The path of a traveling musician often leaves the artist longing to connect. With his deeply personal new record, 'Night Owl', Ted Russell Kamp reveals the aches, joys and adaptations to life on the road.
All songs on “Night Owl” were written on the road or in brief tour breaks in the past few years. The record, produced by Kamp, was recorded in L.A., Nashville, Fort Worth, Tulsa and Helsinki, Finland. “Smile Alone” (co-written with Will Hoge) — a song about holding on to love as it changes through the years — is the leadoff track. It lets the Wurlitzer set the tone for the record with an homage to 70's AM radio and features Brian Whelan (Dwight Yoakam, Chuck Berry) and Michael Webb (John Fogerty, Bobby Keyes). “Right Down To The Wire”, reminiscent of Bruce Springsteen's “Nebraska,” is a reflective look at survival in the face of making a dream come true.
There are two versions of “Another Love Song”, track #3, reminiscent of classic Tom Petty, is centered around an honest and powerful vocal, while the bonus track (#14) features Chuck Blackwell on drums (Leon Russell, Taj Mahal) and Danny Timms on piano (Kris Kristofferson, Bonnie Raitt) as they help Ted channel a Stonesy boogie-woogie and the classic Tulsa Sound.
On “A Whole Lot Of You & Me” the first verse and chorus is stripped down to Kamp alone on bass and vocals, which brings pure intimacy. The New Orleans inspired “The Last Drop” (co-written with Charlie Starr of Blackberry Smoke) is a song about living life to the fullest: “I want to be the first in the morning up to see the sun and the last one standing when the day is done. I want to drink the last drop from the bottom of the well”.
The album was recorded following the model of classic vinyl LP’s with a side one and a side two. “Santa Ana Winds” kicks off the second side as it evokes classic Fleetwood Mac and the dreaminess of Southwest desert highways with fingerpicked guitar and trumpet (also performed by Kamp). “At the End Of The Day” gives a nod to classic country with its emotive fiddle playing by Bethany Dick-Olds (Kathy Mattea). “I Been Watching You” features the droney guitar of Jason Cope (Jamey Johnson) and a slow burning floor tom pulse that builds to an emotional rock climax.
“My Heart Has A Mind Of It's Own” is a journal entry as waltz, co-written with Eric Paslay, one of the most soulful of the new crop of Nashville hit songwriters. It features Kamp, unaccompanied, playing acoustic guitar, mandolin, bass and vocals. “Where Out West,” co-written with Dave Gleason (another of the Los Angeles California country stalwarts), is Kamp’s take on the psychadelic country-rock of the Byrds as he brings in old Shooter Jennings band mate John Schreffler on pedal steel.
One of the bonus tracks is a solo acoustic version of “When The Radio Goes Dead,” a song that Ted wrote for the Shooter Jennings record, “Black Ribbons”.
Terrible Lizard
After a decade of playing guitar in Chicago blues bands and the California rock scene traversing diverse musical landscapes as Chris Winters, “Chili” came forth and burst onto the scene, and Terrible Lizard was born.
The music, based on the musings and secret rock ‘n’ roll longings of an incurable rocker split the seams of the poor wretch and spewed forth such a smattering of rock ‘n’ roll juice and vibe that a remedy was sought. Chili contacted a familiar cohort, “the Kid” (Stephen Howard).
The Kid, like Chili, shared a penchant for the rocking ethos and for an excess of abandonment to the moment. When asked by Chili if he would collaborate with him on his latest heartfelt tangent, the Kid answered with a yes that resounded and echoed throughout that very room. A third conspirator was sought.
Ryan was immediately suggested as he and the Kid had been in the same band for quite some time and had established there a strong musical kinship. Chili had also played with Ryan on separate occasions and had developed an appreciation for his drumming and musical sensibilities. Ryan accepted the invitation and rehearsals and recording followed.
www.terriblelizardband.com
www.cdbaby.com/cd/terriblelizard
Terry Emm
“Excellent, excellent music” ~ Bob Harris, BBC 2
Terry Emm is increasingly gaining recognition and high plaudits for creating slow burning understated alt-folk with beautiful arrangements, English sensibilities and endearing poetic lyrics.
'Loved And Never Lost' is the first single to be taken from Emm's forthcoming 3rd album, the track details Emm's sentimental reflections on his changing life and perspectives on the world around him and perhaps signals a coming of age and maturing from the earlier teenage efforts of his critically acclaimed 'White Butterflies' debut and the recent angst ridden 'Petals Fallen Off The Sun' album.
Calina De La Mare's (Sophia, Tindersticks) majestic string arrangements soar above stumbling and building epic drums by Stuart Wilkinson and producer Michael Clarke's (Clarkesville, Dan Whitehouse) subtle accompaniments in what makes for a moving and beautifully track with a certain timeless quality to it.
The release of ‘Loved And Never Lost’ follows the success of the pretty Christmas single 'Gently' which received much airplay including being playlisted on Q Radio and airplay from the likes of Gideon Coe and Chris Hawkins on BBC 6 Music. The animated video for ‘Gently’ by Mark Charlton was picked up by over 50 music blogs around the world, including The Guardian Music Blog.
http://terryemmmusic2.wordpress.com
Terry Garland & Li'l Ronnie
Blues-masters Terry Garland and Li’l Ronnie have been performing as a duo since December 31st, 2009. Although they had performed together in the past, this time it really clicked. Their electrifying sound mesmerizes the listener. Both Terry & Ronnie have long distinguished recording careers, as they are both vocalists, songwriters and interpreters their repertoire is varied, exciting and spontaneous.
Terry Garland is known internationally as a master slide and acoustic guitarist. Terry performs worldwide and has performed at top blues festivals across the globe. The artist’s impassioned songs, rare musical insight and depth, make him one of the most innovative and praised contemporary blues and roots musicians today. Terry’s meticulous finger-picking and driving percussive foot-stomping unite with his vocal prowess to create an evocative, engaging transformation. Born in Johnson City, TN, Terry’s musical roots were pioneered by forefathers of the blues. During his youth, he studied the sounds of Robert Johnson, Jimmy Reed, Blind Willie McTell, Howling’ Wolf and Lightning Hopkins, who inspired him to follow his calling. These pioneers played the blues on guitar or piano, they were the music. Just a voice and an instrument.
Harpist, singer-songwriter and Hohner Harmonica endorsee Ronnie Owens has been performing since the 60’s and has been fronting his own bands for over 25 years. Ronnie and band have performed at top music festivals and venues including a headlining performance at the prestigious Lincoln Center. They have also played with and opened shows for some of the biggest names in the blues-rock world.
Terry and Ronnie recently recorded an electrifying live CD, "Live At The Canal Club", with a planned release date of February, 2011. Terry and Ronnie are very excited about their new musical partnership.
www.ellersoulrecords.com
www.terrygarland.com
www.lilronnie.com
Tim Bragg
"Songs for the new album "Stranger Through The Window" came together in France during July and August 2009. The title track was written in Arcachon while staying with a friend. One of the few times during that hot summer – it rained - In fact, it deluged! Watching the rain through the window I also became aware of the house that borders my friend’s garden. She told me something of its history and I wrote: 'Stranger Through the Window'. This track is one of two “narrative” songs on the album – Both drawing from real life. The other, 'The Montbron Girl' is a tragic tale based on true, compelling events - Though both have been 'romanticised'.
