled Southern Comfort, the latest in a series of releases that have found her ascending to the top ranks of today’s Indie artists. It’s a mark of that special distinction that it features a number of prestigious participants, among them Buddy Miller, Blackberry Smoke mainstays Charlie Starr and Paul Jackson, Will Kimbrough, Randall Bramblett, The Georgia Satellites’ Rick Richards, and guitarist Doug Kees, and yet, at the same time, it’s Malone’s assured style and well-defined delivery that ensures its success.

Not that she doesn’t receive some support, especially in terms of songwriting. While she composed, or co-composed, fully half of the tracks, Dean Dillon wrote the remainder. The sentiments remain solidly in sync throughout, however, a mix of feelings that are both tender and tenacious. Her vocals ring with absolute authority, and on a song such as the title track, which, appropriately, opens the album, her vulnerability and wistful wanderlust come clearly to the fore. Likewise, the candid and confessional tone taken on “I Choke on My Words” serves as a reminder that even the most emphatic artist can occasionally get plagued by regret and self-doubt.
All in all, Southern Comfort comes across as the most affecting and appealing album of Malone’s musical career, no small feat considering the vibrant efforts she’s accumulated so far. Given the personal perspective Malone purveys throughout, the connection comes as little surprise. Whether rocking with a rousing fervor on “Like Mother Like Daughter”, “Barbed Wire Kisses”, “One Track Mind”, and “Undercover Mother”, or conveying sadness and remorse on the sweetly sentimental “Easter Sunday”, the heartfelt homily “I Want To Be in That Picture”, and the pleading while poignant “Wine and Regret”, Michelle Malone gets her point across with unequivocal honesty and absolute integrity. Ultimately then, it allows Southern Comfort to communicate with a goodly share of comfort and caress. (by Lee Zimmerman)
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Sid Griffin (from the album The Journey from Grape to Raisin available on Label 51 Recordings/Flatiron Recordings) (by Bryant Liggett)
 
Sid Griffin is Roots music. Fringe Roots Punk and Jangle Pop, Folk and Bluegrass are all hands that have all been shuffled by Sid Griffin throughout his career, from his time in Paisley Underground band The Long Ryders, string band The Coal Porters (albums recorded in Durango, Colorado), and solo efforts, he’s a dude with a load of songs at the tips of his fingers. Dig into his latest in The Journey from Grape to Raisin and you’ll envisage solid Folk scenarios with his lyrics over a gentle bed of warm melodies. There’s “When I’m Drinking I Think In Spanish”, a cut that’s animated and fun, delivered with a playful and subtle bounce that drops references to many corners along with activities of the mundane.
Nico and The Velvet Undergrounds “Femme Fatale” is a dreamy lounge cut where simple banjo drives the melody, ultimately yielding to a lone trumpet. “Song For Ukraine No. 2” is a wonderful instrumental that finds Griffin casually rolling into classical territory, taking horns and a string section along for the stroll. “The First of the Gang to Go” is a great spoken word tale with Griffin’s narrative delivered fast and at random and the closer, in “Why I Play Guitar”, has a touch of the Blues as Griffin laments on the childish dreams of a career in music over a Big Easy Horn section.
While he may poke at that career, Sid Griffin’s long-time fans have been fortunate to grow with the man, digging on his Jangle Rock of the 1980’s to the personal Folk and then some of today. The Journey from Grape to Raisin is another great dose of music from the growing Indie canon. (by Bryant Liggett)
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Jerry Douglas (from the album The Set available on Jerry Douglas and Many Hat Endeavors) (by Danny McCloskey)
Rising like a morning mist, “Going to Fortingal” begins the song cycle for The Set as the opening cut on the recent release from Jerry Douglas. It is the first album release from the 16xGrammy winner, offering five new cuts and six re-worked tracks from his long career. Of the recording, Jerry Douglas feels that he is ‘proud of it. I’ve left no stone unturned. I’ve been producing records for a long time, so I really, really put on that hat for this record. Usually, I like instrumentalists to have free rein in whatever they do. It’s the way they speak. If anybody had an idea, we chased it down to the end. I feel like it’s really finished. I’m really happy with the outcome of this whole experience’. Sonically, the music drifts over The Set, floating on the soft breeze from an open window, its notes drifting and darting around the arrangements. Her voice becoming one of the instruments. Aoife O’Donovan lends vocals to “What Might Have Been”.
Standing behind his dobro, Jerry Douglas offers a cover of The Beatles “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” while, taken from a track on his Traveler album, Jerry reimagines “Something You Got”, a track originally recorded with Eric Clapton. The tale of “Loyston” sings of a flood as chopped notes deal out an opening for “The Fifth Season” while “Sir Ally B” picks out a sadness in its somber delivery and “From Ankara to Ismir” travels its length with the players trading lead and riffs like seasoned-sportsmen. The Set is a beautifully, meticulously considered group of songs, offered by a master-musician. (by Danny McCloskey)
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Marc Broussard (from the album Time is a Thief on G-Man Touring Inc) (by Bryant Lliggett)
 
