Albums

When the new disc by KJ Denert landed in my snail mail box, I didn't think much about it, considering I get a lot of unsolicited CDs for review. But when I put this one into my player, I was thrilled to discover a new artist to add to my faves pile. Lucky 7 is Denhert's seventh album on her Mother Cyclone Records label. She is a remarkable talent.

Eliza Gilkyson will be bringing her rootsy Americana sound to the Winnipeg Folk Festival this month. She will be appearing with fellow Texan Nina Gerber. Gilkyson is currently touring in support of her new album, Beautiful World, just released at the end of May on the Minneapolis roots label, Red House Records. This is seventh album from the Grammy-nominated songwriter.

On June 10, a new pop album dropped on the US music scene. It is the culmination of four years of writing, travel, and soul searching by 24-year-old Alex Deep. It's a sophisticated offering for a young musician born into an Italian family in Venezuela.

Every town has its bar band that packs in the crowds on Saturday nights, but few towns have a draw like Minneapolis' group, The Feelin Band, and what they can produce, wrapped up in a good time.

This spring, Collin Herring's third album dropped. Its curious title, Past Life Crashing, is probably more indicative of what this talented young singer/songwriter has been about since his last release.

There is one thing you cannot say about Phish and that would be they never evolved.  From their quirky and overly energetic days in the early 90s to the deep-rhythm grooves and improvisational mastery of the late 90s, the band was always exploring new avenues to show off their craft.  Those differences are apparent in the two new releases from the Live Phish series, which showcase two amazing concerts in their entirety and reflect two important time capsules from their history.

Short.  Sweet.  Simple.  That is the best way to describe the newest release from New York's favorite jam kings, moe.  Coming in a just over forty minutes, Sticks and Stones is a clean and concise recording of songs that were all written in the studio, versus the band's usual method of writing material on tour and road-testing them prior to tracking.

Years ago when trading cassette tapes of live Phish shows was all the rage, I remember coming across this historic performance and just being in awe of the amazing energy and enigmatic jams heard throughout this show.

Like many music journalists, I've reviewed a wide range of genres, including Christian artists. I reviewed hot gospel groups that got me up moving to their beat, soul singers who thrilled me with their vocal talents, and grungy screamer bands that I had to admire for playing rough metal venues. Some of the messages were in-your-face and radical. Others were just new takes on traditional themes and didn't do much musically or spiritually.