There is a bitter-sweet feeling to the album; 'On the Radio' states – 'It couldn’t have been mine playing on the radio/They don’t know me on that kind of show' – 'Chasing Down Dreams' states – 'All this time wasted it’s true/Chasing down dreams that could never come true' – And yet songs from 'Waiting for the Light' (2009) were played on the radio and distant dreams have never seemed closer! 'Where is the Fighter?' - A song for and about Phil Lynott appeared on the EP: 'Where is the Fighter – Songs for Phil Lynott 2009', but has been re-mixed and re-mastered. There’s a country-rock sound to more of the tracks too – especially 'Night is Fallin' and 'Some Answers'. The addition of violin (courtesy of Toby Hill) adds to the country and folk feel that compliments the rockier tracks.
I was also lucky enough getting James Vargas to put down saxophone on a couple of tunes – Including the title track. James is making a real name for himself and is an ‘in demand’ sax player. As on 'Waiting for the Light' Jules Reason displays his excellent guitar, but I also hooked up with some players from way, way back: Gerald Maguire, John Loasby and Adam Beetlestone on electric guitars. The acclaimed American blues guitarist Leburn Maddox also puts in a re-appearance for this album as does Phil Knight, with some sensitive playing. Perry James adds his country feel and Gordon Woodcock supplies some tasteful harmonica. As ever I play my usual range of instruments – Even some lead acoustic guitar on this album!
There’s a real range of genres expressed through the fourteen tracks. This album is both melancholic and optimistic at times – From 'Icy Winter' to 'Sunrise' and 'Summer'.
Recording the album took shape from September 2009 through to April 2010 – I even managed to break my foot in October – Hence the different approach to the drumming in 'Can’t Run Away'!
'Stranger' was mastered by Chris Hardcastle of Arena Sound & Vision."
New album available here.
Tim Steward
Tim is better known as the frontman for Brisbane’s Screamfeeder. The band has been around for over 10 years and have established a dedicated international fan-base.
Somewhere along the line Tim realised he had too many songs in his head for the band alone and he started recording them at home. He then started hiring studios and producers and doing it all properly. It took 5 years of working in between other projects to bring the album to completion, and of course new songs were added along the way.
The album is varied - some of the songs feature piano and strings, some are acoustic guitar or keyboard based and a couple rock out. All are driven by lyrics and melody and Tim’s unique vocal delivery.
The album represents the cream of a 10 year writing period, recorded by the country’s greats; Wayne Connolly, Magoo, Matt Maddock and Bryce Moorhead.
Tim performs live in various modes; completely intimate and solo, duo, small band and big band – numbering up to 10 people on stage, including 3 backup singers.
www.tsteward.com
www.myspace.com/timsteward
www.screamfeeder.com
www.myspace.com/screamfeederrock
Energetic. Raw. Feisty.
These three words tell you everything you need to know about Australian roots artist Toby on stage.
Toby is a stand-out performer - and this is why she is making her mark touring the world - with seven Canadian tours up her sleeve, she also tours throughout Europe, America and Australia playing major festivals, and performing her own headlining shows.
For an audience, these live shows are a deeply emotional and joyous experience. For Toby, she wears her emotions, thoughts and adventures on her sleeve, as clearly as the delighted smile she sports while playing. It's that chemistry and connection – in between plenty of dancing and jumping from both sides – that makes each performance so strikingly unique and deliciously unpredictable.
Passionate and known for her unwavering commitment to her craft Toby is willing to take the risk and be vulnerable with her thoughts and emotions committed to song.
Perth born Toby’s new album "Sleeptalk" is the album you should be listening to. Why?
This album was recorded in San Francisco, CA, where Toby worked with co-producer Carey Williams. They met when TOBY played alongside Etta James (managed by Carey) at a festival in Milwaukee in 2009.
This is TOBY’s 4th full-length album and is the culmination of years of touring endlessly throughout Australia, four tours of Europe, eight tours of Canada and memorable performances in the USA.
This album showcases Toby’s insightful, honest and poignant songwriting. It’s an invitation to explore her mind and her soul. This critique of the human condition is both personal and broad. It has captured Toby’s best songs to date - with a full mature sound, and an incredible line up of musicians. It tells stories across emotions and continents, yet never loses track of it's Australian roots, giving it a sense of place and time.
But best of all, it is simply full of great songs that people want to hear.
Toby’s songwriting skills are honed enough to make her radio-friendly, and her voice is naturally soulful, earthy and dynamic enough to appeal to all kinds of music fans. The songs themselves have some seriously infectious hooks and draws in European flavours, some gutsy blues, slow, chilled out reggae and some soulful acoustic ballads.
Half of “Sleeptalk” was recorded at Decibelle Recording in San Fransisco with JJ Wiesler, and the other half in Berkely at San Pablo Recorder with Jon Evans. One track was recorded at Couch Studio with Shaun O'Callaghan, North Fremantle, WA (John Butler Trio).
Carey Williams put together an amazing team of musicians to record the album. Jon Evans played bass on several tracks. Jon has toured and performed with Tori Amos for twelve years. He has also worked with Linda Perry and Paula Cole. Other musicians include Dawn Richardson on drums (4 Non Blondes, Tracy Chapman), Julie Wolf (Ani Difranco, Indigo Girls, Maceo Parker), David Matthews (Etta James), Claytoven Richardson on backing vocals (Kenny G, Michael Bolton, Elton John, Peabo Bryson), Sakai (live performances with Quincy Jones, Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan) and Marcie Brown
Toby has pulled together experiences from travelling the world, performing her music. She has supported the likes of Sheryl Crow, John Mellencamp, Paul Kelly, John Butler Trio, Brandy, Indigo Girls, Gomez, Donavon Frankenreiter, Luka Bloom and Pete Murray.
By not deviating from her fiercely independent origins, Toby keeps this album real and untamed as she criss-crosses the globe connecting with audiences, injecting them with the passion she feels for music and turning each performance into a memorable party.
www.tobymusic.com.au
www.myspace.com/tobybeard
www.youtube.com/tobybeard
Tokyo Rosenthal
Rock & Sock Records announced today that they are releasing "Tokyo's Fifth" by their recording artist, Tokyo Rosenthal. Appropriately titled, this is Rosenthal's fifth album on the Rock & Sock label, and number five in only six years. The record includes 9 new original tunes penned by "Toke" and a rare cover of Lennon and McCartney's "Helter Skelter". Also included on the new CD is a video of the album's first single, "What Did I Used To Be?", which went "mini-viral". This is Tokyo's latest release since the critically acclaimed "Who Was That Man?" from 2011. That album made the Top 10 on most Americana Charts.