The ‘Bayou Soul’ of Louisiana born and bred Marc Broussard touches on all the great aspects of American Funk, Soul, and R&B. His latest release, Time is a Thief, is a big and wonderful display of those aforementioned genres, ten songs that are big blasts of thumping Funk, making it the right time to grab your partner for a slow dance or exploratory guitar Funk that dips back to the 1970’s where George Clinton or Sly Stone were pushing the boundaries of the genre with Psychedelic influences.
There’s the punchy opener of “Fire”, a dose of funky fun with punchy horns and percussive hand-claps. Then there’s “Mood”. a cut that is ripe for playing over rolling credits of a 1970’s gritty cop film; it is the epitome of cool, with the follower, “Cold Blooded”, continuing that vibe. “Give You the World” is a ballad that’s both slow and sultry, and the title track is up-beat R&B with a horn-line that supports super-soft harmonies.
There’s a little something for everyone that digs on Roots Funk and Soul sounds. There’s Nevillle-like New Orleans cool, romantic, laid-back ballads, and blasts of tripped out guitar from the Funk Rock realm. All of that comes with a bed of horns that are layered in every song, it’s a throwback sound that’s also very right now.
 
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Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus (from the album Harbortowne on Berkalin Records) (by Lee Zimmerman)
 
Husband/wife duo Jim Patton and Sherry Brokus take their sketches of everyday life and transform them into Folksy, homespun homilies that resonate in ways both mindful and memorable. That’s evidenced with Harbortowne, the current album from the Austin-based pair. With Jim Patton on vocals and acoustic guitar while Brokus shares vocals and provides percussion, their efforts are further fostered courtesy of contributions from an all-star ensemble. Ron Flynt (formerly of the Power Pop band 20/20) shares his skills on backing vocals, bass, keys, harmonica and acoustic guitar, solo starlet Betty Soo adds harmonies, Rich Brotherton plays acoustic guitars and mandolin, Warren Hood is featured on fiddle, and John Bush adds additional percussion. Patton himself had a hand in writing all the songs, with occasional co-writes from Jeff Talmadge, Phil Leonard, Scott Evans, and Steve Brooks.
That said, the majority of the songs are relayed from a decidedly personal perspective. The title track more or less sets the tone, a Springsteen-like autobiographical narrative about a rowdy bunch of youngsters out to uncover some adventure and maybe indulge in a bit of trouble all at the same time. “The Juggler” takes a similar tack, detailing the story of a man who’s trying to find his way in the world and yet is greeted with uncertainty despite his every effort. “Never Going Back” relates the aftermath of an early love affair, while “The Lottery” offers a wistful respite, a fanciful rumination about on what might transpire if a big payday actually took place. Indeed, those erstwhile emotions dominate the album overall, from the sadder sentiments that echo through “Missing You” and “Back Out in the Storm”, to the quiet, contemplative “Slap in the Face”  and “Until the Fire”, each of which look back at life both past and present.

That’s not to say the Patton & Brokus avoid the reference to earlier influences. Hints of the Everly Brothers, Richard and Linda Thompson, The Byrds, as well as Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris often permeate the proceedings. Yet given the nuance of their narratives, they’re able to distinguish themselves as astute storytellers in their own right courtesy of concise novelettes revolving around everyday individuals simply striving to find their way in the world. In that regard, Harbortowne provides a place to dock for anyone who’s encouraged to seek their own answers. (by Lee Zimmerman)
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​Randall Bramblett (from the album Paradise Breakdown on Strolling Bones Records) (by Lee Zimmerman)
 
By anyone’s description, Randall Bramblett can claim a varied career. Aside from the fact that he’s released no fewer than 15 solo albums under hius own name, he has also been a much in-demand session player, having worked with Gregg Allman, Bonnie Raitt, Robbie Robertson, Elvin Bishop, Steve Winwood, Widespread Panic, and any number of others. That’s hardly surprising considering the fact that he’s a multi-instrumentalist who’s adept on keyboards, saxophones, flute, guitar, mandolin, and harmonica.
Randall Bramblett’s career dates back to the early 1970s when he played a major role in the band Sea Level, a progressive spin-off from the Allman Brothers Band. In the years since, he’s continued to pursue a decidedly varied array of genres, including Rock, Jazz, Blues and R&B. With his new album, Paradise Breakdown, he shares a similar set of sounds, making it an ideal showcase for his verve and versatility. 

