Tommy Castro has expanded his musical territory with this 'Method To My Madness'.
Just like all his other albums is this release very highly recommended!

With the return of bass, guitar and mandolin player Jimmy Ibbotson, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band also returned to his country roots. ‘Plain Dirt Fashion’ and ‘Partners, Brothers And Friends’ respectively reached number 8 and number 9 in the US Country Album Charts. Both albums are filled with gorgeous modern Nashville country rock. A must have!

With 'Gold' Laura Rain And The Caesars deliver a magnificent album that wakes the sound of Stax, Motown and Muscle Shoals back to life. She does that in 12 original rhythm and blues, funk and soul songs. Laura has a voice that can handle all regions. In addition, she is assisted by a fantastic band with a very creative horn section.

13 brilliant melodic rock songs, a clear strong voice, distorted guitars and fabulous keyboards. If you like Bryan Adams and Tom Petty, hurry up and buy your copy of ‘In The Know’……and watch out that your air guitar is in tune!

Guy Davis has obvious a deep love for the blues and countryblues. ‘Kokomo Kidd’ is a lovely enjoyable release!

Great songs, delicious fingerpicking, velvet voices and handsome harmonica make of the album "Leadbelly's Gold 'is a very highly recommended album.

Every song has thus that "old timey" feel. Duke plays as always excellent and sublime guitar and also demonstrates effectively that he is a vocal stylist. Duke Robillard introduces us to the rich musical heritage of American music !

"You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet" was a huge hit for Bachman-Turner Overdrive. Although they continued recording , they couldn’t achieve the success of their hit record. The songs on both albums are not bad, but the band clearly passed its peak.

A change of personnel is not always the reason for less quality of music. And certainly not for this Scottish band! Thanks to this line-up change they sounded even better than before. We hear strong great songs on both albums.

Les Coleman proves that you can make an outstanding album only with the human voice and a guitar.

The beautiful and sexy Lara Price is obviously a great asset to this blue world. An absolute recommendation!

There is sometimes only a thin line between blues and country, but if I was Lara I’d stick to the country music.

Esoteric Recordings just released these Al Stewart re-releases. In the accompanying booklet we also find an interview with Stewart.
Al Stewart has always been a musical maverick but what we certainly can say of him is that he's a very strong songwriter. His songs always tells strong stories.
Before Al Stewart actually really broke through with his ‘Year Of The Cat’ single and album, he already released some handsome albums including 'Orange' with very strong songs, such as the instrumental 'Once An Orange, Always A, Orange', and 'The News Of Spain' what we actually can see as a forerunner of ‘The Year Of The Cat'.

20 years is a long time, but it was worth the wait. This album is highly recommended!

This acoustic album filled with beautiful folk songs, chansons and Americana is for this Swedish trio the most beautiful way to reach a wider audience.

The album ‘Blues In Good Hands’ radiates and exudes a cozy atmosphere. Mike Schremer is a great asset for the blues scene...

Clarence Turner has not stolen his nickname ‘The Blues Man‘. Who dares programming Turner at one of our upcoming summer festivals will not be disappointed!

With 10 songs in the Americana and alternative country genre, equipped with lyrical lyrics and beautiful melodies, Tokyo Rosenthal makes the accompanying soundtrack of his life.

“Dani Klein is an awesome broad”. A quote courtesy of author Peter De Voecht (‘Butcherflies’, ‘Underdog’) that perfectly captures the genius, the talent and the attraction of the singer. Dani Klein happens to be 62, but you’d never guess that. A swell, beautiful, warm, kind woman with pipes. Her new project – in collaboration with the talented, sensitive and friendly Sal La Rocca – is a quiet affair, filled with vintage Billie Holiday-ditties. Klein opted for the most optimistic (or least depressing) songs in Holiday’s oeuvre, for life is hard enough as it is. The results are stunning. Perhaps one composition of her own could have improved the proceedings ever more. Aerosmith made the excellent ‘Honkin’ On Bobo’, made up of blues classics. ‘The Grind’, the one original track, was the highlight. Klein, being the top talent that she is, could have pulled a similar card out of her sleeve by making a Holiday-esque song of her own. But I’m splitting hairs now. By all means, do purchase ‘Dani Sings Billie’. Soothing during a nasty traffic-jam, or the ideal soundtrack to accompany a Sunday brunch. I salute you, miss Klein!

‘Brother Bones’? The American whistling musician who scored a hit with his interpretation of ‘Sweet Georgia Brown’? Nope, this is Brother&Bones with ampersand, a relatively new British band with a first album. First impression: they do sound quite American. Not accent-wise, but sound-wise. Looking back on the past 20 years of British invasions, you’ll find the musical landscape changed by Oasis, Blur, Kaiser Chiefs, Editors, Où Est Le Swimming Pool? and more. But Brother&Bones is more akin to Kings of Leon and Shinedown. Check the band’s dry wit: the album has no title, and all song titles are short and to the point. This is a group without opulence or fringes. Head-on collision rock music. Robust guitars, potent singing, efficient lyrics. Beste track so far – always subjective and always subject to change – is ‘Back to Shore’. If just for the beautiful lyric ‘and pull the moon closer just to keep the dark disguised’. ‘If I Belong’ is superb as well. Anxious to see how Brother&Bones will evolve. Let's hope the amount of their success will match the wealth of their talent.

​‘Nothing That Is Everything’, the new Zita Swoon Group release, cannot be compared to ‘New Old World’, the band’s previous offering. Two distinctly different beasts, for the better. The first thoughts that crop up while listening are ‘mystifying’, ‘spacy’, ‘far-out’, as well as that signature Zita Swoon warmth and sense of togetherness. It’s a thin line, but frontman Stef Kamil Carlens walks it like a pro. ‘Dada Makes People Taller’ has a very dark, uncanny atmosphere. The singer is looking for a prey, but she sings like she’s being hunted herself. The coda features a deep, resonant bass voice. A creepy fairy tale for adults. Carlens didn’t really agree with this assessment when I interviewed him, but he did agree on the balance of good and evil that’s present in the song. “Can’t be loved and can’t be hated” speaks of that duality. ‘Dada For Spring Radio’ on the other hand has an 80’s sound, reminiscent of an old Jan Hammer or Harold Faltermeyer record. The album’s closing track ‘Sleep-Dance-Sleep’ may be its best. A joyful celebration of joy. No, that doesn’t make any sense, but be sure to check out the track for yourself. It’s pure bliss. ‘Nothing That Is Everything’ has brilliance written all over it. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: may they sell millions and millions of records. Get to it. Get your copy now.

This is a very mediocre EP from a very mediocre Swedish singer and songwriter Mikke Severinsson. They say he sounds like Mark Knopfler and Pink Floyd. But only the last song smells a little bit like Floyd and if the song was written by David Gilmour it would not make Floyd’s album….