Tokyo is joined once again by a stellar cast of musicians including himself on lead and rhythm guitar, piano, organ, and vocals. Chris Stamey (dB's) returns on bass, Will Rigby (Steve Earle and dB's) and Logan Matheny on drums, Toke's constant touring partner Charlie Chamberlain on mandolin and lead guitar, John Teer (Chatham County Line) on fiddle, Allyn Love (pedal steel), and Matthew Douglas and David DiGiuseppe round out the players on clarinet and accordion respectively. In addition, Tokyo is accompanied on vocals by the amazing talent of Andrea Connolly.
As eclectic as ever, "Tokyo's Fifth" opens with a clarinet lick and continues to demonstrate his versatility in writing and arranging throughout the entire album. As always the subject matter is controversial, political, and personal. Never a stranger to controversy, Toke covers unemployment, suicide, and out sourcing on the album's first single, "What Did I Used To Be?", and the immigration situation in Arizona on "The Immigrant". Tokyo revisits songs dedicated to cities and neighborhoods with "Killaloe" and "Mulberry Place", and euthanasia on "We Put You Down". Rarely recording material by other writers, Rosenthal, along with the screaming violin of Chatham County Line's John Teer, take on "Helter Skelter", in a very creative and unique arrangement of The Beatle's classic. Andrea Connolly's vocal harmonies were born to be on Tokyo's ode to his father, "Waste Of A Heart", the reggae styled, "Smoke and Mirrors", and she will bring a tears to your eyes on her heartfelt duet with Tokyo on "We Put You Down".
"I can't believe it's only been six years since my first record. Seems like we've been doing this forever, and here we are at number five", says Rosenthal. "I certainly couldn't have done it without the support of my wife Carrie Klein and our daughters, Americana radio, my accompanists, especially my touring partner Charlie Chamberlain, my guru Chris Stamey, and the folks who buy my music and come to our shows. I hope this album will make you think, cry, and feel it to be unique, both musically and philosophically. A lot of great players took part in this project in order to deliver my vision of how these songs should be presented to my listeners. I trust we won't disappoint them and any new friends we pick up along the way."
www.tokyorosenthal.com
www.myspace.com/tokyorosenthal
Tom Corbett
Widely respected mandolinist/guitarist Tom Corbett’s third album, 'Tonight I Ride', is a colorfully musical pastiche of open-hearted stories and fond snapshots of the American West.
Highly regarded by peers for his skill at crafting parts that flesh out songs without flash or ego, Corbett’s soulful fretwork is supported by some of the West Coast’s finest acoustic artists, including bluegrass legends Herb Pedersen and Bill Bryson, Los Lobos percussionist Victor Besetti, guitar goddess Nina Gerber, renowned singer-songwriter Claire Holley, vocalist extraordinaire Jonathan McEuen, bassist Randy Tico and acoustic blues duo Tom Ball & Kenny Sultan.
The album came together once Corbett realized he was writing songs “with a Western bent.” The melodic title track’s key line — “I may never have touched the ground of freedom but tonight I ride” — was inspired by a trip to the Checkpoint Charlie Museum in Berlin, of all places, while “17 Miles A Day” looks at Western pioneers’ race against time and winter snows. “Welcome to Tom’s Place” celebrates the simple pleasures of fishing and friendship with some gleeful picking by Corbett and a posse of fellow Toms (Ball, Lackner, Lee, Rozum and Sauber), and the carefree birthday polka “Doce de Mayo” provides all the excuse needed for Corbett to jam with Los Lobos percussionist Victor Bessetti and Conjunto Los Pochos accordionist Otono Lujan and guitarron player Lorenzo Martinez.
“Ease On Down The River,” previously heard on the 1994 album 'The Cat’s Meow' by the Acousticats, the critically acclaimed folk-bluegrass-swing ensemble Corbett played with in the 90's, reunites him with a pair of longtime friends and musical heroes. “To redo ‘Ease On Down The River,’ with Herb Pedersen and Bill Bryson singing harmony, felt really good”, he says. “I’m really happy with the whole album.”
'Tonight I Ride', which follows 2001’s 'Upstairs At Charlie’s' and 2004’s 'Cloudless Blue Sky', is a crisply produced showcase for Corbett’s wit, warmth and creative versatility. It also shows him settled into a more peaceful phase of his life, sizing up the past and savoring the present. It’s another admirable achievement on his noteworthy resume. Long an active member of LA’s acoustic music scene, Corbett has toured with folk duo Robin & Linda Williams and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band multi-instrumentalist John McEuen, recorded several tracks on Social Distortion frontman Mike Ness’ rootsy solo album 'Cheating At Solitaire', and joined McEuen, Jimmy Ibbotson, Jennifer Warnes and Laurie Lewis in the award-winning 2002 DVD 'Nitty Gritty Surround'. More recently he taught Tom Selleck how to play ukulele for a role, and provided music for the Ted Haggard-themed play 'This Beautiful City' at Centre Theatre Group in Los Angeles. He just played a string of European dates and is currently booking dates for a U.S. tour.
www.tomcorbett.net
www.myspace.com/tomcorbettnet
Tom Dean
Rex Fowler and Tom Dean emerged as prominent folk-rock artists in the 70's. Rex’s band, Aztec Two Step, burst upon the scene with their self-titled debut album on Elektra Records in 1972. This, and their three subsequent albums on RCA Records, were staples of college and progressive FM radio and helped usher the music of the 60's into the 70's and beyond.
Tom Dean and Alana MacDonald's band Devonsquare was signed by Ahmet Ertegun, the legendary chairman of Atlantic Records, after hearing Dean’s "Walking On Ice" from their self-released album of the same name. Devonsquare went on to record another CD for Atlantic titled "Bye Bye Route 66", which spawned several critically acclaimed singles including "If You Could See Me Now", featuring Alana's powerful vocal performance.
Collectively they have toured worldwide, been reviewed in Rolling Stone, performed on David Letterman and shared stages with such musical luminaries as Bruce Springsteen, Bonnie Raitt and The Band, and continue to distinguish themselves as esteemed song-writers, performers and recording artists in the venerated genre of folk-rock music.
Along with several prominent studio musicians, Rex and Tom have teamed up in this labor of love to celebrate the genius and artistry of John Lennon. As a gift to John for his 70th birthday on October 9, 2010, they have re-imagined exquisite acoustic renditions of Lennon’s legendary Beatles songs. Besides a smattering of tasteful percussion, Rex and Tom’s distinctive acoustic guitar and vocal stylings and the beautiful voice of Alana MacDonald, featured instrumentation include cello, violin, mandolin, mandola, bass, slide guitar, accordion and chromatic harmonica.
Happy Birthday John!
www.devonsquare.com
www.tomdeansongs.com
www.johnlennonsongproject.com
Tom Freund
Tom Freund, the critically hailed singer/songwriter who often accompanies himself on standup bass as well as guitar and piano, has completed his fourth, full album titled "Collapsible Plans", set for a September release on his own indie imprint Surf Road Records.
