On December 7, 2016, a Wednesday evening, A Tribe Called Red sold out Chicago’s Lincoln Hall.  Hailing from Ottawa, Canada, ATCR is turning up the beat on the human tribe’s dance party.  With globalized attention on the water protectors at Standing Rock ND, the time is ripe for ATCR to bring their indigenous music to the masses.

With my belly full of turkey from the day before, I waddled my way out to the wintery streets of Indianapolis to The Vogue Theatre to catch my very first Turkuaz show. And, oh what a show it was! On November 26th, Turkuaz and The New Mastersounds, came to shake the dance floors of Indianapolis. It was a night of firsts for me.

The Travelin’ McCourys’ show in Nederland on Friday wasn’t a voracious late night affair fueled with moonshine fumes and guest sit-ins. It wasn’t an improvised, slam-grass stomper. It was five musicians atop their craft advancing in banter and harmonious bluegrass memories while chiding one another between songs like a vaudeville act.

November is a month that symbolizes gratitude and change. These qualities capture the essence of the music that Natalie Cressman is always making. Her “genre” is constantly changing and evolving with whatever sounds that she is currently feeling and exploring. She fluxes from being in the hard improvisational Trey Anastasio Band, to covering the Weeknd and Drake, and even rapping in Spanish.

The storied, original Fillmore in San Francisco played host to “Ramble on Rose,” an elegant Rex Foundation benefit on December 3 that featured the Midnight Ramble Band along with a bunch of renowned local guest players.

Fayetteville, AR’s first weekend in December brought cold weather – but that didn’t seem to stop anybody from heading to George’s Majestic Lounge for a two-night set of Steve Kimock and Friends. I didn’t catch the first night’s set.

Anderson, Rabin, and Wakeman (ARW) took the stage Sunday night at San Francisco’s Masonic Auditorium to an enraptured crowd. There have been numerous configurations of the Yes lineup, yet perhaps none that so perfectly encapsulates the band’s journey through various eras.

One word: GOOSEBUMPS. Porter Robinson and Madeon, world famous djs and longtime friends, have joined creative forces to breathe life into a musical masterpiece: the Shelter Live Tour.

The night before Thanksgiving is always a joyous celebration. Families getting together, old friends reuniting, and this past Wednesday at the Cabooze on the West Bank of Minneapolis, MN, two incredibly gifted funk bands from two very different places brought the Twin Cities together for an electric four-hour performance for the ages.

Monday, December 5th, The GRAMMY Museum presented Andrew Bird to the Clive Davis Theater for a conversation about his career and latest album "Are You Serious." A release he considered a rigorous recording giving the dying format of CDs 'one last shot'. 

The intimate 226 seat theater was sold out for this hour and 40 minute presentation. Devout fans were treated to an upfront and personal peak into Bird, his work, musical approach and unknowns bits to his career back story.