​Neko Case (from the album Neon Grey Midnight Green on Anti- Records) (by Bryant Liggett)
 
Consider yourself lucky for living at the same time as Neko Case. With a voice ripe for any decade, and every genre, Case would have knocked you out singing war era Pop or Laurel Canyon Rock. Now with eight records under her belt, including her latest in Neon Grey Midnight Green, she carries on her world of lyrical triumph and tragedy, animals, and artifacts, all living in ambiguous tales told over classical strings and Pop instrumentation.
The first thing you hear on her latest is that golden croon. “Baby, I’m Not (A Werewolf)” pushes out lyrics before any instruments kick in, the vocal visuals heavy as she references potato chip bags and minotaurs, those references coming with knuckle-ball unpredictability. Playful piano kicks around “Destination” before the baroque influence slides in while “Little Gears” is a ballad that’s playful but heavy as she asks ‘why do people need to feel so important all the time, so above it all?’. “Oh, Neglect” has a haunting and dreamy vibe, a lonely cut where Neko Case’s vocals float light and airy, where she refers to herself as a ‘technicolor creature’. “Tomboy Gold” is a tripped-out blast of experimental greatness, a cut that sounds like it could live in a street musical like West Side Story, and the album closer in “Wreck” is delivered with Indie Rock chops. 
Neon Grey Midnight Green is stacked with orchestral arrangements and dreamy Pop elements, all courtesy of a long list of session players and regular colleagues from the Case’s camp. With random instrumentation providing fills that poke a playful head, Neko Case creates a world of playful Pop and dramatic Psychedelia, and we’re all better for being part of her musical world. (by Bryant Liggett)
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​Marcus King Band (from the album Darling Blue available on American Recordings) (by Bryant Liggett)
If you’re lucky enough to live in a household where people keep an ear and eye to the real music world then Marcus King is a household name. The man is not a flavor of the week, nor someone discussed as a halftime show. He is better than that, and if you’re throwing around names like Gatton, Buchanan, or Allman, you’ll likely know about Marcus King, who’s latest in Darling Blue proves yet again through voice and chops that he’s worthy of praise.
He lays it out real, opening the record with “On & On” where he’s owning ‘toxic traits’ saying ‘I thought you’d like to hear me say sorry again, I know I fucked up’, and doing so in a Country Blues groove. Marcus King’s sound is a full package of Southern Soul, Blues, Gospel, and Boogie, all heard in “Honky Tonk Hell” which is a fun groover or “Carolina Honey” which plays out with a dose of tripped-out Funk. “Heartlands” has a homey drop of King messing with his dog which introduces this cut ripe for GOOD Country radio (this reviewer will repeat, GOOD country radio). He gets trippy with Billy Strings via psychedelic Country on “Dirt” and the laid back and cool cut in “The Shadows” finds Marcus King joined by Noah Cyrus of the Cyrus clan of musicians. 
Marcus King is a countrified, cool cat and an old soul whose list of guitar accolades should, and will, keep getting longer. Its deserved. (by Bryant Liggett)
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Please visit the Marcus King Band website for more information
 

