Thomm Jutz Live in Two Worlds Volume 1 Mountain Home Music Company Thomm Jutz released the first of two volumes of music titled To Live In Two Worlds. Volume 1 released in March by Mountain Home Music Company. There is a vintage vibe as the album opens with an acoustic soundtrack to simpler times. This […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Celeste Kellogg Celeste is a CMA / Nashville Recording Artist. Her latest EP titled You & Me, charted on the iTunes Country Chart. She debuted two of her songs from the EP(Country Swagger and Someone To Call Me Baby) at 3rd and Lindsley in Nashville during […]
Casey Van Beek and the Tulsa Groove Heaven Forever Little Village Foundation Little Village Foundation has made another discovery, this time not unearthing a new star but a hardened music veteran of six decades. His band, the Tulsa Groove, will inevitably bring back memories of the great J.J. Cale. In fact, play Heaven Forever for […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Rory Block Rory Block grew up in New York’s Greenwich Village at the height of the “folk music revival”, a time when a number of the founding giants of traditional country blues were being rediscovered and brought through New York City to perform. At the age […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Jim Gustin and Truth Jones Jim Gustin is a blues singer and guitarist from Santa Clarita California. He has a distinctive, powerful voice; soulful and deep with a smoky rasp, he is a passionate and energetic performer. He is also a very solid guitarist with great […]
Steve Howell, Dan Sumner & Jason Weinheimer Long Ago Out Of The Past Music Texas born Steve Howell lives near Shreveport, La. He has immersed himself in the rural blues of the south and is normally content to re-create obscure country blues with his warm vocals and finger picking. He recorded his debut album “Out […]
Sarah Siskind Modern Appalachia Red Request Sarah Siskind’s Modern Appalachia is long overdue as it’s her first album in nine years. This is an important project as evidenced by the gleaming list of guests including Bill Frisell, Justin Vernon, Jeff Sipe, Mike Seal, Daniel Kimbro, Rose Cousins, Julie Lee, and Elizabeth Foster. Don’t let the […]
Andrew Alli Hard Workin’ Man EllerSoul Emerging harmonica sensation Andrew Alli hails from Richmond, VA, the same area of his mentor, the Piedmont harp master, Phil Wiggins. Alli not only blows his blues harp in an intense, county rooted style, he can sing with passion too. He’s a young cat with an old soul. Allie […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Webb Wilder! On Night Without Love, Mississippi Musician Hall of Fame icon Webb Wilder pleases and shocks, soothes and rocks, and meets every un-expectation. Equally versed in two glorious worlds, Rock and Roll – with a strong side of Outlaw Country (Webb prefers the term “PROGRESSIVE Country”). […]
Crystal Shawanda Church House Blues True North Records/New Sun Records Crystal Shawanda is an indigenous Canadian born in the Wiikwemkoong First Nation, an unceded territory, on Manitoulin Island in northern Ontario. She moved to Nashville and signed with RCA Records in 2007. Her debut album “Dawn of a New Day” reached the top 20 on […]
Ali Holder Uncomfortable Truths Self-released The title alone provides intrigue as Texas singer-songwriter Ali Holder doesn’t just confess but instead urges us to stand tall, defiantly in the face of stereotypes while acknowledging difficult circumstances. Ultimately, rather than dwelling on the negative, she pushes toward the optimistic higher road, chronicling some of the pain on […]
The Proven Ones You Ain’t Done Gulf Coast Records The Proven Ones released their debut recording “Wild Again” in 2018. The all-star ensemble is led by Jimi Bott, drums. Bott has twenty Blues Music Award nominations for Best Instrumentalist – Drums, winning that award in 2015. His longtime partner Willie J. Campbell has four of […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Jack Licitra! Jack’s Waterfall is the musical adventure of singer/songwriter and musician, Jack Licitra. Pop, blues, jazz, folk, gospel and global music all meet at The Waterfall, a place of healing and learning. Sometimes Jack performs solo and other times with a group, but there is […]
Brian Dunne Selling Things Self-produced Selling Things is a cathartic project for Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Brian Dunne, drawing on a difficult year spent wrestling with mental health and an existential crisis. Yet, you can right away hear the unbridled passion in Dunne’s expressive voice. He’s got plenty to let go of and he’s determined to make […]
Eliza Gilkyson 2020 Red House This is a difficult one to hear in the context of its original inspiration – that being an election year where there is potential of a return to common sense, decency, and forward-looking thinking from the President. This health pandemic leaves us with such an uncertain future that the importance […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Richard Lynch! You’d be hard-pressed to find a musician as authentic as Richard Lynch, whose traditional country music fully embodies his hay-raising, farm-dwelling lifestyle. An all-American, blue collar country man, Lynch has poured his heart and soul into the countless chart-topping hits he and his band have […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Juliana MacDowell Juliana MacDowell is a singer-songwriter, living between Loudoun County, Virginia and Key West, Florida, whose earthy vocals and moving originals unite her with listeners in unforced and memorable ways. She fell in love with music as a toddler when her grandfather hoisted her up on the bench of his […]
