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Fretwork and Filigree : Playlist
I love guitar music more than almost anything and it seems that we’re in something of a heyday for it. Here are a handful of my favorites, some new, some from a few years ago now, all thoughtfully sequenced. Whether it’s the rich, full warmth of solo guitar songs, or electrified, cranial improvisational jams; cinematic and sweeping or simple and sweet, it never gets old for me. Things start out a bit bluegrassish, get spacey and fuzzed out real quick, and then culminate in an acoustic-based, lush finale. All inventive, masterful players and writers throughout. Fretwork is a decorative art,…
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Sunstack Jones – Last Room at the Petal Motel : Playlist
Golden Repair by Sunstack Jones Liverpool’s Sunstack Jones released an amazing record on Mai 68 Records in 2020 called Golden Repair that I missed when I compiled my Albums of the Year. Had I listened to it in time, it would have surely topped the list. Upon hearing the opening notes of “Where You Gonna Go,” I was already floored. By the end of “Nowhere Near an Ocean”, I was exclaiming out loud to myself. “Distill” is a dreamy tune, lighter fare as a reprieve between the heavier, intense jams of the title track and “Seams.” Graceful riffs, torrid solos…
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A La Sombra De Un Árbol : A Mix Curated by Buck Curran
I love acoustic guitar more than almost anything, especially gorgeous, intricate, finger-style work. So when Buck Curran introduced himself, I was immediately enamored with his playing – thoughtful and deliberate, intensely intimate, moody and sensual. In 2020 he put out No Love is Sorrow, his third solo release after many years as half of psych-folk duo Arborea. It’s a lovely, meditative album with an organic feel, with instrumentals interwoven with deeply personal songs about his loved ones and past lives. Morning Haikus, Afternoon Ragas, the preceding album, has become something of a go-to for me in recent months, Buck’s complex…
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Best of Stills : Playlist
I grew up on CSNY but until recently, had never dug deeply into Stephen Stills’ solo albums or any of his work outside CSNY. The more I learn about his career, the more blown away I am. From his nearly complete mastery in recording CSN’s self-titled debut, Supersession with Al Kooper and Mike Bloomfield, the Manassas years, collaborating with Jimi Hendrix, playing guitar on Blue, writing some of the best songs for Buffalo Springfield… listing all of his accomplishments is really impossible. Despite his huge success, I still think Stephen is one of the most underrated guitarists and song-writers today.…
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Medicine Hat – Take Your Medicine : Playlist
Something about Medicine hat, the Americana duo from Ventura, California, instantly feels like home. The band, comprising of Michelle Votrian and Robert Ramirez, play music that’s both familiar and filtered through a unique, softly psychedelic lens. The single “Rear View Mirror” off their latest album, Fences, exemplifies this sort of obscured nostalgia – capturing the essence of looking back, though hazy memories may be rosier than they appear. They got their name from a Son Volt song, and have embodied the longing, wistful nature of their influences with their “lonesome desert rock” sound. Polly Parsons herself compared the gorgeous steel…
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Adeline Hotel – Ordinary Things : Playlist
Earlier this year, Adeline Hotel released an album called Solid Love, a really tender, sophisticated piece of art with Brigid Mae Powers adding her heavenly harmonies. The instrumentalism is intricate but understated, resulting in a record of subdued, elegant beauty. As the air becomes crisper, it’s become a go-to. Dan Knishkowy, singer and song-writer for the band made us this lovely mix. Please dig in, and be sure to check out Solid Love.
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Now They’re Ghosts (Autumn Mix) : Playlist
Named after a line from “In The Garden,” the haunting Elvis Perkins song written for his brother’s incredibly beautiful and terrifying film The Blackcoat’s Daughter, this mix has a lot of timely new releases, vicissitudes hopefully interwoven with more uplifting, reassuring familiar favorites. Many of these new releases are staggeringly gorgeous and thoroughly autumnal, to me- quiet, spacious, pensive. Spotify sucks but I don’t know how to make a Mixcloud. Send me an email if you want to teach me, I’ll pay!
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Steven King – Drenched on a Bench : Playlist
Steven King just released a B-side from his 2019 album, Steven King on Ice on Broom Closet Records. “Satellite” is a compliment to the folky middle American lyric-driven garage-y album, evoking nostalgia and a youthful sense of wonder. Steven made this playlist for Petal Motel and said this: I haven’t been able to have much company over lately, so this playlist is the closest we can get to sharing a couple of drinks around a fire in my back yard. I hope everyone is staying safe out there. Check out Steven’s latest album and “Satellite” on Bandcamp.
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A Dose of the Desert : Playlist
Some songs just sound so much better in certain backdrops. That’s largely what this website is about. Some albums, especially a few in particular that came out this year like NOCONA’s Los Dos, Trummors’ Dropout City, and Lee Gallagher and the Hallelujah’s L.A. Yesterday are enough to make you take a very long drive, just to experience them in the habitat that they seem made for. Then we peppered in some other classic high desert songs, kicked off by a disclaimer from Marty Stuart. Since several factors prevent high desert getaways to isolate right at the moment, these songs will…