​Nicki Bluhm (from the album Rancho Deluxe available as an independent release) (by Brian Rock)
Nicki Bluhm reconciles her past and present on her eighth album Rancho Deluxe. The album is named for Bluhm’s home studio in Nashville yet many of the songs on the album pay tribute to her northern California roots. Nicki Bluhm deftly fuses the musical styles of these two regions, distilling her twenty-year musical journey down to its bare essentials. She focuses on themes of friends, family, and freedom. Addressing these topics, Bluhm sings with the casual confidence of Sheryl Crow and the grace of Emmylou Harris
“Bay Laurel Leaves” introduces Rancho Deluxe with lush, Sam Phillips style Chamber Pop. Orchestral strings and electric organ create an ethereal atmosphere as Bluhm sings ‘I won’t say that I was running, but I just couldn’t stay’. Summing up her frustrations with her musical career in California, she decided to roll the dice with a move to Music City. The triumphant chorus testifies to the success of her move. Singing ‘Tennessee, you found me at my worst and put me back on my feet’ she credits the new environs and the supportive musical community with helping her live her dream. But there is a dreamy, bittersweet air to the melody as Nicki Bluhm sometime dreams ‘that I was back there on that mountain by the sea and breathing in the air of the bay laurel leaves'. Her yearning voice hints at a soul torn between the belonging of the past and the becoming of the present. She is, of course, both, but the song is a beautiful meditation on this period of transition.
Nicki Bluhm then reflects on the journey that led her to this point. “Trying to Survive” is a soulful recounting of her life in California. Making the most of a frustrating situation, she sings ‘livin’ the lows and highs. It might give us hell, but we’ll make it a hell of a time’. But in the Cosmic Cowboy melodies of “Changing the Channel” she discovers that just surviving isn’t enough. She continues the Cosmic Cowboy vibes on “Tumbleweed”. Realizing that ‘every day is just the same as yesterday’, she gets caught in a rut. Contemplating her situation on the tender “Taking Chances” Bluhm moans ‘I’m so tired of taking chances with no advances’. Chasing her musical dream with little to show for it, she confesses ‘I can’t believe I still believe in you’. Unhappy with her circumstances, she finally decides to take a leap of faith on the Fleetwood Mac inspired Pop Rock of “Falling Out of a Dream”. Confronting her fears, she asks ‘what would they say about me if I traded the road for Tennessee?’. Answering her question with a new one, she asks ‘what if everything I wanted all of a sudden appeared?’. Inspired by the prospect of a new beginning, Nicki Bluhm sings herself some Laurel Canyon inspired words of encouragement in “Keep on Growing”. Reminding herself to ‘keep on growing and pray for the sun’, she decides to do what she can and trust the rest to God.
Having committed to taking the next step in her musical journey, her only hesitation is leaving her friends behind. The Dixieland/Soul fusion of “Long Time to Make Old Friends” pays respect to her old friends and offers a hint of optimism for the new friends on the way. The cheery Piedmont Blues of “Cumberland Banks” marks the beginning of those new friendships. Describing a group rafting trip that is surprised by a sudden downpour, the quintessential ‘front porch song’ becomes a metaphor for life. Nicki Bluhm sings ‘let us float down the Cumberland River. Let God determine our fate. Never really knowing if you’re coming or you’re going, but the river’s only flowing one way’. She is releasing the pressure she’s put on her own career as she learns to ‘let go, and let God’. No longer driven to achieve someone else’s vision of success, Nicki Bluhm finally finds peace in The Bangles-inspired Paisley Pop of “Simple Side of Me”. Realizing that some things are more important than fame, she sings ‘friends are always coming through our door - sounds of songs we’ve never heard before. It’s a gallery of faces old and new. A family made of ones we get to choose’. Through her journey, she has shown us that having friends, family, and the freedom to do what you love is the greatest success of all. (by Brian Rock)
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Please visit the Nicki Bluhm website for more information
 

​Dallas Burrow (from the album The Way the West Was Won available on Forty Below Records) (by Danny McCloskey)
Lyrics to listeners are often pages from the daily journaling of the songwriter. That is how Dallas Burrow collected the words sharing their cowboy stories in his recent release, The Way the West Was Won. He deals the deck with Ray Wylie Hubbard as the fellow Texas musician joins Dallas Burrow for “Read ‘Em and Weep” while he shares driving and harmony with Kelly Willis on “Colorado Bound”. Mariachi horns herald the story of “Tornado” as a gentle desert breeze strums a melody for “Streets of Dodge” while a horse-hoof beat carries the dark tale in “Black Rock Desert Blues” and Dallas Burrow barrels into the end of a hard week with a song for “The High Low”.
Produced by music legend Lloyd Maines, The Way the West Was Won sings the song that answer the album title statement with tales that mirror life in the Southwest desert. With words and music as comfortable beside campfires as on stage, Dallas Burrow presents a contemporary Wild West Show on the album. The heroes and outlaws blend into one character as they walk through “Justice in the West” while Dallas Burrow makes plan to head ‘all around this world’ in “Disappearing Ink”, appreciating what surrounds him at home with “Livin’ for Today”. The Way the West Was Won title track welcomes in Jim Lauderdale as a revolving rhythm keeps the beat strong for “When the Cowboy Rides” as Dallas Burrow exits the album whispering “A Cowboy’s Prayer”. (by Danny McCloskey)
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​DUG (from the album Have at It! on Claddagh Records/Universal Music Ireland) (by Bryant Liggett)

