Chuck Prophet: Bobby Fuller Died for Your Sins
Chuck Prophet is a novelist in a Nudie suit composing sun-splashed California gothic snippets.
Ed Whitelock
Ed Whitelock is a professor of English at Gordon State College in Barnesville, GA, just 106 miles southwest of Philomath. He is co-author, with David Janssen, of Apocalypse Jukebox: The End of the World in American Popular Music (2009) from the PopMatters imprint of Soft Skull Press.
John McCutcheon: Trolling for Dreams
A storyteller with a painter’s eye and a musician with an ancient troubadour’s soul, John McCutcheon’s 38th release reminds us why he’s a modern master.
Mark Eitzel: Hey Mr. Ferryman
A mix of postmodern lounge and his former band’s best moments, this odd and rewarding album adds to Eitzel’s reputation as an adventurous solo artist.
Ed Ward’s Prose Reads Like It Was Written for an Erudite broadcast
Ward's concise and readable attempt to consolidate rock 'n' roll’s messy history comes across as a little too neat, at times.
Tim Buckley: Lady, Give Me Your Key
These previously unheard demos reveal the legendary cult artist searching for, and, for the most part, finding his voice.
Queen: Queen on Air – The Complete BBC Radio Sessions (Deluxe 6-CD Edition)
These leaner versions of well-known tracks showcase a version of Queen with less pomp but plenty of circumstance.
King Creosote: Astronaut Meets Appleman
Kenny Anderson, the mad pop genius behind the King Creosote moniker, begins his sixth decade of existence with this loosely cohesive, moderately trippy, and deeply enjoyable record.
Eyeless in Gaza: Picture the Day (A Career Retrospective 1981-2016)
This career-spanning anthology reveals not only Eyeless in Gaza’s import to the development of synthpop but also their ongoing commitment to exploring and even breaking the boundaries of that genre in consistently rewarding ways.
Luke Winslow-King: I’m Glad Trouble Don’t Last Always
A break-up album that covers both a map of the heart and America’s musical heartland.
Plugging In and Loosening Up: An Interview With Richard Shindell
Shindell is an influential figure in the Fast Folk genre, and with the release of his 10th album, spoke to PopMatters about the long and ultimately rewarding process of creating Careless.
David Bromberg Band: The Blues, the Whole Blues and Nothing But the Blues
On his 18th album, David Bromberg teaches a master-class not only in the history of blues-inflected Americana but also in how to keep that music alive and relevant.
The Flat Five: It’s a World of Love and Hope
A collection of happy sounds for a troubled time, this record evokes the innocence of another era while acknowledging the artifice of such nostalgia.