How Dion DiMucci Influenced Bruce Springsteen
Fifteen years before a 20-something Bruce Springsteen sweated out his original sin in clubs along the Jersey Shore, there was the rock and roller Dion.
blues rock
Colin James Finds the Blues While ‘Chasing the Sun’
Canadian blues artist Colin James rocks out on the guitar on a new album, Chasing the Sun, and reminds us of strings’ power to pull emotions out of one’s heart.
Manfred Mann, the Synthesiser Man, Hates AI in Music
Manfred Mann doesn’t think he’s the best synthesiser player in the world, but he brings a distinctive voice to the old technology. Just keep AI out of music, dammit.
Fanny’s Continuing Career Coda Features Live 1970s Performances
All-female 1970s rock band Fanny share their early performances on a stunning new CD set. They have power and swagger here and mesh perfectly on every number.
The Tedeschi Trucks Band Soar Over the Moon in Berkeley
Whether blues power can help save a world gone mad from dystopian decline remains to be seen, but the Tedeschi Trucks Band appear ready to do so or die trying.
![Slash’s Orgy of Destruction [or] ‘Blues Your Illusion’](https://www.popmatters.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Slash-with-Gibson-Les-Paul-720x380.jpg)
Slash’s Orgy of Destruction [or] ‘Blues Your Illusion’
Orgy of the Damned finds Slash and his many guests bashing through the most over-played blues standards with the subtlety and grace of Axl Rose in a china shop.
Straight from No Man’s Land: A Conversation with Texas Bluesman Scott H. Biram
To encounter Scott H. Biram live-and-in-person, you’d figure Motörhead’s Lemmy Kilmister had kin in Caldwell County, a distant cousin steeped in Willie Dixon and Lightnin Hopkins.
Mdou Moctar Holds Nothing Back on Extraordinary ‘Funeral for Justice’
Even by Mdou Moctar’s high standards, Funeral for Justice is extraordinary. Its music and lyrics are searing, and the messages are essential in 2024.
The Black Keys Hit the Bowling Alley with ‘Ohio Players’
You can sum up the overall aesthetic concept of the Black Keys’ Ohio Players with two main points: It rocks and sounds great in a bowling alley.
The Black Crowes Soar with Fresh Tracks and Deep Cuts
This version of the Black Crowes are returning to the straight-ahead, swaggering rock and blistering blues that put them on the map in the early 1990s.
Charlie Parr Looks Inward and Upward for ‘Little Sun’
Charlie Parr remains aware of his blues tradition, but he mostly moves into his own space, building on his roots background with creativity for Little Sun.
60 Years On: The Animals, the Hollies, and British Beat
As these 1964 albums from the Animals and the Hollies show, the music of the beat boom was characterized by excitement, reverence, and sound.