MUSIC REVIEWS

UniversalDice’s Misfit Memoirs isn’t just another rock album—it’s a daring exploration of humanity’s messiest emotions, wrapped in a sound that’s equal parts classic rock nostalgia and modern melodic finesse. Helmed by singer-songwriter Gerry Dantone, the album is as much a reflection of personal struggles as it is a critique of …

The Arizona desert is an unlikely region for spawning convincing Celtic punk bands. Swainn corrects such expectations. Under a Willow Tree is a remastered version of the band’s first album with a definite twist. This recording incorporates contributions from new bass player Rob MacIntosh via rewritten and re-recorded bass lines. Swainn couldn’t …

The dozen songs included on B.B. Cole’s second album Of Love and Loss are full of what the great Irish poet William Butler Yeats referred to in his famed poem “Byzantium” as the “fury and mire of human veins”. The collection’s compositions are vividly alive. They reflect an artist fiercely engaged with …

Bradley Gaskin returns with his latest single, “Accidentally Drunk,” a classic country ballad steeped in themes of heartbreak and self-reflection. Gaskin, who first captured the country audience with his 2010 hit “Mr. Bartender,” channels the raw emotion of artists like George Jones and Keith Whitley. After a detour from the …

Outlaw From The South by Mike Schikora marks his return to music after a twelve-year break, bringing raw authenticity to the country genre. Schikora’s album is rooted in the grit of rural life, with storytelling that draws on his own experiences outside mainstream Nashville. His sound has the weight of …

You’d be forgiven for reading Tennessee Backwater’s biographical materials and assuming they are dyed in the wool modern retro country juked with added hop. The elasticity of “In God We Trust” is a pleasant surprise in the face of such assumptions. Backwater utilizes a three-headed vocalist approach, unusual but potent, …

Debuting with such a thoroughly realized effort like Into the West sets a daunting bar to clear for the future. Arizona-born seventeen-year-old Birdie Nichols’ first collection is a tightly focused nine song collection showing satisfying diversity rather than relying on formula. A surprising amount of relatively ingenious wordplay powers many of the …

The Grascals are as lively as ever. Their new release 20 marks the two-decade point in the band’s history, but it never feels or sounds like a summation. Instead, 20’s thirteen songs sound like the band is clearing the decks for the future. All bluegrass fans should welcome this. Over twenty years, …

Rock Hearts’ Unfinished Bridges is easily one of the best bluegrass releases I’ve recently heard. The New England-based outfit has a predilection for taking non-bluegrass songs that invariably lend themselves to that style and making them over as bluegrass tracks. The thirteen cuts included on Unfinished Bridges show that they possess an excellent instinct …

I’m familiar with the Dallas String Quartet’s often dazzling ability to mingle original musical compositions with a vigorous reimagining of well-known pop classics. Their stunning re-invention of The Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” from the Quartet’s first release is a perfect example. However, I believe the unit’s new release, ROMANI: The Untold Story, …