Rick Fines- Solar Powered Too review

Rick Fines Solar Powered Too RickFines.ca A veteran of the Canadian blues battle, Rick Fines—previously of Jackson Delta and with a handful of Maple Blues Awards since—takes a low-key, personal approach to his folk-blues on his latest release, Solar Powered Too. With half the album recorded solo in his solar-powered, tree-surrounded gazebo, there is a…

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Dione Taylor- Spirits in the Water review

Dione Taylor Spirit in the Water Matay Records http://www.DioneTaylor.com If you like some soul in your roots or Americana—call it what you will—Dione Taylor is a singer-songwriter of whom you should take notice. Raised in Regina, a product of a childhood spent surrounded by her pastor father’s church, and now based in Toronto, Taylor brings…

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“New” Dave Alvin album coming our way

Fervor Coulee regulars know how much I appreciate Dave Alvin. His set with the Guilty Women at my first Hardly Strictly is one of the best I have witnessed, made that more poignant by the death of Amy Farris the week prior. For most of the last decade Eleven Eleven was going to be my…

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The Dillards- Old Road New Again review

The second of a trio of reviews of new Pinecastle Records bluegrass releases, published over at Country Standard Time. If you are coming to this album expecting to hear The Darlings, “Ground Hog,” or Doug, Webb, or Jayne, you are likely to be disappointed. With open ears, you may find something quite appealing. Link to…

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Robert Hale & the 8th Wonder Band- Blue Haze review

I’ve got three reviews from Pinecastle Records artists coming up this week. All published over at the fresh and revamped Country Standard Time. First up is an EP from Robert Hale & the 8th Wonder Band. Good, not great. But worth a listen, I think.

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Alecia Nugent- The Old Side of Town review

Alecia Nugent The Old Side of Town AleciaNugent.com Have to be honest, was never a fan. In the mid-to late-Aughts, Alecia Nugent released three bluegrass albums for Rounder Records. She was surrounded by some of the finest musicians in the business—Tim Stafford, Rob Ickes, Andy Falco, Adam Steffey, Ronnie McCoury, Aubrey Haynie, Jim Van Cleve,…

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IBMA Awards 2020- The results and my thoughts

If you want one, you are also going to get the other! The International Bluegrass Music Association handed out its annual awards last week, and while I am significantly less invested in them than I once was—I haven’t been a voting member in years, and outside of Dale Ann Bradley and The Special Consensus, I…

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Rachel Brooke- The Loneliness in Me review

Rachel Brooke The Loneliness In Me RachelBrookeMusic.com With songwriting partner Brooks Robbins, Rachel Brooke continues the long list of amazing music coming from ladies of country. While I don’t pay much attention to mainstream country, I do know that Ashley McBryde, The Chicks, Dale Ann Bradley & Tina Adair, Marshall Chapman, Della Mae, Bonnie Whitmore,…

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Bonnie Whitmore- Last Will & Testament review

Bonnie Whitmore Last Will & Testament BonnieWhitmore.com As much as I love my bluegrass and traditional country music, what really allowed me to dive into this world was roots rock. During my earliest days working at R.O.W. Entertainment (West Edmonton Mall) in 1983 and 1984, the music of folks like Jason & the Scorchers, Rubber…

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R. B. Morris- Going Back to the Sky review

R. B. Morris Going Back to the Sky RBMorris.com Almost half a lifetime ago, back in the early days of No Depression and clandestine, after-work CD crate searching, I tripped across R. B. Morris’ debut album. I imagine the (if the stories told years later were true) creepy owner of the store suggested the album…

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