The duo of DUG do a lot. Minimalist Blues, Gothic Folk, fringe Bluegrass, and Folk Gospel; anything that can fall under Americana is explored via their latest in Have At It!. Digging into the history of American string band music will take you back to Ireland and Scotland, which is the same musical landscape DUG will take you. One-half of the duo, Jonny Pickett, was raised in California while Conor O’Reilly grew up in Scotland. Their pairing offers a touch of traditions from both the old and new world, blending with the past to create a sonic future.
There’s the trance-inducing album opener in “Cold Frost”, a fiddle pushing out a head-nodding melody before minimalist, but bouncing, percussion kicks in on this instrumental. The Have At It! title track has thick harmonies in this Gospel cut, “Livelong Day” is a tune that’s rough around the edges, banged out like a dirty, Blues Rock track. DUG nail the Old Timey vibe in a jig inducing version of “Cumberland Gap”. The pair throw in some American psychedelia via the drifting “Katie Cruel”, the haunting, Western noir of “Big Sundown”, and the moving-at-its-own pace ramble of “When the Days Cool Down”. 
A melting pot of an album, Have At It! stretches beyond Front Porch twang. The repetitive banjo and fiddle lines are head-bobbingly hypnotic at any pace while there’s a driving, stripped down DIY Indie Rock vibe. The influences are obvious, from the sounds that were carried West across the Atlantic, and into twang, Blues and even Rock, DUG’s feet in two different worlds presents a musical history lesson for yesteryear, and this year.
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Please visit the DUG website for more information
 

​The Pink Stones (from the album Thank the Lord…. it’s The Pink Stones available on Normaltown Records/New West Records) (by Danny McCloskey)
Country gold AM memories echo in the truck tire rhythms rolling underneath Thank the Lord…..it’s The Pink Stones, the latest release from The Pink Stones. The band takes chances on a honky tonk beat as they find themselves waiting for dawn while ‘sitting on a white couch drinking warm red wine’ for “If I Can’t Win (With You)”. They spend a ‘first night’ in a “Hometown Hotel” as they slowly strum a soundtrack for “Real Sad Movies, Big Jet Planes” and quiet to a whisper for the memories in “Such a Sight”. 
The album was recorded in the band’s hometown of Athens, Georgia, co-produced by The Pink Stones frontman Hunter Pinkston alongside Henry Barbe (Deerhunter, Drive-By Truckers). Wyatt Ellis brings his buzz-worthy mandolin playing into Thank the Lord…it’s the Pink Stones for the “Thank the Lord” album opener. Thoughts of warmer times face the cold in “Summer Love (Winter’s Pain)” while The Pink Stones realize that feelings hang tight in “Hard to Kill”.
Hunter Pinkston describes his intentions for the album, stating that ‘I’ve never been religious, but I’ve always been fascinated with those early country guys who sang gospel tunes and wore suits with crosses on them even while they were getting into some pretty immoral stuff. I wanted this album to touch on both sides of that coin’. Heart and humor write the lines of the songs for Thank the Lord….it’s The Pink Stones while the band strum a dirt road sailor’s song as they exit the album with a “Pile of Memories”. (by Danny McCloskey)
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AmericanaFest 2025 Recap
(by Brian Rock)
 
The official logo for the 2025 AmericanaFest was a locomotive barreling down the tracks under a full moon. This image perfectly encapsulates the spirit of Americana: The train symbolizes moving forward, but in a vehicle forged in the past. The moon rise represents today’s artists as it reflects the light of the generations of musicians who came before them. The smoke rising from the engine reveals the temporary nature of musical success. The tracks serve as a guide for us to follow and for those who come later to follow us. We are the past and future joined together in this moment. 
The 2025 Americana Music Association honored the past with lifetime achievement awards to Old 97s, Darrell Scott, and The McCrary Sisters. These artists continue to shape the present and future with their new recordings. The present was honored by recognizing Nathaneil Rateliff & The Night Sweats for Album of the Year for South of Here. Sierra Ferrell took home her second Artist of the Year award and Duo/Group of the year went to Gillian Welch & David Rawlings. Representing the future, the honor for Emerging Act of the Year went to MJ Lenderman.
But the future of Americana was also widely represented by the many artists who performed at showcases, panels, and social events throughout the week. Nicki Bluhm’s soulful vocals and The Far West’s gritty, Dylanesque Country wowed the audience at The 5 Spot. Troubadour Blue gave off Little Big Town energy and vocal harmonies as they opened for Hayes Carll at 3rd & Lindsley. Summer Dean showed off her Texas style and charm at the Tennessee Brew Works. Nicky Diamonds seamlessly fused Hank Williams and Stevie Ray Vaughn on the rooftop of the Bobby Hotel.  Any of these artists would be worthy nominees for next year’s emerging act award.
And, of course, the present state of Americana music is in great shape as well. Dozens of artists from Hayes Carll to Miko Marks, Reckless Kelly to Webb Wilder, Kyshona to the incomparable Melissa Carper and on to the literally hundreds of other artists who graced the stages of Nashville to attest to the enduring vibrancy of the big tent musical genre that we call Americana. It is always an honor and a privilege to review and share new Americana music with our readers. This annual festival affords us the opportunity to mingle with both artists and fans; and to feel the energy between them. It’s this energy that inspires us to share our love of music, and we are grateful to serve as a bridge between artist and fan. (by Brian Rock)
Please go to AmericanFest website for more information
 

