Starting in Minnesota, the quartet that make up Lake & Lyndale (that’s singer Channing Marie, guitarist Jonathan Krentz, bassist Eric Clifford, and drummer Tyler Kloewer) had made the move to Nashville a few years ago – back in the pre-pandemic days. READ MORE…
Like a tragic dream, L.A.-based musician Alexandria Riorden breaks down her process for gaining a new appreciation with life in the newest track “The Barrier.” READ MORE…
Skyboxer, the recent EP from folk-rock/psych project Coma Girls, aka singer-songwriter Chris Spino, is a genre-bending collection that seamlessly blends psych-rock, shoegaze, folk, and country into a cohesive and unique take on modern rock shot through with classic, pop sensibility. READ MORE…
Here is the absorbing new single ‘Crow’ from New York-based Two Cent Revival. This atmospheric song hangs on a fabulous, melodic bass line from Tom Welsch and an excellent vocal performance that travels the dusty road between the almost-spoken storytelling of the desert-noir verses and the soaring, anthemic choruses. READ MORE…
It’s easy to lose oneself in the dreamy folk wonder of GoldenOak’s latest single, but as is the case with most of the Maine band’s music, there’s more to this song than meets the eye. READ MORE…
Pawn Shop Queen is the debut album for Los Angeles-via-Wichita songwriter Katie Jo, and there is plenty to enjoy in this raw and rootsy offering. She boasts a voice that has more in common with Patsy Cline and Kitty Wells than with most contemporary artists, although her style would sit easily alongside the likes of Margo Price and Whitney Rose. The songs have a vintage country sound, featuring pedal steel, fiddle and twangy lead guitar. Indeed, this record sounds like a well-practiced band set up all together in a studio, playing songs much as they would at a live show. As a result, the feel is natural and unprocessed, and it is refreshing not to be overwhelmed by over-compressed production and autotuned vocals.
Katie Jo has already experienced some immense personal challenges in her young life, and these are detailed in some depth on the biography pages of her web site. When an artist faces challenging life circumstances, the temptation to pour a little too much of their own story into their music is not always a blessing for the listener. However, Katie Jo appears careful to channel her experiences into a more universal lyrical setting. For sure, there are lines which occasionally cut through, and the closing songs ‘Are You Coming Home Tonight?’ and ‘Little Bird’ certainly provide some of the more heartfelt moments on the record, with the latter delicately suggesting that “sticks and stones can build a better home in time…(and) even broken wings can move you a little further down the line.”