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Henry Carrigan

ALBUM REVIEW: Trey Hensley Lays Down a Guitar Masterpiece on ‘Can’t Outrun the Blues’

ALBUM REVIEW: Trey Hensley Lays Down a Guitar Masterpiece on ‘Can’t Outrun the Blues’

Several years in the making, Trey Hensley’s new album Can’t Outrun the Blues showcases his triple threat as a singer, songwriter, and guitar player. His intricate rhythms and lead runs provide the foundations for his expressive vocals, and he is as comfortable delivering a fast-paced bluegrass scamper as

THE READING ROOM: Ani DiFranco and Lauren Coyle Rosen’s ‘The Spirit of Ani: Reflections on Spirituality, Feminism, Music, and Freedom’

THE READING ROOM: Ani DiFranco and Lauren Coyle Rosen’s ‘The Spirit of Ani: Reflections on Spirituality, Feminism, Music, and Freedom’

In her riveting memoir No Walls and the Recurring Dream, Ani DiFranco shared the ways that music brought her “deeper and deeper into the world.” For the singer and songwriter, music and poetry created a space that received her and sheltered her from the brokenness of the world around her.

ALBUM REVIEW: Celebrating Life with The Lone Bellow on ‘What a Time to be Alive’

ALBUM REVIEW: Celebrating Life with The Lone Bellow on ‘What a Time to be Alive’

On their sixth album, What a Time to Be Alive, The Lone Bellow captures the joyful vitality of their live shows, as well as the band’s deeply intimate friendship that they share in their camaraderie with their audience. The songs on this album, which were written collaboratively for the

THE READING ROOM: Jonathan Bernstein’s ‘What You Do When You’re Lonesome: The Authorized Biography of Justin Townes Earle’

THE READING ROOM: Jonathan Bernstein’s ‘What You Do When You’re Lonesome: The Authorized Biography of Justin Townes Earle’

The road to literary and musical fame lies littered with the bodies of authors and artists who succumbed to the notion that the path to making great art or music runs through the valleys of suffering, the more torturous the better. On the one hand, the exquisite pain that torments

THE READING ROOM: Alice Gerrard's 'Custom Made Woman'

THE READING ROOM: Alice Gerrard's 'Custom Made Woman'

Reading Alice Gerrard’s inviting and candid Custom Made Woman: A Life in Traditional Music (North Carolina, December 2, 2025) is much like sitting down with her in her front room or on her porch and listening to her regale us with tales of her relationships ( the musicians she’s

ALBUM REVIEW: Della Mae Returns with Joyous, Soul-Affirming ‘Magic Accident’

ALBUM REVIEW: Della Mae Returns with Joyous, Soul-Affirming ‘Magic Accident’

Della Mae is back with joyous, soul-affirming music. Grammy award-winning banjoist Alison Brown produces and plays on Magic Accident, the band’s first album for Compass Records and their first since 2021’s Family Reunion. The songs on Magic Accident embraces the complexity of life while celebrating the glimmers of

ALBUM REVIEW: On ‘Scenes from Above’ Julian Lage’s New Quartet Delivers New Stunning Blues, Jazz, and Soul Quartet

ALBUM REVIEW: On ‘Scenes from Above’ Julian Lage’s New Quartet Delivers New Stunning Blues, Jazz, and Soul Quartet

Julian Lage is a ceaselessly inventive composer and one of the best guitarists playing today. On Scenes from Above, produced by Joe Henry, he joins forces with keyboardist John Medeski, bassist Jorge Roeder, and drummer Kenny Wollesen in a new quartet to deliver stunning new tunes that move among blues,