ALBUM REVIEW: Libby Dale Makes Her Solo Debut With 'Freehand'
Libby Dale can’t sleep.
“Like fireflies / blinking luminescence in my eyes,” she sings. “The visions come / of things I need and things I’ve done wrong.” “These Old Nights,” from her solo debut Freehand, swings gracefully like ‘60s slow-dance R&B. It’s sweetly sad like “Sleep
BEST OF BLUES: September 2026
September's releases are dominated by a group of powerful blueswomen. Danielle Nicole skipped by us last month, but her soul-blues August 28 release Fireflies is too good to pass by, as is Steve Cropper's second posthumous release, Watching The Tide, which also slipped through the
THROUGH THE LENS: Earl Scruggs and Bristol Rhythm & Roots 2026 Fests: “Eventually, It All Comes Back To The Roots”
This week the the column visits the heart of Appalachia with two roots music festivals: Earl Scruggs Music Festival (September 4-6, 2026, Mill Spring, North Carolina); and Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion (September 11-13, 2026, Bristol, Virginia/Tennessee).
The settings, only 90 miles apart as the crow flies,
Waylon Payne Mines Nashville’s Contradictions, Yet Honors Outlaw Roots on New Album ‘Wayward’
Waylon Payne who embodies both the “new” and “classic” versions of Music City, and of country music songwriting. He’s an openly gay man from Texas who’s never without his tiny chihuahua named Petey — the Demi Moore of Nashville.
FRESH TRACK: JP Harris - "Hang Me"
JP Harris shares his take on the upbeat old-time Appalachian tune, "Hang Me," a ubiquitous late-night classic at fiddler’s conventions and rowdy old-time jams. His version was produced by, and features, Chance McCoy (Old Crow Medicine Show) on fiddle and harmony.
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SPOTLIGHT: Reflections On The Inevitable Folly Of Naming Things, Or Whatever [ESSAY]
Editor's Note: Jude Brothers, whose new LP titled Dogwood Maiden Voyage released September 25 via Gar Hole Records, is No Depression's Spotlight Artist for September 2026. Read more about Brothers in this featured profile and listen to their song "Oak & Ache."
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