​Los Straitjackets (from the album Somos Los Straitjackets available on Pacifica Music/Yep Roc Records) (by Danny McCloskey)
 
All instruments, all the time, has been the mantra for Los Straitjackets since forming in 1988; the band becoming known as The Masked Marvels of Instrumental Rock. All album releases feature Los Straitjackets tackling musical themes as the band steps behind lead singers, most notably on several album releases from other artists, like Nick Lowe as well as Raul Malo (The Mavericks), Deke Dickerson, and Big Sandy (Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys). Musically, they follow the paths forged by players such as The Ventures, Duane Eddy, and Dick Dale; instrumental musicians who defined the surf music era. Reverb-drenched notes and chords wrap around Somos Los Straitjackets, the recent album release from Los Straijackets.
Bright jangle begins the song cycle for the album when Los Straitjackets hop on board “Bumper Car” on an easy sway that drifts like a soft ocean breeze. Sharp-angled notes carve a path across “Bad Apple” as rolling chords vibrate on a dedicated current underneath “Wicker Park” and pounding drums drive “Numbskull”. Los Straitjackets give a platform for Surf Music in 2025, managing to freshen up a genre that has stayed on the beach in SoCal since it covered the world with its sound in the late 1950’s/early 1960’s. Somos Los Straitjackets tenderly picks out notes before walking tall into the hammering beats of “Virgon” while dueling guitars play tag on “Copy Cat” as “Polaris” adds a Space Age vibe to the album. “Spinout” cruises, navigating curves with jangle-powered guitar rides and “Sentimental Fool” spins jukebox gold for a slow dance. (by Danny McCloskey)
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For more information head on over to Los Straitjackets website
 

