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Peter Blackstock

West Texas rivers and wind-blown campfire tunes

Driving west on I-10 from Austin, the desert creeps up on you, gradually revealing itself mile after mile after mile until the entire landscape has changed. The winding rivers, lazy lakes, scrubby trees and colorful flowers of the Texas Hill Country finally give way to barren creekbeds, rocky outcroppings, desolate

Neko Case - Destiny rides again

It's a recurring theme in our conversation, though not by design -- which is perfect, because that pretty much is the theme. Grand plans just seem to fall into Neko Case's hands, like a destiny she had nothing to do with, but she seized the opportunity

Townes Van Zandt - In Pain

As with many of the latter-day Townes Van Zandt releases, In Pain primarily gathers live solo versions of some of his better-known songs recorded during the final years of his life. Most of the 16 tracks here were recorded in November '94 (a little more than two years before

Richmond Fontaine - Lost Son

Over the course of a half-decade and three albums, Richmond Fontaine has established itself as one of the better bands in the Northwest. When they expanded from a Buffalo Tom-esque trio by incorporating the considerable pedal steel and mandolin talents of Paul Brainard, the group broadened the countrified range of

Various Artists - Return Of The Grievous Angel: A Tribute To Gram Parsons

If you were trying to explain to someone the difference between mainstream country and alternative country, one way to start might be to posit that alternative country artists are much more likely to be influenced by Gram Parsons. It's no mere coincidence that more than half the artists

The Old 97's - You can't please everyone, so you've got to please yourself

The Old 97's - You can't please everyone, so you've got to please yourself

Almost all of them arise out of nothing, these unlikely collectives we call rock 'n' roll bands. Rarely are they set in motion with some grand master scheme finessed over weeks of research and planning; rather, it starts with two or three folks sitting around an apartment one

Mickey Newbury - The Mickey Newbury Collection

Songwriters held in high esteem by fellow artists while remaining largely unknown to the masses are common in Texas music. From the late, legendary troubadour Townes Van Zandt to wordsmith extraordinaire Butch Hancock to psychedelic prophet Roky Erickson to simpleton-savant Daniel Johnston, the state's songbooks are strewn with