Andy Bookwalter – Great Oi! songs are not complicated. Mid-tempo punk rock, heavy drums, and choruses you can sing back at the band while covered in beer and other people’s sweat or shout at the start of soccer games, space to yell “Oi! Oi! Oi!” in between verses, and lyrics about working, drinking, class struggle, more drinking, and punching.
Kevin Nelson – Josh Ritter’s ninth studio album, Gathering, could be described as a gathering (… sorry) of the singer-songwriter’s numerous signature stylings. There’s the “Getting Ready to Get Down”-style crowd pleaser of “Cry Softly,” the sadly optimistic tone of “Train Go By” and even Ritter’s awesome preach-singing in “Dreams” that could serve as a companion piece to creepy, yet somehow anthemic “Rattling Locks” off of So Runs the World Away.
Todd Terry – Hot Snakes do not care for the kids. That message was loud and distorted when they went into the powerful rumble of “I Hate the Kids” at their sold out show at Chop Suey last month.
Ian Bremner – Much like the music coming out of New York in the late 60’s/early 70’s, be it Lou Reed, Patti Smith or Bob Dylan’s early work – you can nearly hear the sounds and smells of the city in Kevin Morby’s new record, the aptly-titled City Music.
Ian Bremner – On her 2016 album My Woman, Angel Olsen clearly took a step into a larger, bolder sonic direction. Olsen’s solo career started out as a lo-fi singer-songwriter with a haunting voice and the simple strums of a guitar, but My Woman managed to retain the artist’s delicate intimacy while at the same time representing a punchier, louder and more complete sound than she had been known for previously.
