AltWeeklies Wire
A Little Bit of Southwestern Soulnew
Amos Lee makes great use of a Calexico connection.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
04-25-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tea Leaf Green Isn't Just a Bunch of Sad-Sacksnew
San Fran band Tea Leaf Green's forthcoming album Radio Tragedy!, due on June 7, encompasses their most challenging life experiences. Trevor Garrod tells the tale.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
04-20-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Tea Leaf Green, Radio Tragedy!
Mayday Parade Asserts a New Sense of Independencenew
Florida band Mayday Parade's current tour kicks off in Charleston and heads to the massive Bamboozle Festival in N.J. The mini-tour celebrates the release of their new EP Valdosta, a mostly acoustic, six-song collection.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
04-20-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Mayday Parade, Valdosta
Kickstarter Helps Leslie Fund their Latestnew
Charleston rock band Leslie spent the last two years figuring out how to release their new album, Lord, Have Mercy, a nicely polished collection of melodic power-pop gems, pulsating hard-rock anthems, and guitar-driven rockers.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
04-13-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Leslie, Kickstarter
The Drive-By Truckers' Patterson Hood on Capote, Waits & a Brutal Murdernew
Patterson Hood is not afraid of the dark. In fact, the Drive-By Truckers leader is compelled to write songs that tell tales of violence, greed, and the abuse of power. On Go-Go Boots, their latest album, Hood and the gang turn down the amps and, once again, embrace their classic story-driven style.
Charleston City Paper |
Jared Booth |
04-13-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Drive-By Truckers, Patterson Hood
Cary Ann Hearst Charms National Public Radionew
The real story: A friend of hers that she met in Charleston years ago now works at NPR, and he suggested the singer/songwriter for the show. An e-mail later and Hearst was on the air on April 3, talking about her dog, Townes Van Zandt, and life after her song "Hell's Bells" appeared on an episode of True Blood last summer.
Charleston City Paper |
Susan Cohen |
04-11-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Roddy Walston Bangs the Twangnew
Growing up in southeastern Tennessee, singer/keys man J. Roddy Walston was always surrounded by pianos. The experience helped shape his approach to mixing rock 'n' roll with related styles of Southern music.
Charleston City Paper |
Jared Booth |
04-07-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: J. Roddy Walston, Roddy Walston
Fitz and the Tantrums Dig the Retro Vibenew
Michael Fitzpatrick is wowed by his indie rock 'n' soul band's whirlwind ascent from DIY upstarts in 2009 to SXSW's reigning fairy-tale royalty in 2011. If you haven't heard of L.A.'s Fitz and the Tantrums yet, you will. Judging by the retro-soul band's trajectory, mainstream success could be days away.
Charleston City Paper |
Andrea Warner |
04-07-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Randall Cox Plays Ringleader to a Curious Indie Rock Collaborationnew
After a lousy gig at the Village Tavern in February, local singer/songwriter Randall Cox realized that his indie-rock project the Green and Bold needed a quick kick.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
04-06-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Randall Cox, singer/songwriters
The Infamous Stringdusters Begin to Break Out of Genre Prisonnew
Musicians and bands frequently spend their early years imitating their primary influences. It's why third albums are often watershed moments. Full of assurance from prior studio efforts and years on the road, record number three is when a band or artist emerges into their own -- from Born to Run to London Calling to OK Computer.
Charleston City Paper |
Chris Parker |
04-06-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Sharon Jones Draws From the Best of Soulnew
No-nonsense vocalist and bandleader Sharon Jones comes across as sassy and cheerful. She sounds surprisingly energetic, considering how much time and effort she's put into promoting her latest studio album, I Learned the Hard Way.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
03-22-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Scythian Gets Hot and Heavynew
With his raucous Celtic/world combo Scythian (pronounced "sith-ee-yin"), Alexander Ferdoryka embraces the musical detours and misadventures with joyful optimism.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
03-21-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Scythian
California Duo Middle Class Rut Acceleratesnew
With a configuration of merely a set of drums and an electric guitar and amp, it seems like the absence of bass guitar or some sort of low-end source would be detrimental to Middle Class Rut. Zack Lopez finds it liberating.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
03-03-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Middle Class Rut
G. Love Ain't Fixin' to Dienew
Philly songwriter G. Love returns to his roots with his latest album, Fixin' to Die, a country-blues departure from his recent efforts.
Charleston City Paper |
Chris Parker |
03-02-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
311 Stay on Track and Keep It Freshnew
While the flash-in-the-pan acts who topped the charts during the heyday of the alt-rock era dissolved and disappeared after doing their respective things, others carried on and pushed into the 2000s. L.A.-based rock/reggae/hip-hop band 311 may be a prime example.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
02-24-2011 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: 311