Mark Erelli Blindsided Self-released Singer-songwriter Mark Erelli has done all his solo work in the past two decades in his home state of Massachusetts but has managed to make plenty of friends along the way as a sideman for Nashville-based artists. His last year’s “By Degrees” had Sheryl Crow and Rosanne Cash joining him and […]
HOME PAGE Making A Scene Presents an Interview with Teghan Devon! Teghan’s love of the craft that is songwriting began when she was little. She was raised on the ultimate and universal example of great songs: The Beatles (Her parents claim that there is incriminating video of Teghan belting out “The Ballad of John and […]
Chris Moyse Bitter Ballads & Cynical Prayers Self-released Bitter Ballads & Cynical Prayers is the debut from Nashville-based singer-songwriter Chris Moyse. Before you quickly dismiss this out of hand because you’re not inclined to listen to a depressing singer-songwriter in this period of self-quarantine, go ahead and proceed because, despite the tone of title, there […]
Carla Olson Have Harmony Will Travel 2 Sunset Blvd. Have Harmony Will Travel 2 is Carla Olson’s successor to her acclaimed 2013’s Have Harmony, Will Travel which featured two-part vocals with Peter Case, Richie Furay, John York, Scott Kempner and Juice Newton. This one includes comparably renowned names such as Timothy B. Schmidt (The Eagles), […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Emma Hill! In early 2007 fate brought Emma Hill and Bryan Daste together via a Craigslist ad. Daste was a recording engineer at Magic Closet Studios in Portland, OR, and Hill had come in to record her first professional demos after a recent move from her […]
Juliana MacDowell Leaving Home Conch Town Music Juliana MacDowell releases Leaving Home on Conch Town Music and it’s as fresh as spring itself. This, her second studio album, explores familiar themes and presents them in a beautiful light. Released on friday the thirteenth in the middle of a pandemic, touring to promote the album is […]
Sass Jordan Rebel Moon Blues Stony Plain Records Sass Jordan is a Canadian rock singer who was first inspired by listening to The Band and songs like “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”. Other musical influences included Ozzy Osbourne, Judas Priest, David Bowie, and soul singer Al Green. Jordan’s debut recording was 1988’s “Tell […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Maya Rae Poised at the crossroads between innocence and experience, Maya Rae’s voice communicates with an immediacy and commitment that most artists never attain. In an age when so much music feels overproduced and lacking in genuine emotion, Maya’s songs come like a breath of fresh […]
Mike Mattison Afterglow Landslide One of the clear highlights of the Tedeschi-Trucks Band’s great live shows is when vocalist and songwriter Mike Mattison takes his turn on a lead vocal. Through most of the set he backs Susan Tedeschi with harmonies and percussion. Most will also recall Mattison’s days as the lead vocalist for the […]
Maya De Vitry How to Break a Fall Self-released Two years ago, the gifted Americana band The Stray Birds left us with the parting Let It Pass, the last of their great albums. A central figure in making those was co-founder and often frontwoman, multi-instrumentalist and superb vocalist/songwriter Maya De Vitry. Last year De Vitry delivered […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene presents an an interview with The Flyin’ A’s! The Flyin’ A’s perform Americana with a Texas Kick. This husband and wife duo hails from Austin, Texas. You can hear their Texas roots in all they do. This high energy duo is famous for their top notch songwriting, breathtaking harmonies, and […]
Sadler Vaden Anybody Out There? Dirty Mag/Thirty Tigers Guitarist/singer-songwriter Sadler Vaden is best known as the lead guitarist for Jason Isbell’s 400 Unit, but fans will also recognize him for his time with Drivin’ N Cryin prior to joining Isbell’s band. Anybody Out There? Is his second full-length album, a follow-up to his 2016 self-titled […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Chris Moyse! Chris Moyse is a Nashville-based folk songwriter hellbent on the truth; “the places most would rather stay away from” he says. He has recently shared the stage with folk troubadours like Joe Ely and Mary Gauthier, as well as members of Old Crow Medicine show. Originally from […]
Dom Flemons Prospect Hill – The American Songster Omnibus Omnivore You might have a quick reaction to those preemptive words “The American Songster” but, in fact, that’s how Grammy winner time and two-time Emmy winner Dom Flemons is known. One wonders if there’s anything that’s beyond his immense scope of talents. He’s a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, […]
Bill Curreri Hard Road Home Self-released This is singer-songwriter Bill Curreri’s third album, his most ambitious and thoughtfully rendered album to date. And, what a circuitous route to reach this point! Raised in Greenwich Village during the socially turbulent 1960’s, Bill always dreamed of someday being recognized as an accomplished singer-songwriter. But as often happens, […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Sarah Morris Sarah Morris has a habit of missing the forest. From the day the Minneapolis based singer-songwriter picked up a guitar, armed with the bone-deep memory of her parents’ well-loved record collection and rooted in the storytelling fire of a Mary Chapin Carpenter tune, she’s […]