Produced by Ben Harper, the album also features guest appearances by Jackson Browne.
New York City native Freund now hangs his hat in Venice, California. When he first moved out to Southern California in the early ‘90s, he formed a duo with Ben Harper, which resulted in an album entitled 'Pleasure And Pain'. Freund spent the mid-‘90s touring with the indie rock cult faves The Silos. In 1998, he released his debut album 'North American Long Weekend' on Red Ant label. The record received an avalanche of critical accolades, most notably in The New York Times in which Ann Powers called it an “unexpected gem” and ranked it #3 in her year-end best-of poll.
2001’s 'Sympatico' drew even more raves. No Depression proclaimed that Freund’s lyrics “capture slices of Americana in a way that many attempt, yet very few actually master,“ while All Music Guide, called it “truly unique and absolutely brilliant.” Freund also is a favorite of NPR’s “Weekend Edition” and has been championed by Los Angeles’ powerful KCRW-FM, where he has performed live on “Morning Becomes Eclectic.”
The Washington Post, listening to the third CD 'Copper Moon', wrote: “Freund clearly delights in enigma. His vocals could go from laconic to impassioned without such obvious trickery as cranking up the volume. His lyrics are full of curveballs.”
Freund is highly respected by his fellow musicians as well. Folk chanteuse Victoria Williams calls Freund’s 2000 disc 'L.A. Fundamental Music' (a soundtrack-oriented EP) “a classic.”
Graham Parker added: “"Listening to 'Sympatico', Tom Freund's second solo release, I find myself just as impressed as I was after hearing 'North American Long Weekend', his solo debut. His songs fill me with an interesting mixture of yearning and melancholy that is somehow thoroughly uplifting at the same time. I get shivers down my spine on almost every tune. Along with Lucinda Williams, Freund is the best singer/songwriter operating today."
"Collapsible Plans" available here.
Tom House
Born in 1949 in Piedmont North Carolina, singer-songwriter and poet Tom House has produced a staggering amount of work. In the mid 70’s Tom relocated to Nashville where he pounded out over 10 full-length albums, wrote and published hundred’s of poems (which have been translated into numerous languages), all the while producing and editing Rawbone magazine from 1982 to 1990. His first recording “Inside These Walls” was released in 1996 which caught the interest of Bloodshot records when his song “Cole Durhew” was included on a compilation CD titled “Across The Alley” and led to a record deal with Checkered Past with whom he released two critically acclaimed albums: “The Neighborhood Is Changing” and “This White Man’s Burden”. Over the next 10 years Tom would go on to release 5 albums on Catamount Records before the labels demise in 2005.
Tom has also been involved in such projects as an opera based on William Faulkner’s first novel “Light In August” (collaborating with David Olney, Tommy Goldsmith and Karren Pell), stage adaptations of the Lee Smith novel’s “Fair And Tender Ladies” and “The Christmas Letters”, a presentation of May Fowler’s novel “Remembering Blue” and a beautiful chapter by chapter in the round adaptation of Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying” which was performed for over 15 years all over the south.
Tom House has been branded as “a songwriter’s songwriter”, which is often the case with any artist who scribbles outside the lines. His songs have been recorded by David Olney, Jeffrey Foucault, Dave Isaacs and Rebecca Hosking, to name but a few, and have received praise from Esquire, The Austin Chronicle and No Depression. Tom has also shared the stage with such giants as Arlo Guthrie, Loudon Wainwright III, Hayes Carll, Serena Ryder, Roger McGuinn, Dave Von Ronk, Justin Townes Earle, David Olney, Kevin Welch.
“Nothing about Tom House is easy”, says Grant Alden (No Depression). “Not the high, rushed quaver with which he sings, not the words he writes and the life from which his stories emerge. 'Jesus Doesn’t Live Here Anymore' is a hard and loving record, thoroughly out of fashion, and brilliant. As were its predecessors”.
www.mudrecords.ca
www.tomhousesongspoems.blogspot.com
Tom Kell
For Tom Kell it has always been about the songwriting. From his earliest days as a country-rock pioneer on club and concert stages in his native Seattle and throughout the West Coast, to singing duets with John David Souther, Timothy B Schmit and Valerie Carter, he has always been lead through his career by his songs. He writes with a unique sense of time and place, and sings with a voice so full of character and heart, that you feel as though you're standing next to him, seeing the same images, breathing the same moment.
As a resident of Los Angeles for the past 30 years, Tom's songwriting echoes the 'grit and feel' that is LA and captures it perfectly in his new project, "This Desert City".
Tom Kell's 5th solo album continues to deliver his unique, and yet familiar songwriting with the quality and craftsmanship that he's known for, this time taking it to a level of excellence that places his career in its finest hour. More than any, this is the album Tom has always wanted to make.
www.tomkell.com
www.thisdesertcity.com
www.17degreesrecording.com
Tom Kell & Emiko Woods
Music industry veteran singer-songwriter Tom Kell ('Lonely Town', 'One Sad Night', 'Angeltown', 'Complicated Luck', 'This Desert City') delivers a fresh and deeply spiritual album with a widely embraced sound. Written and performed as a collaboration with newcomer Emiko Woods, the result is like an old wine of masterful, memorable melodies captured in new wine skins of contemporary, emotional, harmonic textures.
Among the throngs of fans who have enjoyed this drink, include the famed Ben Harper, JD Souther and Karla Bonoff. Comparisons with the Civil Wars, Buddy & Julie Miller and Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell lend credibility to a style and sound that legitimately stands on its own.
"Glory Bound" is full of the kind of americana gospel music that is rare these days. Smart and rootsy, it moves your soul and lightens your spirit. Produced in a small church studio in Long Beach California, it feels as big as the heavens above, and yet stays true to the pure and simple sounds of a classic genre. Musical contributions include industry legend Bob Glaub (Jackson Browne, John Fogerty) and contemporary master composer and instrumentalist TJ Hill (Future of Forestry).
How it came to be that a seasoned storyteller (who has recorded with such legends as JD Souther, Timothy B Schmit, Valerie Carter, Karla Bonoff and Kenny Edwards) partnered with a bright young unknown singer, is as simple as the longtime friendships they share with each other’s families and their common love of Americana music. What was inevitable soon followed.
After co-writing for several months and beginning to share their songs in churches and local venues, their music found resonance in the hearts of its listeners; but more importantly solidified an undeniable chemistry as musical partners. In 2011, Tom and Emiko began to perform regularly at the First Baptist Church of Lakewood, Tom's home church. With the very first musical offering, the congregation fell in love with Tom and Emiko; and soon after, an invitation was extended to record an album with the church acting as label. A year later, "Glory Bound" was realized.
www.tomandemiko.com
www.facebook.com/tomkellandemikowoods
Tom Rodwell
Tom Rodwell’s critically acclaimed debut album "Live Humble" follows years of extensive touring in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, the US, Switzerland and Holland. Rodwell and his band Storehouse are now an established independent club and festival act, and have supported Leon Russell, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Otis Taylor, Son of Dave and psychedelic reggae pioneers Trinity Roots.
