‘We All Have the Same Questions’: Josh Ritter Takes a New Route to Answers
Over the past 20 years, Josh Ritter’s vivid imagery and expansive song topics have established him as a singular voice in songwriting — a reputation cemented by substantial experimentation and collaboration. His 2011 novel, Bright’s Passage, and visual art (including the cover art for 2017’s Gathering) attest to
Anders Osborne’s ‘Buddha and the Blues’ Contains Many Flavors
Musicians must hate it when a reviewer likens their hard work to that of a more famous performer — particularly if, like New Orleans-based singer-songwriter Anders Osborne, you have been around a while yourself.
But Osborne’s lovely new album Buddha and the Blues has moments throughout when others come to
SPOTLIGHT: Molly Tuttle on ‘The Best Gig I’ve Ever Played’
The best gig I ever played was in the summer of 2017 at the National Alopecia Areata Foundation. For those of you who don’t know, alopecia areata is a specific kind of hair loss that is caused by the immune system attacking hair follicles. I was diagnosed with alopecia
Anna Tivel’s ‘The Question’ Pours Life’s Mysteries Into Lyrics
Anna Tivel’s voice is like the cutting wind of the Pacific Northwest, her homeland — or at least how I imagine it to be. Tivel’s singing has an unflinching clarity matched only by her literary lyrics. Each song on Tivel’s fourth album, The Question, is a prayer raised
Where ‘Old Town Road’ Is Leading Country Music
Last weekend at the Pop Music Conference in Seattle, music journalists, writers, and academics gathered to share papers and trade conversation about the frontlines of music today. Perhaps not surprisingly, Lil Nas X and the recent controversy over his meme-ified country trap song “Old Town Road” kept popping up in
Ruthie Foster, the Blues, and a Town That Needs Lifting
“Blues is like a witness,” Ruthie Foster said with a delicate voice while warming her throat with a cup of tea in a conference room of the Freedom Hall in Park Forest, Illinois. Beyond the way that a masterful blues guitarist bends a lick, or a great singer lets out