Review: Stephane Wrembel’s ‘The Django Experiment III’
It’s not that Gypsy jazz is amenable to experimentation, Stephane Wrembel seems to be saying. Gypsy jazz is experimentation.
Pat Moran
Country, Bluegrass, and Blues Pickin’ Through a European Lens
New albums from Thierry Massoubre, Jacques Stotzem, and Jean-Luc Thievent have a root language of Travis Picking
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Adam Palma’s ‘Palm-istry’ Is a Fingerstyle Gem
Imaginative fingerstylist crosses genres in diverse set
Indie Rocker John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats Embraces Acoustic Guitar
Ever since his earliest recordings, the Mountain Goats’ sound has been defined by Darnielle’s propulsive, furiously strummed acoustic guitar.
James Elkington’s ‘Wintres Woma’ is a Mystical Delight
This collection tethers Elkington’s mystic yet matter-of-fact worldview to labyrinthine guitar lines as strong and supple as a serpent’s spine
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Acoustic Guitar in Hand, Hurray for the Riff Raff’s Alynda Lee Segarra Is Taking On the World
As an artist, she says she feels compelled to “speak for equality, justice, and love. And I hope whatever I say encourages lots of little girls to play guitar.”
New Book ‘Johnny’s Cash & Charley’s Pride‘ Reveals Guitar Stories and More
Country Hall of Fame Museum director Peter Cooper's new book tells the six-string tales of Loretta Lynn, Taylor Swift, Johnny Cash, and more
Flatpicking Champion Scott Fore Offers 5 Tips on Acing a Bluegrass Competition (with Music to Play) [VIDEO]
“I love flatpicking, but I could never afford a decent guitar,” Scott Fore says. “The only way I was going to get one was to win it.” From humble beginnings—Fore taught himself to play with a library book and picks…
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FIRST LISTEN: New Music from Country Hitmakers Kelly & Ellis
Before recording The Long Road to You, Casey Kelly and Leslie Ellis’ debut as Kelly & Ellis, the husband-and-wife duo had each scored a stream of accomplishments, including country hits, a showstopper from the musical CATS, and a contribution to the Academy Award-winning film Titanic.
Album Review: Dave McGraw & Mandy Fer’s ‘Off-Grid Lo-Fi’ Is Chock Full of Roots-Rich Gems
Tracked at a secluded wind-and-solar powered cabin on an uninhabited Washington State island in the dead of winter...
John Gorka’s ‘Before Beginning’ Revisits His Earliest Studio Recordings
These early versions, appearing as kind-hearted sketches and confessionals filtered through a perpetual outsider’s spyglass, are no less solid than their better-known variants.
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New Book ’26 Songs in 30 Days’ Reveals the History of Woody Guthrie’s Columbia River Songs
Guthrie’s fertile 30-day sojourn in the Pacific Northwest, when he composed 26 songs celebrating the rugged landscape is the subject of the new book.
REVIEW Singer, Songwriter, Guitarist Andy Ferrell: At Home and in Nashville [VIDEO]
Midway through At Home and in Nashville, Andy Ferrell sashays out onto the dance floor with the jostling “Nobody to Answer To” and declares it’s time to move on.
Sarah Jarosz’s ‘Undercurrent’ Charts a New Course
Layered, textured tunes, some sparsely arranged with little more than solo acoustic guitar, retain the flavor of roots music
Acoustic Guitars Sessions Presents Kaki King
In this video interview, King discusses her work and performs three songs from her multi-media show ‘The Neck Is a Bridge to the Body”
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Album Review: Eric Bibb Demonstrates No-Frills Virtuosity on ‘The Happiest Man in the World’
With the inviting sentiment, “walking side by side, hand in hand,” Eric Bibb kicks off The Happiest Man in the World, and it’s the key to why his latest collection works so well.
All the Feels for the Avett Brothers’ New LP, ‘True Sadness’: Listen to Single ‘Divorce Separation Blues’
Though their roots lie in hoot-and-holler bluegrass and folk, the Avett Brothers also embraced big guitar rock early in their career. Both strains of raising Cain thread through their latest, True Sadness. With thundering drums, rubbery bass, and Seth Avett’s…
Review: ‘You and I,’ Recently Discovered Demos by Jeff Buckley
You and I, a cache of recently discovered demos by Jeff Buckley, offers a tantalizing glimpse into the artist’s subconscious.
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The Stray Birds: Taking Wing With Guitar Strings
The Stray Birds began in 2010 as a duo, after de Vitry returned from Spain to her hometown of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. There, she met Craven, and the two began writing and playing together at an open mic in nearby Marietta.
Review: Ryan Shupe, We Rode On
Briskly galloping out of the gate, the title track of Ryan Shupe’s self-released eighth album, We Rode On, announces the former country-chart-topper’s transition to alternative artist. This collection is bright clangoring pop-rock, focused on moving forward, but it’s grounded in…
Brooklyn Luthier Dan Krugman Specializes in Archtop Artistry [VIDEO]
“I’m drawn to archtops because each maker puts his fingerprint on each individual instrument,” Dan Krugman says. He’s speaking from the Brooklyn workshop of DDK Guitars, the company he launched in 2011. “Design elements seem less agreed upon. Everyone has…
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AG Sessions Presents Laurie Lewis
In this special edition of Acoustic Guitar Sessions, bluegrass guitarist Laurie Lewis and mandolinist Tom Rozum perform the Carter Family classic "Who's That Knocking ?" and "Won't You Come and Sing for Me?
Album Review: The Cactus Blossoms, ‘You’re Dreaming’
On "You’re Dreaming," the Cactus Blossoms revitalize music from the dawn of rock and country for a contemporary audience, and celebrate an era before genre boundaries calcified, and when possibilities seemed endless.