Rodwell’s music is based in hard blues minimalism, but filtered through an improvisatory, no-fixed-arrangements approach. As influences from free improvisation, spirituals, calypso and Juju music have filtered into his style, this flexible approach has made his guitar-playing harder to categorize, yet more suggestive and resonant for younger, bohemian audiences.
Similarly, Rodwell’s vocals and song choice - usually half-remembered fragments of traditional spirituals or bizarre calypso tales - have deliberately mixed messages, with the sacred and profane competing for space on the dancefloor. “The feeling is the only content of this music”, he is fond of saying, focussing attention on subtext, accentuation, and social function.
Rodwell’s reinvention of blues as a dance form, (the raucous Storehouse live show has appeared in hundreds of clubs, festivals, galleries, rent parties and dive bars internationally since 2003), upsets purists, but also those who see this apparently ‘easy’ music as one-dimensional and static. It is instead, he insists, music that is still mutating into new shapes, away from the modern gaze, somewhere where rock n’ roll never happened.
www.tomrodwell.com
www.fireplacerecordings.com
Tom T Hall
Tom T Hall, ‘The Nashville Storyteller’, is one of the finest songwriters in the storytelling style in Country Music that there has ever been.
Signed to Mercury Records in Nashville in 1967, Tom T Hall quickly started racking up the country hits – the first in 1968 with 'Ballad Of Forty Dollars'. Dozens of Top Ten hits followed. He has delivered 35 albums in his career with over 50 country charting singles.
Tom T effectively retired from recording music in the late 1990’s but continued to be involved with various bluegrass projects and the bluegrass community, with his own label and a studio in his home.
A couple of Christmases ago Tom T’s wife and song writing partner opened her present from Tom T – A mock-up CD entitled "Tom T Hall Sings Miss Dixie" and he announced his intention to record the album. He told her that she would produce it, pick out the musicians and the songs, and he’d sing it. The album was made and released in the USA on the couple’s own label.
Available now for the first time in Europe, "A Gift From Tom T Hall" shows that Tom T’s talent for telling a story is undiminished. This is a great album of songs played by the finest bluegrass musicians including Earl Scruggs and the late Jimmy Martin.
Tom T Hall is held in hugely high esteem by all in the country music, Americana and bluegrass fraternity. The recent HumpHead Records ‘50 Greatest Hits’ garnered 5 stars reviews, and a brand new tribute album to his children’s songs, featuring Buddy Miller, Duane Eddy, Patti Griffin, Jim Lauderdale and many others, has also rekindled even more interest in this truly great artist.
www.tomthall.net
www.drumfirerecords.com
Tómas Alexander
Showcasing his talent in 2006, Erik Williams joined the roster to tickle the 88 ivories at Edmonton’s premier dueling piano bar The Ivory Club and Ebony Grille. Now dueling on Friday’s and Saturday’s at Overtime Broiler Tap Room in Sherwood Park, AB, Erik has set out to contribute his own musical masterpiece.
Born into a musical family, the talented singer-songwriter-pianist has always had a keen ear for melody. “Music has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember”, says Williams. “My interest soon developed into a passion and at age 18 I decided to teach myself piano”.
Natural musical instincts coupled with raw talent aided in his ability to pick-up and finesse the piano quickly. By age 20, after only playing for 2 years, Williams had accomplished grade six level Royal Conservatory.
“I always knew that I wanted to perform. When I started working on “Dark Matter” a couple of years ago, I knew this is what I wanted to do. Music is natural to me, it’s a part of how I live, move and breathe, and I wanted to create something that is me — something that shows this other side of me — beyond the dueling pianos”.
Produced by Stew Kirkwood of Sound Extractor Studios, “Dark Matter” is a compilation of unconventional musical elements and unique sounds that present an exciting listening experience. Williams explains, “This album is a representation of who I am and the things I’ve seen. The songs feature random household objects (a leather couch, an IKEA lamp, toilet plunger etc.) sampled to create unique composite sounds combined with layers of electronic instruments”.
The album is a symbol of Williams alter ego — Tómas Alexander. His captivating Jekyll and Hyde musical styles allow him to do what he loves — perform. Williams says, “I’m the same person albeit my solo music style is very different to my dueling piano style”. He enjoys taking the stage at Overtime to duel fan favourites, and by the look on his face is clearly excited to present his first solo work of art.
Tomás Kocko & Orchestr
Peculiar songster, singer, composer and speculator in area of traditional Moravian and Slavonic artistic creation, history and religion.
Their music is full of stories and interesting traditions, but the most important quality is their strong ability to attract people to themselves.
Even though they play only acoustic instruments, you can be sure, that rock or metal audience will love them!
Tomáš Kocko & Orchestr belong to the top of the middle-east European worldmusic and especially in the Czech Republic.
They have been nominated 3 times for the award ANDEL (the Czech version of Grammy) and they won it in 2006, in category "worldmusic".
Their new album “Godula” will be released in the summer of 2011.
Their music is played on acoustic instruments - guitars, violin, cimbalom and recorders as well as percussions and traditional folk instruments. It sounds straightly and it has expressive strains and rhytmical background with elements of rock, metal, folk music and jazz.
They appear in all significant festivals of the Czech Republic and worldmusic festivals like were Europian Broadcasting Union Folk Festival in Cork (IR), Nowa Tradycja (PL), Le Village Européen Des Nouvelles Musiques Traditionnelles (FR), Ethnosfera (PL), Viljandi Folk Festival (Estonia), Eger (Hungary), Halkaer (Denmark), Harvest (Russia) and they do plan an American tour for next season.
Tommy Rickard
Drummer and singer-songwriter Tommy Rickard spent 2008 and 2009 in the studio, recording the tracks for his debut album “Dream California”. This record is a melting pot of the music Rickard grew up on. The reverb drenched guitars of California’s surf scene with a raw and honest voice, reminiscent of Johnny Cash. The vocal harmonies of the Beach Boys and laid back feel of the Eagles, with an occasional hint of the punk scene where his musical journey began. The live shows are equal parts all of this with Rickard fronting the band, singing while standing and playing drums. He’s backed by 2 guitars, bass and a female background singer. At times there could be a pedal steel player or possibly someone playing Hammond organ, or even an accordion player. Every show’s different. Every night a new canvas.
Rickard grew up in Northern California on the Russian River and in Santa Rosa. In early childhood he spent many nights singing along with his Italian Grandfather Dominic to Johnny Cash and George Jones songs. As a pre-teen he cut class to air drum along with his mom’s Beach Boys, Elvis, and Beatles records. It all took a turn when, at 13, he got his first drum kit. His first gig followed just months after at a punk festival. Rickard spent his teenage years drumming in the punk band The 4xLoozers and opening for punk legends like Black Flag, Agent Orange, Victims Family, and Sea Hags.
