Muddy Ruckus: It’s a Ride (Podcast) Music Features Podcast by Ken Templeton - January 30, 20240 Ryan Flaherty and Erika Stahl are the powerhouse duo out of Maine, Muddy Ruckus. Last year, they released Vacationland, which demonstrates just how expansively two people can make music. We got to chat with Ryan and Erika and really enjoyed their reflections on process and following where the music is leading, as well as their thoughts on how an album has to ebb and flow to be engaging to listeners and satisfying to musicians. Thanks for listening to the podcast–share it with friends who like good music! You can also revisit Muddy Ruckus on the Old Spruce Sessions–check out their performances of “Sweet Unknown” and “Restless Ryder!”
Show You Should Know: Christopher Paul Stelling and Mary-Elaine Jenkins Sunday, April 21st @ Billsville House Featured Concert Music Features by Brian Carroll - January 30, 2024January 30, 20240 There aren't many better ways to see songwriters pouring their hearts out than in the comfortable intimacy of a house show, and the folks at Billsville House Concerts in Southern Vermont do it better than anyone out there. Our good friend Christopher Paul Stelling is making a return to the Green Mountain State and NYC based, New England fav Mary-Elaine Jenkins will join f for a singer-songwriter double-header on April 21st. More info below. In the meanwhile, cehck this oldie out from a live show from CPS way back when I was still in Massachusetts... Christopher Paul Stelling and Mary-Elaine Jenkins Sunday, April 21st at 7:30 PM Christopher Paul Stelling Atlanta, Georgia based songwriter Christopher Paul Stelling has released 7 albums and played thousands of
Back Porch Festival is BACK (March 15-17, 2024) Music Features by Brian Carroll - January 25, 20240 I am a big fan of a lot of awesome crammed into a short amount of time. Signature Sounds just announced even MORE around the return of Back Porch Festival from March 15-17 and even more is on the way. With new and old favorites scattered all around Northampton all weekend long, its sure to have something for everyone. You can (and should) check out all the events on deck, but just look at this line up for the Back Porch Ramble section of the weekend fest... Town Mountain, AJ Lee and Blue Summit, Viv & Riley, Las Cafeteras, Charlie Parr, Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams, Steve Poltz, Bridget Kearney, Rani Arbo & Daisy Mayhem, Jeffrey Foucault, Nicholas Jamerson, Rachel Baiman, The
Fresh Tracks: Ethan Setiawan “Boundless” Featured Track Music Features Track Reviews by Brian Carroll - January 4, 20240 A number of years back I fell hard and deep into the world of acoustic instrumental music. It has always been there and played a more peripheral role in my musical life. I knew a handful of fiddle tunes and enjoyed a good bluegrass jam, but never fully lived in that world until a collection of contemporary roots musicians started releasing projects that grabbed me. Ethan Setiawan was one such musician. Ethan is like Renaissance master painter. The 8 strings of his mandolin as his brush and the air is the canvas he paints with an ethereal palette of moods and colors. "Boundless" may be quick in its length, but pulls you deep into its sonic landscape. Trickling tremolo drenched in
Show Review: Hiss Golden Messenger (9/17/23 Haw River Ballroom) Music Features Reviews by Ken Templeton - September 25, 20230 Towards the end of their phenomenal set at Haw River Ballroom last Saturday, Hiss Golden Messenger frontman MC Taylor said, “You know, this is the first time many of these songs have been played live,” and the crowd roared. Most of the set list was drawn from Jump For Joy (Merge Records), which came out August 25. If you just watched the audience, though, you wouldn’t have known these songs were making their debut. People were singing along; they were visibly excited to hear their new favorite songs. After leading off with “Biloxi,” from the album Heart Like A Levee, the band launched into “I Saw The New Day in the World,” from the new record, and then shifted back to
Chayim Newman: From the Ground Up (podcast) Music Features Podcast by Ken Templeton - June 15, 2023June 15, 20230 Anyone who has talked to a musician, tour manager, guitar tech, front of house engineer, or the many other people who pile into a van or bus and hit the road to bring live music on tour knows that it is a unique, exciting, strange, and challenging experience. And most will tell you that it takes a toll. Dr. Chayim Newman and Zack Borer, founders of Amber Health, have studied just exactly what that impact is on artists and those who support a tour. And even though we knew, intuitively, that touring is hard on a person, I’m not sure we really knew the extent of its impact. Newman and Borer found people working in the music industry have rates of
Show Review: Josh Ritter, Amythyst Kiah (The Carolina Theatre May 16, 2023) Concert Reviews Music Features by Ken Templeton - June 1, 20230 “I’m singing for the love of it, have mercy on the man who sings to be adored.” This line from Josh Ritter’s song, “Snow is Gone,” seems to sum up who he is as an artist. In the twenty years I’ve been going to Josh’s shows, I have never once seen him be anything less than jubilant on stage. He loves it, he is grateful for his audience, and he is unabashed in his joy. He brought the latest iteration of The Royal City Band to The Carolina Theatre in Durham last week, with mainstays Sam Kassirer (piano), Zack Hickman (bass), and Ray Rizzo (drums) joined by Jocie Adams (clarinet) and Matt Douglas (saxophone, lead guitar). I loved the songs
Power in Intimacy: SYML w/Trent Dabbs at Higher Ground (5/18 Show Review) Featured Concert Music Features by Brian Carroll - May 19, 2023May 19, 20230 As a music fan I like to think I have come a long way. There was a time where I foolishly corralled myself off into an extremely small enclosure within a vast musical landscape. 90% of what I listened to or went to see was "dudes in plaid playing stringed instruments" and I spent a lot of years lacking in my own creative space as a result of not digesting enough variety. Hearing from a more diverse artist pool or human mindset. Don't get me wrong, I still like the DIPPSI genre...can we trademark that? I am one of those artists, but in expanding what I listen to and appreciate has a profound effect on you not just as a
Larry & Joe: Honest Music (Podcast) Music Features Podcast by Ken Templeton - May 5, 2023May 5, 20230 On March 24, the virtuosic duo Larry & Joe released their album Nuevo South Train in Durham, NC at The Fruit. Joe Troop, the guitar, fiddle, and banjo player from the Grammy-nominated band Che Apalache, did a residency series at The Fruit and Larry Bellorín, a harp player from Venezuela had been encouraged to connect with Joe. Their connection was immediate and what results is a vibrant, joyful sound. In our podcast interview, we talk about that show at The Fruit. I was there, and loved every minute. Joe told the audience that we are “the Nuevo South.” Like the South (but unlike many roots music concert audiences) this audience was diverse! The title track of Nuevo South Train encourages everyone
Video Premiere: “Cast Iron Kettle,” Joseph Terrell Featured Videos Music Features by Ken Templeton - March 8, 2023March 8, 20230 Joseph Terrell (Mipso) recently announced his debut album, Good For Nothing Howl, on Sleepy Cat Records, set for release on May 5. We are thrilled to premiere the video for, “Cast Iron Kettle,” the first single. Joseph wrote about the process for this record. He said, “i quit trying to write all together, quit playing for a while too. then at the beginning of spring i started dragging a chair under a tree in the yard. wherever i was i would try to spend the morning outside with a guitar. i found a lot of songs that way, like they were already there, waiting for me to sing them out loud. i hope that sounds as strange as it felt.” On “Cast