By Ken Paulson –Bill Lloyd’s new album Boy King of Tokyo is a vibrant and hook-laden collection, rivaling the earlier and excellent Set to Pop and Standing on the Shoulders of Giants. Lloyd took a cue from musical heroes Todd Rundgren and Paul McCartney by playing every instrument on the album. The high-octane title track was inspired by Lloyd’s early…
Review: Ray Wylie Hubbard’s “Grifter’s Hymnal”
By Paul T. Mueller –If music reviews included credit for style points, Ray Wylie Hubbard’s latest effort would earn plenty of them for its title alone. The Grifter’s Hymnal? Who but “the Wylie Lama” could have even imagined such a thing, much less fill it up with a batch of cool songs? Great title aside, this Hymnal has a lot…
Charting: Alabama Shakes, Nanci Griffith, Jason Eady
The Alabama Shakes jump into the Americana Music Association airplay chart at #14 this week with Boys and Girls. Other chart debuts: Nanci Griffith’s Intersection at #34, Jason Eady’s AM Country Heaven at #36, Hank Williams III’s Long Gone Daddy at #37 and Madison Violet’s The Good in Goodbye at #39. Most added this week: Paul Thorn’s What The Hell Is…
Review: Dar Williams’ “In the Time of Gods”
By Ken Paulson — Dar Williams on her new album In the Time of Gods: “I thought why don’t I really freak out my record company and make a whole album about Greek mythology?” Note to Dar: This has a similar effect on music writers. In the Time of Gods works on a couple of levels, the first being the…