SHARK-FIN AWARDS

Singer/songwriter Holt Vaughn’s latest release These Songs, Vol. 1 features a dozen songs. Half of these tracks are highlighted by contributions with some of the best vocal and instrumental talents working today. It’s as impossible to categorize their specific contributions to each song as it is to slap a label on These Songs as …

Noir Dream have no interest in being a copycat band. They’ve been cultivating their sound in the deep Portland underground, and despite COVID creating a chokehold on the independent music scene, they’ve managed to get even better at their craft in the past two years. Their new EP Within is scoring …

Max Feinstein’s journey leading him to write and record his album Redefine isn’t especially unusual. We’ve heard of artists, musicians or otherwise, overcoming medical difficulties to produce memorable and lasting work. It isn’t his struggle with hemophilia and its side effects that set him apart. It’s the wild and rollicking creativity present …

There’s something devilishly addictive about the giant beat that kicks off “Way Far Back,” and even without the presence of Steve Hill sitting in with Wave 21 for this performance, it would nonetheless feel like one of the hotter tracks on the band’s album Brace Yourself. The vocal harmonies are …

Greg Hoy’s EP Old Man and the Cinnamon Girl is a four-song collection of Neil Young covers. It’s fortuitous for the San Francisco, California-based singer/songwriter for this collection to emerge at the same time when Young’s music is a focal point in the recent Joe Rogan/Spotify controversy. Hoy’s a seasoned veteran, however, …

Dagan Thogerson’s nearly two-decade run as drummer for indie rock vets Murder By Death isn’t enough for the talented musician. He’s found another outlet for his restless creativity with the instrumental project Go to Space Die and the eight-track debut Red Air Don’t Care. He’s written vigorous progressive rock composition for …

It seems like a lifetime ago when I first heard Project Grand Slam. It was the band’s single “Fire”, a stunning revamp of the iconic Hendrix track, and it immediately convinced me that bandleader, bassist, and composer Robert Miller inhabits the same landscape as those he covers. Project Grand Slam’s …

As an art form, jazz is best described as brilliantly organized chaos, dependent on the more calculated players in music to really do its core aesthetics justice. In this regard, the new album Folds of Time from Mumex Trio is certainly one of the more complete jazz listens I’ve had the opportunity …

Kimberly Morgan York and The Everlovin’ Band lasso a world of emotions in her traditional country album Found Yourself A Lady. The impressive 10-track debut is laced with love, sorrow, sing along melodies and the vocals of a singer that finds that sweet spot between elegance and confidence. Maybe those two …

There aren’t many string instruments that can contribute the sweet tone a mandolin does no matter what the backdrop happens to be, and while it serves a rather indulgent purpose in the new single “Buzzin’ Fly” from Yardan, Andrew Hendryx’s play is by far one of the most compelling elements …