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Raphi Gottesman – Unwrapped Gifts : A Guest Mix
In early 2021, Oakland musician Raphi Gottesman released an album on German label AOsmosis. The instrumental The Clarity of Dawn features many guest instrumentalists around the world but the majority of the work is done by Raphi himself, broaching themes of finding hope in the face of his young son undergoing treatment for leukemia. The record is jazzy at times, atmospheric at others, but heartfelt and emotionally resonant through and through.…
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Corntuth – The Desert Is Paper Thin
Last week, ambient musician Corntuth released their record The Desert Is Paper Thin, a concept record soundtracking a long desert drive throughout the course of an entire day, from sunrise to late evening. Corntuth recorded it during the pandemic as a means of escapism, and summoned industry veteran Pete Finney to add lush pedal steel to the emotive and organic-sounding record. The video was filmed in Landers, Calif. The idea…
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Beachwood Sparks & Gospelbeach cover “You Don’t See Me Crying” from Highway Butterfly: The Songs of Neal Casal
Today the Neal Casal Music Foundation has announced the full track list for the upcoming tribute Highway Butterfly: The Songs of Neal Casal, a 5-LP box set featuring Neal’s friends, colleagues, and admirers paying tribute to the prolific musician’s immense body of work. Today the “second” single is out – Neal’s dear friends Beachwood Sparks (whom Neal played, toured, and recorded with) and GospelbeacH (of which Neal was a founding…
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Mouth Painter announces new album Tropicale Moon, shares first single
Mouth Painter is Barry Walker, Jr. (guitar, pedal steel, vocals), Valerie Osterberg (flute, saw, percussion, effects, vocals), and Jason Willmon (bass). Today they announce their third album, Tropicale Moon, and share the first single, “A Yardin’ I Once Went.” Tropicale Moon is out September 3 on Arrowhawk Records (digital/cassette) and Feeding Tube / Cardinal Fuzz Records (LP). Pre-order here. Of the song, Barry Walker, Jr. says: One of our close…
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Desert Sandscapes : A Playlist
Those who dwell in the desert tend to strongly identify with their terrain and integrate the landscape into their identity. We are the desert people. There’s a phenomenon I’m noticing in which people who call the desert home leave only to explore other arid zones. I meet people from Tucson who come to Joshua Tree for the month of August, or those who “escape” to Needles for inspiration and rejuvenation,…
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Cameron Knowler – Places of Consequence
In Cameron I recognize what many other desert dwellers, or those born within it seem to intrinsically understand – how sound is inextricably bound to place, how landscapes influence song, and how aesthetics are the other side of the coin of music, somehow. After this year’s earlier release with fellow guitarist and best mate Eli Winter and our conversation about Cameron’s musical roots and interests (and how they diverge from…
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Above and Beyond with Johanna Samuels
Johanna Samuels isn’t a person who loafs around when touring slows down. She had a busy ass year while staying at home, organizing, community building, and writing copious amounts of songs. As we began to see the light, she released her gorgeous album Excelsior!, a deeply personal album dealing with topics ranging from love, sexual assault, the state of the world, death and loss. The album was named for how…
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Xisco Rojo – Transfigurations : A Guest Mix
Madrid-based guitarist Xisco Rojo recently released a shockingly gorgeous album of drone-meets-Spanish-guitar, an enigmatic, darkly psychedelic record called Transfigurations about the power and magic of love. Intricate guitar compositions are accompanied by twinkling chimes upon the album’s opening, and Xisco adeptly uses the space between notes to add an aura of intrigue and sorcery. This record comes six years after Xisco’s last full-length studio release, entitled You Got to Walk…
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Ben Reddell Band – ¡LA Baby!
Texas native-turned-Angeleno Ben Reddell honors both his adopted city and his homeland of Texas on his EP, LA Baby, out today. LA has a storied history of honky tonks, but unfortunately, few of the historic ones are still operating. However, one person is responsible for keeping that outlaw spirit alive and well in California and that’s Ben who hosts and organizes the Grand Ole Echo, originally founded by Kim Grant.…
