Groove-heavy American rock and mature, up-front sexuality are two things that have practically disappeared from the pop-culture landscape in recent years. But it’s making a comeback thanks to Vermont native Grace Potter and her band, The Nocturnals, who have clearly decided that it’s high time to dust off some lusty…

Generally speaking, whiskey-swilling, dark-alley-dealing Southern rock doesn’t fit the typical musical storyteller definition. Unless one is discussing the Drive-By Truckers, that is. Sprouting from the scorched, sweat-soaked soil that spawned their long-departed heroes, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Truckers’ Patterson Hood, Mike Cooley and the rest of the crew have never fallen…

We’ve got quite a backlog of CDs we’ve never gotten around to, so we’re going to try to chip away at the pile with this regular feature. The plan: to take a few at a time and play each CD for as long as I can stand it.Amy Cook (Austin,…

Many have discussed the so-called demise of alt-country, and, sure, as a general entity, it isn’t exactly cutting-edge fresh. Fact is, though, alt-country—hard to define as it is—is still being offered in exemplary ways by a growing number of artists. It’s far from deceased. Ronnie Fauss’ latest work serves as…

We’ve got quite a backlog of CDs we’ve never gotten around to, so we’re going to try to chip away at the pile with this regular feature. The plan: to take a few at a time and play each CD for as long as I can stand it.Sheryl Crow (Kennett,…

In a region filled to the PBR-soaked brim with alt-country talent, there’s much to be said for an artist that manages to stand out above the crowd. Take, for a killer example, East Dallas’ Ronnie Fauss. He’s been on a serious roll lately, and has displayed a deft and delicate…

Once upon a recent time, musicians weren’t able to offer up their art for the sake of commercialization—not, at least, without suffering the burn of the scarlet “sell-out” label. Now, though, with bands seeking new avenues in which to keep their artful hopes alive, the practical decision to craft a…

Artists—or musicians, to be more specific—have never been ones to worry themselves too much over the rules and preferred guidelines of corporate America. Sure, the thought of being able to pay one’s bills by practicing the craft that brings the artist joy is a reasonable and enviable goal. But in…

Ask any of the truckers who have run into him along the highways, or any of the musicians who join him in the honky-tonks of Austin and you’ll likely receive confirmation of why Dale Watson has been granted the nickname of “The Real Deal.” Whereas many neo-traditional country acts in…

Tonight, City Tavern hosts yet another night of music that reminds anyone who may need a refresher that, yes, good live music can be found in Downtown–even if none of the acts on the bill are from the eastern side of the Metroplex.While Telegraph Canyon’s Chris Johnson has rightfully vaulted…

These are the questions of our time: Should Pete Rose be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame? Who, in fact, did let the dogs out? Was the Gilded Age really gilded—or even a real age, for that matter? What’s the true definition of folk music? A.A. Bondy might not…

Shiner Bock beer has become a bit of a cliché in the realm of Texas country. For a while, it seemed as though all Pat Green had to do was to simply throw the name of the Lone Star legend into a verse and the song would rocket to regional…

Reality television has been the catalyst for the so-called resurgence of many over-the-hill, past-their-prime acts in recent years. Over the last year or so, legendary Massachusetts band Aerosmith decided to channel the spirit of the Sunday night VH1 lineup and make a little noise for themselves—Vanilla Ice and Flava Flav…

Perhaps you read Darryl Smyers’ Q&A with Peter Case and are still wondering just what about the songwriter that could inspire so many other notables, including Hayes Carll, Victoria Williams and Chuck Prophet, to put together a tribute album, A Case for Case, just a few years ago. Well, you…