Much of the album takes on a soulful sway, especially when it comes to songs such as “Fire Down in the Valley”, “Come On”, and the funky “Everything Is Stolen”, in particular. Yet as always, Bramblett is far from a one trick pony. The album veers from the alluring (“Somewhere in the Sky”) to the anthemic (“‘Round and ‘Round the Sun”), but in fact, every track immediately grabs attention no matter what tack Bramblett takes. That’s especially true of the lovely lament simply titled “The Circus” and the “Will I Ever See the Day”, given that it’s graced with a reverberating refrain. Even the haunting, somewhat harrowing closing track “Worried ‘Bout Money” makes for a compelling curiosity all on its own.   

Ultimately, Randall Bramblett deserves credit for creating an album that not only spikes interest, but provides for consistent creativity as well. Paradise Breakdown is, in fact, elevated by its intrigue. (by Lee Zimmerman) 
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​Kelley Mickwee (from the album Everything Beautiful available on AMCO Music Group) (by Brian Rock)
Soulful chanteuse Kelley Mickwee showcases her beautiful voice on her second solo album Everything Beautiful. The former member of the criminally underrated collective The Trishas channels her Memphis roots to create a Dusty-In-Memphis inspired mellow masterpiece. Finding herself in a wistful mood, Mickwee contemplates love and loss while creating the ultimate date night soundtrack.

The title track starts with sensual guitar licks, subdued bass, and light drum whisks while Kelley Mickwee takes note of the beauty around her. Singing, ‘dragonflies flurry overhead. The sparrows are sleeping softly in their bed…’ she gives a litany of nature’s beauty. Like Louis Armstrong’s “What A Wonderful World”, she evokes a sense of wonder and awe for the majesty that surrounds us. Then she adds a romantic twist, adding ‘then it hits me out of the blue – everything that’s beautiful is you’. Perfectly capturing the first rush of new love, she notes how the world seems brighter, the air seems lighter, and all the beauty that used to pass unnoticed in the background of daily life suddenly surges into focus. Gospel background singers add an ethereal touch to take the feeling to an even higher level. It’s a sublime love song that you will want to slow dance to all night.