​The Far West (form the album Everything We Thought We Wanted available on Blackbird Recording Company) (by Brian Rock)  
Southern California Country iconoclasts, The Far West seem poised for far reaching success on their third and most complete album to date, Everything We Thought We Wanted, though the album almost never saw the light of day. The original recordings were interrupted by Covid, then they were lost for months after the lockdown was finally lifted. After the masters were finalized, they were mere minutes away from going up in flames in the January 2025 California wildfires. The album is a testament to perseverance and dedication. More than that, it is a testament to master songcraft, with each song featuring poignant lyrics and multi-textured arrangements.  Contemplating life, loneliness, and longing through the sepia lens of a distinctive Folk/Rock/Country fusion; the album plays like a Bob Dylan fever dream of broken hearts and desert landscapes.
“Meet Me Where We Parted Last” showcases the band’s eclectic nature. A jangly, Country Rock rhythm introduces the song as lead vocalist Lee Briante sings ‘I could cut and run like I always do’. Confessing his fear of intimacy, he admits ‘instead of putting down stakes, I’m always pulling up tent poles’. But something inside stirs him to consider changing his ways. Singing ‘I can’t recall the future, but I can predict the past’ Briante muses that the comforts of the past might outweigh the uncertainties of the future. Like a heavenly beam of light accompanying an epiphany, a triumphant, a Memphis Soul horn section validates his new awareness. Finally changing his ways, he pleads for his lover to ‘meet me where we parted last’. Aaron Bakker provides a Mike Campbell inspired guitar solo and Michael Whiteside adds pulsing Hammond organ to enhance the feel of jubilation as a once closed heart finds the courage to open again.
Further highlighting their musical diversity, “Better Days” begins with a Fats Waller inspired New Orleans Jazz piano riff. The rhythm section of Robert Black on bass and Brian Bachman on drums provide a contrasting two step rhythm. Against this lively musical backdrop, Lee Briante broods, ‘praying for sunshine, but I only see rain. Turn on the TV and its bad news again. I want to live in better days’. The counterpoint between the melody and the lyrics is jarring as Briante continues, “granddaddy told me from the time I was four about the good times in the days between wars’. As he utters these words, he seems to realize something. The ‘days between wars’ were also the era of the Great Depression. With this realization his outlook suddenly matches the spritely rhythm as he sings ‘many years from now, maybe things will look better. We’ll look back on the hard times, say maybe those were the best days ever’. A flourish of Cajun accordion accentuates the message to live each day to the fullest and savor every moment.
The lyrical insight and musical flair continue to impress on, “See for Yourself”. A Mersey Beat/Memphis Soul mash-up with Dylanesque overtones; the song captures the biting wit of “Like A Rolling Stone”. Singing ‘you never miss your water till your well runs dry. But you’ve been walking in the desert forty days and forty nights. You had to see for yourself – just like everybody else’, Briante offers a stinging rebuke to those who won’t accept advice from more experienced souls. Whiteside’s Hammond organ captures the energy of those legendary, Highway 61 Revisited sessions, and Bakker’s soaring guitar solo takes it to the next level. The Far West lean further into Dylan’s Folk/Rock influence on “In Your Own Time”. Singing ‘I knew a man who was born ugly. But he grew more handsome with every good deed’, Lee Briante tackles weighty issues like self-perception and finding purpose in life. The band captures the easy flowing slide guitar rock of Stealer’s Wheel on the longing “Miss Me Too”. They explore the jangly optimism of early R.E.M. on “Happy Now”. They delve into Cosmic Cowboy as they contemplate mortality on the foreboding “Hope I Don’t Bleed”.
Continuing the Cosmic Cowboy vibes, but slowing the pace, The Far West addresses heartbreak on “These Lies”. They address the lingering loneliness that follows heartbreak on “Soft Place to Land”. The band offers a heartfelt tribute to the healing power of nature on the Laurel Canyon-inspired “Joshua Tree”. In the album’s most poignant moment, Briante assesses failed relationships in “For the Birds”. Blaming his lover, he scorns “if you were a clock, you’d never give me the time. Hands would not move. Hours would not chime. Standing in the hall, nothing much to say; just smiling ‘cause you’re right two times a day”. Joining him for the chorus, Katie Stratton adds warmth to Briante’s icy demeanor as they sing ‘our love is a song we no longer sing. We forgot the words and most of the melody. And if I asked you too, I bet you’d probably say ‘Singing’s just for birds anyway’’. Reluctantly accepting his share of the blame, Briante concedes “its years of neglect that are to blame’. But sadly, it’s too little too late as ‘everything we thought we wanted turned to dust’. Brutally honest, yet tenderly expressed, the song is an eloquent expression of love’s last dying ember. As authentic as Waylon Jennings, as cerebral as Bob Dylan, as intimate as John Prine; Everything We Thought We Wanted is exactly what we wanted all along. (by Brian Rock)
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For more information head on over to The Far West website
 

​The Zac Schulze Gang (from the album Straight to It available on Alligator Records) (by Bryant Liggett)
 
Hooray for good old Rock’n’Roll! The kind of music that is influenced by The Blues, Punk, Classic Rock, and Psychedelia; that’s the motif with the latest release from The Zac Schulze Gang. Straight to It is stacked with thick songs played with gusto by a band slamming their collective feet down on the gas pedal. It’s fun to hear The Zac Schulze Gang lean into everything, and a British band to boot, carrying on the 1960’s and 1970’s Rock trends of English Blues Rockers playing it hard.
A Ramones drum beat kicks Straight to It off with “The Rocker”, quickly going from Ramones to Thin Lizzy, the thick riffs and perfect fills rolling into “I Won’t Do This”, a track that features a charging harp. It’s power chords and guitars ripping a plenty. “High Roller” is big and beefy, “Betterland” has a 1980’s Rock vibe, and the charge rolls on with “Running Dry”. 
The Zac Schulze Gang is a guitar band. “Damaged Man” is dirty, nodding to Southern Rock Boogie as well as Punk’s call and response style of Rock. “Turning to Stone” skips and shuffles, and there’s more big Boogie in “Keep it Up”. Straight to It closes with a slow one, “Things Change”, a total switch from the previous ten tracks, is a welcome, dreamy ending where the band favors sweet harmonies and a dramatic fill over power chords. 
File The Zac Schulze Gang’s Straight to It next to Aerosmith, Van Halen, The North Mississippi All-Stars, or The Hold Steady. They have established their own brand while dropping a sound that keeps great company.  (by Bryant Liggett)
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For more information head on over to The Zac Schulze Gang website