Jae Amends ii, Eternity Independent ii, Eternity is the latest release by Jae Amends, also known as singer-songwriter-producer Doug Haynes. Best known as the singer and guitarist with the alt-pop band HIGHS, Haynes has created a truly unique [...]
Yungblud Yungblud Locomotion/Geffen Records There comes a time in every artist’s development where they rise above early influences and present themselves as fully formed entities. In his eponymously-titled third album, Yungblud (née Dominic [...]
Harry Chapin Story Book: The Elektra Albums (1972-1978) Cherry Red Records This one is for the fans. Reissue and box set specialists Cherry Red Records have blessed the world with an expansive six-disc collection of the music of Harry Chapin. [...]
Joe Symes And The Loving Kind A Place To Call Our Own Truly Independent Records Joe Symes and the Loving Kind are a three-piece rock band out of Liverpool, UK. Over the past few years, they have been releasing music and touring relentlessly. [...]
ELVIS COSTELLO & THE IMPOSTERS THE BOY NAMED IF UNIVERSAL MUSIC CANADA “I’ve got my reputation to think about – I’ve got three, four, five songs to write before midnight…” This quote is fiction, but the words were actually uttered by [...]
SOMEONE WHO JUST KEEPS GOIN’ A CONVERSATION WITH COLIN JAMES “It’s funny – the making of a record happens quite a long time before you have to talk about it. Usually, you go through all those things where you do the work, and you hunker down and [...]
They Might Be Giants Book Idlewild Records Here it is only mid-November, but Christmas has come early for fans of eccentric power pop. After nearly 40 years together and 23 albums to their credit, They Might Be Giants show no sign of slowing [...]
Annie Neeley Big Old Moon Independent One can never be certain when receiving advice from friends. “I’m sure that crab meat at the back of the fridge is fine to eat!” comes to mind. However, when the friend is Sarah Rudy (of West Virginia band [...]
IT’S FEELING THAT I’M AFTER A CONVERSATION WITH COLIN MOULDING (XTC) “I think the secret to fulfillment is being yourself. I made a pact with myself that I would be myself, probably from 1979 onwards. I thought, ‘That’s it – hell or high water, [...]
MILES A. COPELAND III – TWO STEPS FORWARD, ONE STEP BACK: MY LIFE IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS JAWBONE PRESS BOOK REVIEW BY BRYAN WILLISTON One of the best music memoirs to be released in recent years, Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: My Life In [...]
Whispering Sons Several Others PIAS It was only three years ago, in this very publication, that Belgium’s Whispering Sons were heralded as being the future of post-punk. This summer’s release of Several Others, their first full-length album [...]
John Hiatt With The Jerry Douglas Band Leftover Feelings New West Records It sounds like the beginning of an old joke: two guys walk into a bar, and… but this is no joke. The ‘guys’ are two giants of Americana – singer-songwriter John Hiatt, and [...]
John Linnell State Songs (Expanded Edition) Craft Recordings We have seen a number of reissues of late. These events usually coincide with a landmark anniversary of an album’s original release. Such is not the case with the expanded digital [...]
The Heck Heck Yeah!! Soundflat Records Only two years after their debut release Who? The Heck!!!, this three-piece band from the North of the Netherlands is back with another album of 1960s-inspired garage rock: Heck Yeah!! Recorded [...]
Peter Frampton Frampton Forgets The Words UMe/Universal Music Canada When a new album from an aging rock star is released, the fact is often received with a bit of an eye-roll. “Who do they think they are? Their best years are behind them…” – [...]
Joe Strummer Assembly Dark Horse Who doesn’t miss Joe Strummer? The way the world has been going, we could certainly use him now. These times were made for the likes of Joe, calling out oppressive governments, corporate greed, and systemic [...]
Be-Bop Deluxe Drastic Plastic (Limited Edition Deluxe Box Set) Esoteric As we age, it is natural to take stock, and to look back upon our life and work. Doing so gives us an idea of where we have been, and an understanding of where we may be [...]
Ten Years After A Sting In The Tale (Deluxe Edition) Deko Entertainment It would be easy to dismiss a deluxe reissue of an album by any band as being a mere marketing ploy to grab some cash. Covid times have not been kind, and many touring acts [...]
Regnvm Animale Ignis Sacer Deutsche Bulvan Bolag ‘Unchecked growth sees capitalist greed choking democracy, while global temperatures rise at an alarming rate.’ With such a pronouncement, one can tell that Ignis Sacer, the latest EP release from [...]
WE’LL GIVE HIM GOLD AND FRANKINCENSE. BUT WAIT…THERE’S MYRRH! (PART ONE) A SPILL MAGAZINE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE TOP 2020 CHRISTMAS RELEASES Perhaps it is a sign that we need more light and more hope in our lives, but Spill [...]
ROBERT LAWSON – WHEATFIELD EMPIRE: THE LISTENER’S GUIDE TO THE GUESS WHO FRIESEN PRESS BOOK REVIEW BY BRYAN WILLISTON “If you love The Guess Who, as I do, you will love this book.” So writes author and Rheostatics member Dave Bidini, in [...]
Marshall Holland Paper Airplane Mystery Lawn This fall saw the release of an excellent collection of songs by the San Francisco Bay Area artist, Marshall Holland. Paper Airplane is Holland’s first album of singer-songwriter baroque power pop [...]
The Manvils Reaction Arrow Manvils Music Toronto-based indie power trio The Manvils have gifted us with their exciting new album, Reaction Arrow, and it is nothing short of great. Recorded over a three-year period in California and Toronto, [...]
APPALACHIAN FOLK FESTIVAL PREVIEW A CONVERSATION WITH FILTHYBIRD The Appalachian Folk Festival Livestream has been a brilliantly programmed and curated live online music series. In addition to the already excellent array of performers, the [...]
