Sound Obsession

Another year done and gone, and what a great year for music.  These are my top ten favorite albums of 2024, in alphabetical order by artist name . . . . 49 Winchester:   Leavin' This Holler     (New West - 8/2/24) This six-piece country rock outfit out of southwest Virginia is one of independent roots music's greatest success stories in recent years, and one of my favorites - soundtracking many a road trip and impromptu singalong.  Comfort food embodied in music.  The title of their fifth album, Leavin’ This Holler , may as well be metaphorical as it finds the band spreading their wings and reaching for wider horizons.  Following their breakout album from 2022, Fortune Favors The Bold , here we get even more expansive compositions featuring sweeping strings and thundering choirs, finding the band in more sophisticated spaces without compromising their down home Appalachian sensibility. ...

Another tough year year done and gone.  At least we had some good albums to get us through.  These are my top ten favorite albums of 2021, in alphabetical order by artist name . . . . Blackberry Smoke:   You Hear Georgia     (3 Legged - 5/28/21) Atlanta country-rockers Blackberry Smoke returned in 2021 with their seventh studio album and a few guests in tow - underground country legend Jamey Johnson and Allman Brothers Band guitarist/vocalist Warren Haynes.  A backyard barbecue and roadtrip classic in the making, You Hear Georgia was a constant for me this summer.   Vincent Neil Emerson:   Vincent Neil Emerson     (La Honda - 6/25/21) Following an excellent debut in 2019, East Texas native Vincent Neil Emerson leveled up this year.  Produced by Rodney Crowell, Emerson’s eponymously titled sophomore outing headed in a more introspective direction, covering the artist’s personal struggle with depression, hi...

Usually this time of year I've got a couple dozen albums on heavy rotation.  So far in 2021, barely half that.  Despite a relatively slow first half of the year, with release dates and tour schedules only just now ramping back up after fifteen months of virtual lockdown, there are certainly a handful of bright spots on the album front. These are my favorites so far, with a few sure to make my end-of-year favorites list.   Enjoy. . . . - Will G  Bicep:   Isles   (Ninja Tune - 1/22/21) Blackberry Smoke:   You Hear Georgia   (3 Legged - 5/2/21) The Black Keys:   Delta Kream   (Nonesuch - 5/14/21) CLEOPATRICK:   BUMMER   (Nowhere Special - 6/4/21) Charley Crockett:   10 for Slim: Charley Crockett Sings James Hand   (Son of Davy - 2/26/21) Michigan Rattlers:   That Kind of Life   (Massasauga - 5/19/21) Royal Blo...

Michigan Rattlers, DC9, Washington DC - 2/15/20 Yola, 9:30 Club, Washington DC - 1/10/20

"Everything except country.” That was my unhesitant reply for many years when asked "what kind of music do you like?" Reinforced by the mental image of Garth Brooks flying over a stadium audience on a wire-rig in the early 90’s, the genre was incomprehensible to me, if not reprehensible. It just wasn’t my thing, and never would be. Lately, however, I'm never quite sure what genres and artists will inspire me year to year - only that I’ve tried to keep an open mind and am prone to odd musical obsessions. This year, it finally turned out to be country music. It shouldn't have come as a surprise. Chris Stapleton's soulful companion albums From A Room Vol. 1  and From A Room Vol.2  topped my favorites list last year and Sturgill Simpson's experimental A Sailor's Guide To Earth  made that list the year before. Maybe nostalgic childhood memories of Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, and Waylon Jennings softened me up. More recently, perhaps it was blu...