As soon as high school graduation hit he hightailed it down to San Francisco where he met singer Davy Vain. Together they formed the glam rock band Vain. Within a year, they were headlining and selling out clubs all over the Bay Area. Vain were soon signed to Island Records and started working on what would become a sleaze rock classic called “No Respect.” Rickard toured with Vain around the world from 1988 through 1992, opening for Guns & Roses, Poison, and Skid Row. Lemmy of Motorhead jammed with them at the Hammersmith Odeon, the final show of Vain’s sold out UK tour.
The down time after 4 years of touring gave Rickard the chance to reconnect with the SF music scene where he started a new band called Loaded. Their trashy, brit-pop sound garnered them extensive California tours and an EP named “TV Star”, released by Crush Records. When not on the road, Rickard began studies with Bay Area drum legend, Chuck Brown. At this time Rickard also did a short stint with San Francisco punk-metal heroes, The Clarke Nova. They recorded an EP and a full length record for Frank Kozik’s, Man’s Ruin label.
In 1997 Tommy joined up with singer/songwriter Michelle Muldrow to form the alternative country band BloodRoses. After two independent record releases the band drifted off to different states and different callings. Rickard moved on to local power-pop quartet, Blue Sky Roadster. B.S.R. released two records “Julio’s Dream” and “Rollercoaster Goodbye”, both of which received critical acclaim. The band then licensed songs to MTV, VH1, the NFL and a few independent films. B.S.R. renamed themselves Single and released “Welcome Nada” and continued to license songs to MTV and VH1.
It was around this time that Rickard began working with Linda Perry, playing drums on her songwriting demos as well as performing with her live, playing in her jaw dropping tribute to Led Zeppelin. In studio Rickard recorded the Grammy single “Beautiful” (Christina Aguilara). Rickard would continue to work with Perry on her solo records and side projects such as Courtney Love’s “Nobody’s Daughter”.
After acquiring a taste for Southern California, Rickard packed up and moved to Los Angeles to pursue more work as a session drummer. Hard times and closed doors made his first year a difficult one. It was a perfect time for him to pick up a guitar and begin writing songs. The first song written was about longing for a life just out of reach called “Dream California”. Soon Rickard had a few songs put together and tried them out at local open mic nights. He then put together a band of his own and began trading his drum services for studio time to record his album.
As his talent began to spread by word of mouth, he developed a reputation as a drummer comfortable in any style, from metal and country, to jazz and pop. He soon found himself in the middle of the California alt-country scene, a warm and familiar place harkening back to his childhood on the hills of west Sonoma County. From 2006 to 2009 Rickard recorded music for the TV shows 'Scrubs' and 'Army Wives' and the films “Little Manhattan”, “Firehouse Dog” and “Less”, all the while continuing to work with Linda Perry, Michelle Shocked, and members of Dwight Yoakam's and Lucinda Williams' bands.
Part of 2009 was also spent in Germany recording the drum tracks for the Delany “Blood and Ashes”, project. A CD that would accompany the Wolfagang Holbein book, “Chronicles Of The Immortal.” The end of 2009 was spent on a tour of Europe with Vain, celebrating the 20th anniversary of “No Respect”.
www.tommyrickard.com
www.myspace.com/tommyrickard
Tone Bent
Robin Eschner and Bill Horvitz, a.k.a. Tone Bent, double up on guitars and vocals as they perform their original songs, and give an occasional spin to a favorite cover. Both are accomplished musicians and composers, and together they deliver gorgeous harmonies and inspired guitar playing.
Their songs consider the many layers of what it means to be human - the things we all share in common, where we differ, how our lives intersect and influence whatever happens next. The songs move from humorous to contemplative and cover a range of things that include a tribute to Susan Butcher, four-time winner of the Iditarod sled dog race in Alaska, a nod to a daughter leaving home to go off on her own, a memory of floating down a river in the San Joaquin valley on a hot summer night, and a meditation on the discovery of a certain blue feather and the way it might change one's life.
Their first CD, "Say What You Will", has been described as: "a roaring ride through the heartland of human experience. Built on earthy guitar parts that sometimes simmer with heat, these tracks are a collection of what is, what might have been, and what could be. Composed through lyrical compositions with a circular logic and a talent for storytelling, these tracks speak to the journey inside us all."
Tone Bent is presently recording CD number two in-between performances, where their fans show up again and again to hear favorite songs, knowing that Bill and Robin will always have something new up their collective sleeve - be it a song, the story behind the song, or the addition of new instruments.
www.tonebent.com
www.billhorvitz.com
www.robineschner.com
Tony Denikos
"Some of my earliest memories are of riding along the country roads of central Maryland, singing songs - like 'Jack O' Diamonds' by Tex Ritter, 'Born To Lose' by Ray Charles, 'Caledonia' by Louis Jordan and 'Pendulum Swings' by Roger Miller - along with my Dad and sisters while my mom smiled at the landscape gliding by... A seed had been planted.
After years of playing pubs and bars in various configurations I decided it was time to record my first release "Naked & Smiling" (1999) and included a mix of songs I'd written over the years. The Washington Post reviewed it calling me a, "tunesmith in the best sense of the word", and folks started coming out to hear the band that I put together during the recording. A tradition of recording hard-luck, real-life songs mixed with humor and wit was born. I get requests for tunes from this CD at live shows to this day.
"Time Tells Tales" followed in 2003. I started to hone a more Americana sound, relying on my earliest influences as well as artists such as John Prine, Creedence, Little Feat, Springsteen, James McMurtry, Lucinda Williams, John Hiatt, Richard Thompson and Steve Earle. "Time Tells Tales" was given a good deal of radio play in Europe and free form stations here at home and it seemed that I had found my true voice somewhere in that gumbo of influences. The Tony Denikos Band had taken its' shape too and we started playing all across the Mid-Altlantic region.
In 2005, I headed to Nashville to begin my next project, "Already Gone". I started laying down tracks with Timm Biery (Danny Gatton, Nils Lofgren). Timm brought in Dave Jacques (John Prine, Emmylou Harris), Dave Roe (Johnny Cash, Dwight Yoakam), and Warner Hodges (Jason & The Scorchers) on the project to record with Gantt Kushner, Scott and Jen Smith (Naked Blue) and myself – what an amazing experience. "Already Gone" hit the streets with a bang in late 2009 and received critical acclaim from DJs and writers around the globe. It went to #2 on the Euro Americana Chart and #7 on the Freeform American Roots (F.A.R.) Chart right out of the gate.
And now in 2012, "Under The Church" is being released. I've been blessed once again by having tremendously talented musicians and producers work with me to create my vision for the CD. My thanks go out to Gantt Kushner, Scott and Jen Smith, and Timm Biery, for lending me their talents for this project. "Under The Church" goes to places both darker and more light-hearted than my previous releases. It allows me to claim my working class roots, reveal my small town disposition, and provide commentary on our current political climate. It may well be my best CD to date. I'll let you be the judge.
You can find me performing in any number of configurations - from acoustic solo to full on, rockin' five piece band - from South Carolina to Texas to upstate New York. I have assembled a collection of some of the most talented musicians in the country to form my band Tony Denikos & The Working Poor - myself, Gantt Kushner, Lee Townsend, Rick Weisenmiller and Mark Riddle. I feel honored every chance I get to share the stage with them.