“Comes Out Wrong” is another soulful outpouring of love. This time Kelley Mickwee confronts the dilemma of having feelings so strong that you can’t find the right words to express them. The organ-tinged ballad conveys the vulnerability of two people trying to open up to each other. Despite the risk, she reminds us the reward is well worth the effort. “Let’s Run Away” adds a sultry, Calypso Jazz rhythm to entice her lover to seize the moment. Mickwee also gives equal time to the dark side of love. “Long Goodbye” delicately deals with a romance in decline. After the initial passion wanes, Mickwee asks ‘why do you want to change me after you said we were so right?’. Fully capturing the emotion of a love that once was, her pain is palpable as she sings ‘what’s the sense of holding on so tight when it all just fades away?’. “You Lie” is a more accusatory heartbreak song but even here Kelley Mickwee is able to convey a sense of loss and longing. “Verge Of Tears” addresses the lingering pain after a heartbreak. Having been hurt once, it’s easy to harden your heart to keep others out. But the gentle Soul rhythms, buoyed by pulses of Hammond organ, give solace as Mickwee’s compassionate tone offers encouragement to open up and try again. “About Time” picks up the pieces with a groove-infused call to move forward. Singing ‘it’s about time to taste the other side. It’s about time for these echoes to subside’, Mickwee urges us to let go of the pain of the past. In doing so she promises ‘we will be free’. Picking up the tempo on “Force of Nature”, Mickwee reminds us that we are all unique, strong, and beautifully made. Telling us to let go of our attachment to the past, she sings ‘you got to love yourself if you’re gonna love anybody else’. A full force Gospel chorus hammers home the point with an exclamation point. “Joyful” brings the journey full circle. In matters of the heart, experiences can be painful, but they can also bring wisdom; which in turn can bring peace. As Mickwee explains ‘everybody stumbles. Everybody falls along the way. Everybody needs a helping hand to hold some day’. After you learn to discern puppy love, or infatuation or lust from real love; after you have had relationships to compare and contrast; after you can learn to love yourself – then you can fully experience the joy of a mature, equal, loving relationship. Gospel infused Soul rhythms testify to the power of love. The joy is contagious as guitar and organ intertwine in a musical embrace and Mickwee exclaims ‘everybody rise up! Everybody make a joyful noise! Everybody clap your hands and sing with one voice!’. Poignant, passionate, and powerful, Kelley Mickwee gives voice to what Van Morrison once called the inarticulate speech of the heart. (by Brian Rock)
​
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​Kevin Gordon (from the album The In Between available as a self-release)
Kevin Gordon celebrates and contemplates life’s ups and downs on his seventh album, The In Between. Having just completed chemotherapy for throat cancer, Gordon is able to see things from a new perspective. After the trauma and uncertainty of dealing with cancer, Gordon emerges more relaxed, focused, and forgiving. He has learned not to sweat the small stuff and to let go of the pains of the past, so that he may more fully enjoy the present.
“Simple Things” reflects Gordon’s new outlook. A Tom Petty-esque jangle-Rocker, the song blends electric guitar, pedal steel, and driving drums to capture the feel of a sun drenched, top-down, joyride. Focusing on life’s little moments Gordon sings ‘I’d give anything to hear your laugh again’. Dreaming of other simple pleasures, he recalls Texas sun, Louisiana rain, holding hands, and catching a live band at the local bar. None of these things are life changing moments; but taken together, they are the moments that make a life worth living.
“Catch a Ride” takes a Bluesier tone but shares the same carpe-diem message with a rockin’ backbeat. “Coming Up” is a heartland Rocker that recounts Gordon’s life journey, beginning with ‘the first time I touched that guitar in a rusty shed out on Womack’s farm’. “Destiny” adds a Power Pop edge as he dives head first into his future, even as he wonders ‘what the hell I’m doing’. Kevin Gordon taps into the high energy roots rock of Dave Edmunds on “Love Right”. Joyfully summing up his new outlook on life, he releases his attachment to material things and focuses his attention on giving love. Referring to his wife of 30 years, he sings, ‘we’re still keeping on, trying to get our love right. Catch a glimpse on a lucky day. Learning each other’s way’. It may be a quest without end, but learning to love is the true reason we’re all here.
Learning to love fully, also means loving those different from us, and even those who have hurt us. On the tender ballad, “Marion”, a gay man, waiting tables in Louisiana in the 80’s, is given a long overdue memorial. The lilting Cajun ballad “Tammy Cecile” remembers, forgives, and wishes blessings for a former lover. “You Can’t Hurt Me No More” is a declaration of self-love and freedom from those who have hurt us in the past. Although ostensibly about a woman, the song carries greater gravitas in light of Gordon’s recent fight against cancer. The cosmic cowboy ballad via The In Between title track reflects on how his perspectives have changed since cancer. Talking about the time between gigs, the time between marriage and children, and the time between children and empty nest, Gordon notes that the only constant is change. From the time we enter this world ‘just being born burns off your wings. And when it’s over we return from whence we came. This thing we call life is the In Between’. It may be short, it may have its share of trials, but it’s also filled with moments of joy. Kevin Gordon offers us a chance to pause and savor the simple pleasures of music, friends, and love. (by Brian Rock)
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​Willie Watson (from the album Willie Watson on available on Little Operation Records/Thirty Tigers) (by Lee Zimmerman) 
 
While this current eponymous effort has been touted as Willie Watson’s solo debut, it belies the fact that he’s had two other individual outings previously in the form of two cover albums of old school standards, expressly referred to as Folk Singer Vol.1 and Folksinger Vol 2. So too, as an early member of Old Crow Medicine Show and an ongoing collaborator with Dave Rawlings and Gillian Welch, as well as a contributor to an occasional film score, Willie Watson has more experience to his credit than his belated bow might suggest. 

Nevertheless, Watson’s affinity for traditional music remains his prime source, and despite the fact that Willie Watson contains all original material, the archival influence is never far from the surface. Opening track “Slim and the Devil” is an otherwise unassuming offered carried along courtesy of a simple strum and an easy back porch sensibility. “Real Love” is as lovely as its title implies, a beautiful ballad stirred with sentiment and decided devotion. Think Jim Croce’s “Operator” as a ready reference. 
 
Willie Watson’s melodies mostly take the form of traditional tapestries. “Harris and the Mare” sounds like an old Irish Folk tale. Similarly ”Mole in the Ground” assumes the guise of a fanciful Folk tune. “Play It One More Time” makes its own impression in the way it’s so delicately defined. Closing track “Reap ‘Em in the Valley” takes the form of a spoken word narrative that offers Watson an opportunity to draw certain truths from his own personal perspective.
 
To his credit, Willie Watson was able to enlist some exceptional musicians as his backing band  — among them keyboardist Bennett Tench (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers), Paul Kowert and Gabe Witcher of The Punch Brothers, and Milk Carton Kids’ Kenneth Pattengale, among them. With Witcher and Pattengale sharing production duties, the result is an affecting and yet unassuming set of songs that hold true to Willie Watson’s aforementioned affection for his rustic roots. Suffice it to say, it makes for an excellent re-introduction. (by Lee Zimmerman)
 
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