Instrumental music is truly among the most ethereal and inspiring artistic forms of creativity. FreshGrass will explore a reinterpretation of the classical music form, the concerto, into the modern world of roots music. The concerto is the ideal platform for a virtuoso player (or players) to celebrate their skills in a way that is already … Continued
Melissa Carper’s lifelong, steadfast listening has come to fruition in the songs on Ramblin‘ Soul. Her childhood love of the family record collection planted the seeds of what is her own bountiful orchard today. It’s a tricky thing that Carper has done. She clearly revels in recreating the music of her heroes, carefully preserving the … Continued
The Jacob Jolliff Band is a group of virtuosic pickers that play Jacob’s original instrumentals, as well as showcase his singing. They tour nationally in the US and have also travelled to Scotland and Australia to perform. Jacob’s all-original first album, entitled, “Instrumentals, Vol. 1” was released in 2018. Over the years, Jacob has had … Continued
Described by NPR’s Alt.Latino as an “otherworldly presence,” Combo Chimbita is the creative unity of Carolina Oliveros (vocals, guacharaca), Niño Lento es Fuego (guitar), Prince of Queens (bass, synthesizers) and Dilemastronauta (drums), who together transcend common concepts of time and nationality. Afro-Caribbean transcendance, bewildering chants, booming drums and psychedelic distortion lay the rhythmic foundation for … Continued
Cimafunk is an Afro-Cuban Rockstar. His name refers to his heritage as a ‘cimarrón,’ Cubans of African descent who resisted and escaped slavery, as well as to the essence of his music that aims to subvert conventional sounds with rhythmic innovation. By bringing out the best in Cuban rhythms and traditions and infusing sounds and styles … Continued
Tank and The Bangas don’t go anywhere quietly. Sitting around a dimly lit room in London’s neighborhood of Camden Town, vocalist Tank Ball, bassist Norman Spence, drummer Joshua Johnson and saxophonist Albert Allenback can’t go mere minutes without bursting into play fights, or talking over one another, or laughing from their deepest guts. They are … Continued
Hailed by NPR as “one of America’s defining voices of freedom and peace,” Mavis Staples is the kind of once-in-a-generation artist whose impact on music and culture would be difficult to overstate. She’s both a Blues and a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer; a civil rights icon; a six-time GRAMMY Award winner; a chart-topping … Continued
On their earthy, jubilant new album, the Columbus, Ohio, band Caamp examine those in-between days that make up a life — not the best or most eventful days, certainly not the worst or most tragic, but those full of small pleasures and forgotten disappointments. Taylor Meier, the group’s singer and primary songwriter, came up with … Continued
Mesafa (Comprised of members from Alsarah & the Nubatones) enchants audiences with their pulsating rhythms and hypnotic, East African retro-pop, proving that soul transcends cultural and linguistic barriers. Inspired by Nubian music’s pentatonic scales, the Brooklyn-based combo blends original material and traditional music of central Sudan with Nubian songs of return, a diasporic form created … Continued
More a performance trio than a band, the HawtPlates make conceptual live vocal works through breaking down and abstracting musical forms that include blues, rock, hip hop, r&b, folk, mantra, gospel, and various vocal traditions from around the world. In hearing their work, there is a sense that the music is specific to them as … Continued