I love performing almost as much as I love recording a new song. I cherish the connection that my songs help me make with folks in ways only music can. I sure do hope I get a chance to pick y'all a tune or two sometime soon."
www.tonydenikos.com
www.myspace.com/tonydenikosband
Too Slim and the Taildraggers
The blues at its inception following the Civil War was a solitary art form. One man with his banjo, harmonica or guitar expressing his deepest feelings as virtually the only way to make sense of the world. In time blues musicians banded together to expand the parameters, and amplification and electronic effects later on would provide additional means of producing music of lasting cultural value. As a side project after some 26 years of rattling the frets and audience expectations with his house rocking Taildraggers, singer-multi-instrumentalist-songwriter Tim “Too Slim” Langford has turned the evolution upside down with a stunning, innovative solo album, "Broken Halo".
Consisting of acoustic guitar, dobro, tenor ukulele and harmonica, along with electric bass and programmed drums, the result is a major musical statement from a virtuoso electric slide master. It is rendered all the more powerful by his intimate vocals, personal lyrics, spare, dramatic arrangements and a gorgeous, resonant sound.
"Broken Halo" contains 11 timeless and original countrified blues tracks. “La Llorona”, translated from the Spanish as “The Weeping Woman”, sets the haunting tone for the contemplative and sometimes scathing look Langford casts at the world around him that follows across the disk. The minor key dobro instrumental with a “Spanish tinge” featuring crying, mournful slide guitar could keep company alongside Blind Willie Johnson’s “Dark Is The Night, Cold Is The Ground”. It derives its title from an ancient Hispanic legend about a woman who drowns her children in order to be with the man she loves, but when he ultimately rejects her, she commits suicide and is prevented from entering the gates of heaven, instead being forced to wander the earth searching for her lost children. On “Three Chords” Langford continues the somber mood with guitar and overdubbed ukulele rhythm and melancholy lead while creatively using the allusion of “three chords to make them weep, three chords to make them think” as a way of representing the relatively short amount of time available to make one’s case about love and life. An insistently pulsing boogie blues riff drives “Shaking a Cup” as Langford intones his impassioned plea for the plight of the homeless, made all the more effective by his hushed, understated delivery.
He employs overdubbed rhythm and lead guitars punctuated by snaky harmonica fills to accompany his social views that perhaps include a reference to the “Occupy” movement with, “People are gathered, people stand, raising their voice, best they can”. A trip to the Delta via the primal blues of Muddy Waters in “You Hide It Well” provides Langford with another opportunity to display his graceful solo dobro slide chops that could have been recorded in a jook joint in 1938 in Greenwood, Mississippi. Turning to a more personal topic, he sings with unforced, authentic blues cadences to address the denial of alcohol abuse in an acquaintance who “hides it well.” The gentle and lyrical “Princeville Serenade” provides a brief instrumental interlude highlighted by expertly strummed ukulele with a sweet, melancholy and memorable overdubbed slide melody on the uke. A striking, dynamic change occurs with the chilling “40 Watt Bulb” that illuminates what it means to be a struggling, down and out musician in the rawest “street language” and most devastating terms. Intensified by his ominous, slithery slide guitar and harmonica, Langford appropriately growls, “In a crack hotel and it’s 20 below… Warm my hands over a 40 watt bulb… The heat don’t work and they don’t give a shit… The blues don’t get no bluer than this… Try to clear my head but my brain’s all numb, the jukebox in my plays I wanna go home” in a voice that would give Tom Waits the heebie jeebies.
The title track is a jaunty blues rocker with a dark undercurrent fleshed out by the addition of bass and drums. Langford supplies the harmony to his lead vocal about a man who loves a fallen woman that he justifies with, “She’s got a broken halo but she’s still just an angel to me” and “I think she’s crazy but I like her that way, she’s from the land of misfit toys”. As he does throughout, he proves his extraordinary touch on the strings by being just as dexterous and fluid on the acoustic guitar as the electric. The laconic and insouciant “North Dakota Girl” with the full “band” treatment acknowledges the arrangement of “Hoochie Coochie Man” with a wry tale regarding his choice of female companionship. After lamenting that, “I’ve been unlucky in love… picked all the wrong girls my mama didn’t like” he reveals her matriarchal wisdom with, “My mama said, ‘Son, let me give you some advice, listen what I say, and you will have a better life’.” He then continues relating her wise counsel in the uplifting chorus with, “Find yourself a North Dakota girl… she be so nice and sweet… and love you all night long”. However, he drops the hammer in the next verse with, “…I met a North Dakota girl… so I married that woman, but I have but one regret. I wished she’d been the first girl that I met” while tickling the frets suggestively. Warming to the enticing topic at hand, Langford bravely admits his weakness for a hoochie mama in “Dollar Girl”. Over sensuous, syncopated rhythm guitar, along with bass and drums and two slippery lead solos, he spins the fantasy promised by a “play-for-pay” lady even as the irony of his lyric, “I’ve got a wad of dollar bills, I think you really like me” seems to escape him in a story as old as dirt.
Langford “walks the blues” in “Long Tail Black Cat” with the kind of genuine, down home feel that cannot be bought or sold. Rising to his natural blues voice that is thick and smooth as warm molasses, he spectacularly accompanies a yarn about bad luck with slide on the solo dobro, sounding uncannily like two guitarists, while contributing a classic “black cat” song to the blues canon. Closing out his emotional tour de force set, “Gracie” is an elegiac tribute to his beloved grandmother. As heartbreaking as “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door,” with a similar harmonic flow and slide dobro melody, it sounds too believable to not be autobiographical. Langford begins with, “Gracie died in ’71, took 40 years to write this song” as he goes on to repeat the wistful vocal hook, “I wish I knew her better… but I was just a kid and I didn’t care much about what old people did”. In a moving commentary on mortality and loss, he delivers a lyrical knockout punch by describing his grandfather’s passing followed by, “Now they’re together for eternity and I guess someday they get to see me. And I’ll introduce them to the girl I love, after she comes lookin’ for me”.
It is the rare artist who can lay bare his soul without seeming self-indulgent or becoming maudlin. Tim Langford not only avoids both pitfalls, but has created a musical masterwork that reaches the listener on every level, including emotionally, physically and spiritually. In an era of rampant cynicism it offers the perfect antidote with hope, humor, moral clarity and plain great music to chase the blues away.
Tori Sparks
Tori Sparks is based in Barcelona, Spain, having recently relocated from Nashville, but she spends most of her time on the road all over the world. Tori at the age of 27, has already released four critically-acclaimed albums under the auspices of her own record label (Glass Mountain Records). She walks the line between soulful and hilarious in her electrifying live performances, singing in English, French and Spanish. Sparks is known as the hardest working woman in the music business, booking and playing well over 200 concerts each year.