Chickaboom Tami Neilson Outside Music Canadian-born, New Zealand-based vocalist Tami Neilson releases Chickaboom! through Outside Music on February 14, 2020. Valentines Day! What’s not to love about that! Chickaboom! is revivalist rockabilly with clickety-clack percussion and a stomp-n-holler groove. With a vocal range that sways and phrasing that evokes artists like Amy Winehouse, St. Paul […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an interview with Grant Peeples A self-described “tree-hugger that watches NASCAR, and Buddhist with a gun below the seat,” Grant Peeples is known for his axe-sharp socio-political tunes, raucous humor and heart-gigging ballads. He is the recipient of the Focus Foundation Award for Creative Excellence, which cited the “humor, compassion […]
Robert Vincent In This Town You’re Owned Thirty Tigers If it’s possible for an Englishman to be an Americana artist, then singer-songwriter Robert Vincent would be the first in line. Vincent continues to put his distinctive stamp on the genre as evidenced by the reception and acclaim received at this past year’s AmericanaFest. He is […]
HOME PAGE Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Danny Kensy! Danny Kensy is a nationally touring Country artist and songwriter based in Richmond, VA. His music blends a modern day edge with classic and traditional Western sounds. Danny has opened for such acts as Dierks Bentley, Brothers Osborne, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Gary Allan, The Charlie Daniels Band, and […]
Marshall Crenshaw Miracle of Science Shiny-tone Records The Detroit born Marshall Crenshaw released his self-titled debut in 1982. That first album included the Top 40 hit “Someday, Someway”. Crenshaw followed with 1983’s “Field Day” which contained the single “Whenever You’re On My Mind”; and his 1985 album “Downtown” containing the hit “Little Wild One”. His […]
HOME PAGE Making A Scene Presents an Interview with Pi Jacobs LA based singer-songwriter Pi Jacobs plays what she calls an “Americana bluesy rock thing”. In 2016 she signed to the Travianana / Mountain Fever Group label based in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. In 2017 they released her first album, A Little Blue, to great critical acclaim, and […]
Eric Brace & Last Train Home Daytime Highs & Overnight Lows Red Beet Records Eric Brace & Last Train Home release their eleventh collaboration Daytime Highs & Overnight Lows on Red Beet Records. These are traveling songs, perhaps traveling through time as they evoke a feeling from another era while being new at the same […]
Randall Bramblett The Meantime (10th Anniversary Edition) New West This marks the tenth anniversary of Randall Bramblett’s “piano trio” album, The Meantime, which New West is commemorating with remastered versions, two previously unreleased tracks, and a vinyl issue for the first time. The album is one that is rather criminally under-recognized in Bramblett’s catalog but […]
Vance Gilbert Good Good Man Vance Gilbert is superlative, and he has outdone himself on his latest album, Good Good Man. The songs on Good Good Man are soulfelt, funky, Jazz-infused, with a wall of sound quality and an impressive list of guests that include blues and singer/songwriter Chris Smither, Tommy Malone of the Subdudes […]
The Wood Brothers Kingdom In My Mind Oh the things we tell ourselves. Kingdom In My Mind is the latest album release by The Wood Brothers. This is the seventh studio release by the band, and it is marvelously experimental. As favorite on mine, a Wood Brothers’ live show is captivating. For the band to […]
David Olney, 71, Revered Songwriter Dies (March 23, 1948 – Jan. 18, 2020) Revered songwriter David Olney (born March 23, 1948) died Saturday, January 18, 2020, after suffering an apparent heart attack during a performance in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. He was 71. A key member of Nashville’s music community since his move to Music […]
Tom Breiding Love Commits Me Here AmeriSon Singer-songwriter Tom Breiding writes a specific kind of Americana song, ones devoted to laborers and union workers. Hailing from West Virginia, he has been doing so for his entire career due to his intense connections with union members and groups. Several on Love Commits Me Here highlight his […]
Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Jacqui Brown! Jacqui Brown has never really been afraid of change based on her multiple careers, her many talents, and her insatiable energy to take on challenges like her life depends on it. At 22-years-old, she moved from Ontario, Canada, to California to begin a career with the […]
se Making a Scene Presents Viola Krouse’s Best Releases of 2019 Viola Krouse lists her favorite releases for 2019 and they made the list for three important reasons; first, they are damn good, second, the music crossed her record player at some point during the year, and third, they made an impact. The top of […]
Making a Scene Presents Jim Hynes’ Picks for Top 20 Roots Releases for 2019! These are in no particular order.. Click on the Release image to purchase on Amazon – Use the artist name to go to the Review of the Release Benny Turner and Cash McCall Going Back Home Jason Ringenberg Stand Tall Adam […]
Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Hudspeth and Taylor Brandon Hudspeth Guitarist, singer, and songwriter Brandon Hudspeth was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma. He began taking guitar lessons at an early age after hearing Johnny Cash on Sesame Street. In high school, heavily influenced by the Blues, he started playing weekend gigs around the Tulsa […]
Dom Martin Spain to Italy Where do I start as it’s all been said before about this young man from Belfast, Northern Ireland. The right place at the right time springs to mind. My first time to meet Dom was on the 7th of March this year at renowned rock venue Whelan’s in Dublin. Dom […]