Arcade Fire - Funeral
By now the dark corners of childhood/adolescence should be a dead subject to serious artists. The disappointments of youth and shortcomings of family... read more
Damien Dempsey - Seize the Day
Irish soul is a notoriously elusive quality. Van Morrison has it, at least when he still cares. Sinéad O’Connor has it... read more
Rolling Stones - Live Licks
Don’t get me wrong. The Stones are one of my all-time favorite bands. But what’s the point of releasing a double-disc “best of” live album... read more
Dogs Die In Hot Cars
Every year the music world gives the globe a random whirl and chooses a new European epicenter of cool... read more
Fairport Convention - Over the Next Hill
Fairport Convention has been broken down and reassembled so many times since the band’s inception in the late ’60s... read more
Paul Brill - New Pagan Love Song
Paul Brill’s old pagan love songs were pretty orthodox—his fey melodies and lovelorn lyrics traced the contours of the battered heart... read more
Madeleine Peyroux - Careless Love
Madeleine Peyroux is the best kind of one-trick pony: she sounds uncannily like Billie Holiday, a marvelous feat if you can pull it off... read more
The Ramones: Ramones - Ramones Raw DVD
I found it interesting to learn from this DVD that The Ramones’ name was inspired by Paul McCartney, who used to go by the handle... read more
VHS or Beta - Night on Fire
No one expected to hear from Louisville’s VHS or Beta again after its 2002 nouveau disco opus Le Funk. They were a little-known outfit... read more
Billy Joe Shaver - Billy and the Kid
In the space of a single year, country renegade Billy Joe Shaver lost his mother, mother-in-law, wife and only son, Eddy... read more
Laura Veirs - Carbon Glacier
With her bright, open voice pitched between an apology and a complaint, Laura Veirs makes a far more skeptical tourist through the haunted wilderness... read more
Nancy Sinatra - Nancy Sinatra
Nancy Sinatra got little respect from her own generation, but this eponymous album is a much-deserved lovefest from a new generation... read more
Amelia - After All
This Portland, Ore., quartet plays light, retro, coffee-shop jazz pop—a perfect fit for the Norah Jones era we inhabit... read more
Dr. John - N'Awlinz: Dis Dat or D'udda
As ambitious in its conception as anything Dr. John has recorded over his career, N’awlinz: Dis, Dat or D’udda endeavors to capture the spirit of New Orleans’ rich musical history... read more
Elizabeth Cotten - Shake Sugaree
Folk-revival legend Elizabeth Cotten was discovered while working as a maid, helping raise Pete, Peggy and Mike Seeger... read more
Alkaline Trio/One Man Army - BYO Split Series Vol. 5
The chugga-chugga remains, but Chicago’s Alkaline Trio has developed too much emotional depth and melodic complexity to claim pure punk... read more
Charlie Hunter Trio
Far more than just a gimmick, Charlie Hunter’s 8-string guitar lets him play bass and electric guitar—both rhythm and lead... read more
The Sunshine Fix - Green Imagination
It might be wildly flattering or utterly damning to say Green Imagination left me hankering for The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour and Lennon's Imagine... read more
Two Cow Garage - The Wall Against Our Back
Intelligent, ass-kickin’ Southern rock is no oxymoron. Skynyrd proved it years ago, but most people were too busy waving confederate flags to catch on... read more
Slim Cessna's Auto Club - Bloudy Tenent Truth & Peace
Slim Cessna’s a Baptist preacher’s son. He’s clearly too well-read to work up snake-handling fervor about anything without pausing to wink at the balcony, but he’s found a noble line of work, in the old man’s tradition... read more