Tori Sparks’ upcoming fourth release, 'Until Morning/Come Out Of The Dark', marks her third musical collaboration with producer David Henry (R.E.M., Josh Rouse, Cowboy Junkies, Widespread Panic), and her first with Roger Moutenot (Yo La Tengo, Elvis Costello, Velvet Underground, Gypsy Kings, Paula Cole, Rosanne Cash). The recordings feature a cast of world-class musicians, as well as special guest vocalists Shawn Mullins, Mike Farris, Paris DeLane and indie folk favorite David Mead.
'Until Morning/Come Out Of The Dark' is not a traditional album, but a study in dichotomy. Sparks chose to release the 13 new songs as two conjoined mini-albums, or a double EP. The first disc, 'Until Morning', reflects the dark, sensual, even diabolical side of Tori’s vocal and songwriting skill. The second disc, 'Come Out Of The Dark', is tumbleweed Americana meets fragile folk, or Tori’s ability to show us the dawn that follows the darkness – in a word, the hope that love can bring. This record also marks the first Spanish-language song that Tori has recorded, a classic Cuban tune from the 1940s called “Quizás, Quizás, Quizás”. The album art is a design by noted New York visual artist Joe Petruccio, best known for his work with the Elvis Presley Estate and Graceland in Memphis.
As always, Tori’s lyrics are the golden thread that runs through this artistically ambitious project. In the heart-stopping ballad “Until Morning”, her voice soars on the line, “I love you the way the tide loves the sand, just like the gun loves the trigger-happy hand”. Never one to shy away from heavy topics, Tori’s irreverent side is also present, in lines such as “I could have been your compass, if you’d learn to read a map”, and in referencing biological facts about sharks in the song “Judge a Book”. Sparks casually comments in “On My Mind” that she and a lover were made for each other in the same way that a pair of mafia-style “cement shoes” are custom-made for their victim. The tone of both halves of this project is distinctly personal in a way that surpasses even the intimacy of Tori’s previous three records. We as listeners get the sense that she is letting us in on a very private conversation, especially on the minor epic “Come Out Of The Dark”.
Sparks’ previous three albums climbed the Americana and College charts in the US and overseas, have been licensed by MTV, Lifetime, Oxygen, Life Beyond Breast Cancer, and featured on the compilation Country Vol. 2 released by Universal Music France (over 40,000 copies sold).
Tori will be touring non-stop throughout 2011 and 2012 in support of 'Until Morning/Come Out Of The Dark'.
www.torisparks.com
www.myspace.com/torisparks
Trailerpark Idlers
The story of Trailerpark Idlers began in September 2006 when Morgan Hellman and Magnus Larsson teamed up with Jerker Andersson and Gunnar Nilsson to start a country band that would go a little beyond the genre. With influences from traditional country such as; Hank Williams, Carter family and Johnny Cash, to rock and punk acts like Rolling Stones, Motörhead and Ramones, Trailerpark Idlers came up with a sound of their own. A year later Ben Dee Salmenranta replaced Nilsson and in February 2008 Miss LisaLee joined to make the band complete
.
The band is, with the exception of the bass, strictly acoustic. The two lead singers, Morgan and Miss LisaLee, brings a variation in to the music, from raw and mean to nice and sweet. The lead instrumentalist of the band, Jerker, alternate between mandolin and accordion while Magnus beat the drums and Ben Dee ad some bass to it.
Trailerpark Idlers are into a never-ending recording session. Though they has exist as a band less than three years they have released six CD’s so far. They have their own recording studio called “The Forge” and their own label called “Something Wicked”.
The new CD was released in April 2009 and are, at first sight, a collection of Christian hymns. However, as you listen to it you will find that there is a lot more to it than just another country band doing religious songs. You will find that there is hope, despair, doubt, anger and so on....
www.trailerparkidlers.se
www.myspace.com/trailerparkidlers
www.lastfm.se/music/Trailerpark+Idlers
Trevor Hall
Vanguard Records is excited to announce the release of Trevor Hall’s new album “Everything Everytime Everywhere” available August 23rd, 2011.
Produced by Jimmy Messer, the eleven tracks on “Everything Everytime Everywhere” showcase Hall’s rare ability to write universal songs infused with underlying themes of devotion and community in the vein of two of his heroes, Ben Harper and Bob Marley. From the upbeat, anthemic “Brand New Day”, straight through to the momentous closing track, “The Mountain,” Hall’s signature blend of catchy pop/rock songs with stylish shades of reggae has made this diverse 24-year-old one of the most lauded up-and-coming artists on the American music scene.
Created with a host of incredible musicians, including longtime guitarist for Matisyahu, Aaron Dugan, bass player Brian Lang and drummer Aaron Sterling, “Everything Everytime Everywhere” also features guest vocals from Jamaican songstress Cherine Anderson.
“Everything Everytime Everywhere” is the follow up to his 2009 label debut, “Trevor Hall”, which featured the single “Unity”, a song written and performed with long time friend, Matisyahu. The self-titled release debuted at #7 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart and Hall was cited by MTV’s ‘Subway Fresh Buzz’ Series as “one of the 20 emerging artists for 2010.”
His captivating live performances and growing popularity have led to sold out shows across the country. Hall has also toured with the legendary Jimmy Cliff, Michael Franti, Matisyahu and Colbie Caillat, to name a few.
http://publicity.vanguardrecords.com
Trey Johnson
One year after the release of his critically acclaimed debut solo recording, 'Mount Pelèe', Trey Johnson delivers an eclectic mix of music performed by a variety of musicians. Produced by Trey, his partner Don Cento, guitarist and producer/arranger on 'Mount Pelèe', and Paul Williams (Polyphonic Spree, Reverend Horton Heat).
'Where The East Ends' has a unique identity all its own. Where 'Mount Pelèe' searched for new sonic territory and subject matter, 'W.T.E.E.' explores different styles and energy.
Recorded in just 10 days in May at Tomcast studios in Dallas the core band remained the same, James Driscoll, Rich Martin and Don Cento. However this time around, new musicians are heard all over the record. Matt Kellum provides the bulk of the drumming. Joe Cripps, and studio owner Tom Bridwell also contribute. Bubba Hernandez contributes upright bass and tuba. Chad Stockslager and Becky Middleton contribute backing vocals. A horn section including Annie Benjamin on flute and Dave Monsch on saxaphone round out the cast.
The result is a recording with more personality and unexpected turns than its predecessor. At just under 35 minutes it'll fit in your pocket and leave you wishing there was more left.....
www.treyjohnsonmusic.com
www.myspace.com/sortatrey
Ted Russell Kamp
Terrible Lizard
Terry Emm
Terry & Ronnie
Tim Bragg
Tim Steward
Toby
Tokyo Rosenthal
Tom Corbett
Tom Dean
Tom Freund
Tom House
Tom Kell
Tom Kell & Emiko
Tom Rodwell
Tom T Hall
Tómas Alexander
Tomás Kocko
Tommy Rickard
Tone Bent
Tony Denikos
Too Slim
Tori Sparks
Trailerpark Idlers
Trevor Hall
Trey Johnson
