I arrived at the Fillmore for the Blitzen Trapper/Dawes show around 7:55 for an 8:00 show stoned out of my mind. There is no greater high than that of being on a cloud when music hits you. As I stood admiring the empty stage, the collective masses of San Francisco streamed into the iconic Fillmore.
Melding lyrical nakedness with ambitious arrangements and pure imagination, Danny Ross builds a sound that’s completely his own – and yet awfully familiar. The Long Island-native has exactly that: a unique sound that channels his heroes. Over the past year, everything came together for the singer when he and his nine-piece band and horn section,
Hurray for the Riff Raff are not your average folk band, and the story of how they came to be is certainly everything but. Alynda Lee Segarra was a 17 year-old girl fascinated by punk rock and the world outside of the Bronx in New York. She ran away from her aunt and uncle’s home
Lonnie Walker, out of Raleigh, NC, releases their debut full-length These Times Old Times today. The name suggests a solo act, but Lonnie Walker is actually a full band. One word describes this album: fun. Fans of The Magic Numbers, Dan Bern and even Bob Dylan will appreciate the smart lyric writing and snarky, nasal
I watched several live performances of Truth and Salvage Co. on their YouTube channel before listening to their eponymous debut album (now available on iTunes), and I was immediately charmed by the six-piece Southern rock band’s ability to effortlessly nail four-part harmonies. The group consists of Scott Kinnebrew and Tim Jones on vocals and guitars,
So last night at the Bowery Ballroom I went to check out Earl Greyhound, a self-proclaimed rock/blues band compromised of Matt Whyte, Kamara Thomas, and Ricc Sheridan. I arrived at the venue at 9pm, biding my time until their appearance at 11pm. Typically the, “show-before-the-show” doesn’t really capture my attention, but last night, both opening
In the wake of their etherial set at UCLA, I got to catch up with Dominant Legs in a particularly collegiate courtyard outside of UCLA’s Kerckhoff Grand Salon. They were a curious pair to see. Ryan Lynch, the guitarist, is jockey-like in stature–short and small–but with a striking bone structure and big eyes that give
For Orange County singer/piano vixen Emily Simonian, music has been driving force in her life. Though she was forced into playing, Simonian eventually came to grips with music and became something she loves. Recently, Bestnewbands.com caught up with her to talk about how her musical influences, what she learned from her brief time at Berklee
I want to publish interviews with bands and musicians I love here, but I am a terrible interviewer. As gifted as I am with writing in “spin,” I stink as a straight journalist. Having made my peace with that, I decided to try to come up with a generic list of interview questions that I