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Joy Williams: Front Porch
Being trendy seems like an absolutely exhausting, if not thoroughly disheartening, pursuit. Even if you are a trend-setter, as soon as a certain phase passes, there is evidence in the world that may come to be embarrassing for you. (Is there anyone from Gen X donning acid wash in its second coming? No way. We…
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Rhiannon Giddens with Francesco Turrisi: there is no Other
In a video that went viral at some point over the past few years, a gene-testing company gathered up a bunch of folks who were so very, very proud of their various heritages — some to the point of outright hostility to other races and ethnicities. When the tests came back to show that their…
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Jade Bird: Ruins
Like most everything else in life, folk singers come in cycles, riding whichever traditions and trends suit the moment. Do you need a new Paul Simon? Check out Robby Hecht. Would you want a contemporary Carole King? Listen to Sara Bareilles. Might you love a modern-day Ani DiFranco? Pick up Jade Bird. (Now, yes, there\’s…
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John Paul White: The Hurting Kind
People love to talk about what is and isn\’t country music. Some folks think it\’s whatever country radio wants it to be. Others believe it necessarily includes some very specific elements — real-life stories about hardship and humility set against a backdrop of real-life instruments like guitar, fiddle, and pedal steel. After all, back in…
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Molly Tuttle – When You're Ready
Debut albums come in lots of proverbial shapes and sizes. Sometimes, they are the very first thing anyone has ever heard from an artist. Other times, they are the obvious next step in a career already brimming with accomplishments and accolades. That latter category is the one in which we find Molly Tuttle. Having previously…
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Anna Tivel: The Question
Songwriters do something really special: They take details of the world around and within us, and express them in words and music in order to connect us not only to them and their work, but to each other, if not ourselves, as well. It\’s an infinitely generous gift they have. And the ones who can…
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Caleb Elliott: Forever to Fade
Transitioning from one way of life to another doesn\’t always go well. Whether that\’s shifting from religious cult to popular culture, side player to center stage, or classical musician to secular songwriter, not everyone can handle their world being turned on its ear. Caleb Elliott is not everyone. And, based on his debut solo album,…
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Luther Dickinson & Sisters of the Strawberry Moon: Solstice
Valuing collaboration over competition is what makes any community better. Nine out of any 10 times in pretty much every arena, we are stronger when we band together. That\’s true for building a barn, running a race, or even raising a kid. And it\’s certainly the case when it comes to making music. So when…
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John Smith: Hummingbird
JThere\’s something truly special about English folk music, whether it\’s the dulcet tones of Nick Drake or the gentle lilt of Sandy Denny. With ancient structures, intersecting cultures, and rugged coastlines aplenty from which to draw inspiration, the genre often leans toward the melancholic, reflecting the UK\’s oft-grey skies, and stories are passed from one…
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Lucy Negro Redux: Art, Agency, Love, & Lust
Every artistic form has the potential, on its own, to be both transformative and transcendent. So what happens when an alchemist pours three forms together? A piece of work that is so deeply profound, unyielding, and exalted that words inevitably fail to convey its power. Meet the Nashville Ballet\’s Lucy Negro Redux. The ballet\’s artistic…