Sonya Kitchell: Words Came Back To Me
By Jason Sklar
Words Came Back To Me

Next time you stop by a Starbucks to get your java fix, you might want to pick up the tonal tenderness offered by Sonya Kitchell’s Words Came Back To Me.

Story appears in issue # 20   Buy Issue

Jolie Holland: Jolie Holland Will Thrill You
By Dave Lewis
Springtime Will Kill You

With her third album, Springtime Can Kill You (Anti- Records), quirky singer-songwriter Jolie Holland skillfully mixes vintage styles with the post-modern and comes out with an original sound that is sure to attract adventurous listeners.

Story appears in issue # 20   Buy Issue

Eels: The Unpretentious Celebrit-E
By Peter Vouras
With Strings: Live at Town Hall

With success comes celebrity, whether it be in sport, acting, or music. Choosing how to deal with that celebrity can result in excess, superstardom, or even death.

Story appears in issue # 19   Buy Issue

Laura Veirs: Sea, Sky, and Songs
By Lynne Bronstein
Year Of Meteors

Listening to Laura Veirs’ album, Year of Meteors, one notices an abundance of nature imagery.

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Shawn Mullins: Pickin' In The Parlor
By Dave Lewis
9th Ward Pickin' Parlor

Best known for his 1998 hit single “Lullaby” and his work with singer-songwriter supergroup The Thorns, Atlanta-based Shawn Mullins has returned to his indie roots.

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Richard Julian: New York Seen Slowly
By Lynne Bronstein
Slow New York

Richard Julian says his new album, Slow New York, isn’t so much about New York, but a state of mind.” However, his songs contain imagery drawn from the Manhattan landscape. A New Yorker might recognize the reference to the yellow boundary lines on subway platforms that symbolize risk in the song, “Don’t Wait Up.”

Story appears in issue # 18   Buy Issue

O.A.R.: O.A.R. On Top
By Dave Lewis
Stories Of A Stranger

“Feel good music” is probably as good a term as any to describe the free-flowing jam-band sound of O.A.R. The five-piece has quickly built an ever-increasing fan base of college kids and urban bohemians through their marathon live sets, their Dave Matthews-meets-reggae sound, and their friendly, uplifting lyrics. O.A.R. (“Of A Revolution") is set to release their fourth studio album, Stories of a Stranger (Everfine/Lava Records), on October 4.

Story appears in issue # 17   Buy Issue

Brandi Carlile: Beyond Compare
By Lynne Bronstein
Brandi Carlile

Critics around Seattle have compared Brandi Carlile  to Bob Dylan, Jeff Buckley, and Bruce Springsteen. Like them, Brandi records for Columbia Records, but she doesn’t see herself as a “female version” of any of them.

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Antigone Rising: From the Ground Up
By Lynne Bronstein
From the Ground Up

If you’ve been to a Starbucks lately, you may have heard Antigone Rising’s From The Ground Up playing in the background. The Lava/Atlantic album, scheduled for release in record stores later this summer, has until now been available only at Starbucks outlets as a unique marketing strategy to introduce the public to new talent.

Story appears in issue # 16   Buy Issue