The first of this week’s stormers is Dreamstate, the fourth studio album from Kelly Lee Owens, which is born from the experience of inner evolution in the aftermath of a break-up and which has an incredible feeling of freedom and escapism throughout. It’s the sound of a person letting loose and letting go while encouraging…
On 20 August, the world lost an amazing light with the death of Justin Townes Earle. Justin was a vibrant songwriter who could play the blues, country, and rock ’n’ roll all in the same song. In his short career, Justin released eight albums and one EP that all manage to sound classic and yet…
Ghosts Of West Virginia centres on one of the worst mining disasters in American history: the Upper Big Branch coal-mine explosion that killed twenty-nine men in 2010. When asked about what drove him to craft his deeply evocative new album, Steve Earle says: “I thought that, given the way things are now, it was maybe…
This week’s smashers start off with Hundred Records favourites Son Volt, whose new album, Union, showcases more of the pain of division, while still taking time to spotlight music’s ability to heal and offer respite from troubling sociopolitical times. “There are so many forces driving our country apart,” says founding member Jay Farrar. “What can…
In 1974, the nineteen-year-old Steve Earle had just hitch-hiked from San Antonio to Nashville. Steve started playing bass guitar in Guy Clark’s band and was soon flying high on what would become an indelible friendship of like-minded musicians who bonded in a kinship of stories told through song. Flash forward more than forty years to…
We’ve got some more great new releases coming out on 10 June. First up, Steve Earle & Shawn Colvin release the imaginatively titled Colvin & Earle, which although not live has the spontaneity and freshness of a live performance. Clean Your Clock delivers, for the final time, that full-on live Motörhead punch. We don’t normally…
This week sees a wonderful 25th anniversary album from Texas, plus new albums from Phosphorescent, Idlewild, Carl Barât And The Jackals, Steve Earle & The Dukes and Carter Tutti, along with vinyl reissues of classics from Sigur Rós and Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds. Click here for more details and to order your…