It is difficult to write about any aspect of Chilean culture without making reference to the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. And so it is with music. This post features bands I learned about while spending six months in Chile.
Prior to the REC festival, my knowledge of Latin American music could be summed up in three words: Miami Sound Machine. The weekend was a musical education.
My latest musical obsession is Lucero, a band from Memphis that has been around since the early 2000s but that I discovered only recently.
I have always been a Neil Young fan, but this record gave me an entirely new appreciation of his artistry and place in the rock canon.
This Old, New, Borrowed and Blue set features Cory Branan, the Wood Brothers, Shovels & Rope and John Fullbright.
If you are stuck in a musical rut, check out Shinyribs. Their eclectic blend of sounds will surely light up some portion of your auditory cortex.
I was unmoved when the Clash broke up, believing Joe Strummer had nothing left in the tank. I was wrong. The Mescaleros showcase Strummer in top form.
Gregg Allman says that Blackberry Smoke “is gonna put Southern Rock back on the map.” With Holding All the Roses, the band may have proven him right.
A revisiting of The Boomtown Rats’ 1979 classic, “The Fine Art of Surfacing,” reveals an album that remains relevant lyrically and musically.
Anthony D’Amato’s music is a cross between early Bob Dylan folk and Bruce Springsteen rock. His lyrics are both un-apologetically earnest and, at times, playfully droll.
