Friday, December 3, 2021

Slug - Demo (2021)


If you love hardcore, these are four minutes of your life you definitely won’t ask for back. And if you’re like me, once you burn through the four minute-long tracks of Slug's Demo, you’ll start it all over again, and again, and again, and dream about how great a pit this would inspire. Savage beats, ripping power chords, chunky grooves, this band makes me wanna go to Cleveland, the tourism bureau oughta bow down and kiss their feet, or at least give them a van and some gas so they can come play a show here in New York. My favorite track is “Grow a Spine,” bursting with in-your-face, confrontational energy, as the singer growls, “I might be a slug but you're a fucking rat, you wear too many faces, a coward will never last, keep hiding in different places.” I was shaking my fist and singing along by the time the second chorus came around.

Florida Man - EP (2021)

This blog started off as a way to promote my radio show, which was mostly country, but as the title indicated, it wasn't all I listened to. I've fallen behind on the radio show, but I'm still hearing plenty of great music, new and old, so I'm gonna start posting some reviews.

Florida Man are three 15-year-old girls from Maine and their self-titled debut is punk as fuck. The opener, “Yesterday’s Air,” has a solid Stooges-like verse, the chorus kicks in with Sleater-Kinney ferocity. Track two, “Twilight Filter,” begins with a down-tempo groove that reminds of Either/Or-era Elliott Smith, wistful while still heavy, but the song really blossoms in the chorus with harmonies that evoke The Shams. “Lady Thimble” follows and is poppier than the preceding tracks, kinda folk grunge. The closer, “Lost in the Woods,” was my favorite, the melody and tight harmonies stand out as particularly impressive. This is a great EP, and while it reminds me of other bands I love it is not derivative or a copycat, there’s plenty of originality on this album. Keep guitars in the hands of young folks like Florida Man, they have plenty to say and sing about. 

Thursday, December 24, 2020

Alcohol and Tears (Mostly) Country Radio Hour - Episode 4


 
Episode 4 setlist:

Eric McEntee - Christmas Stranger
Sir Douglas Quintet - We'll Take Our Last Walk Tonight
Johnny Moore - Old Memories of You
Louvin Brothers - I Cried After You Left
Dottie West - One More Memory
Kitty Wells - Your Wild Life's Gonna Get You Down
Harriet Savage - The Working Girl
Doyle Holly - Lord How Lnog Has This Been Going On
Hank Thompson - I Cast a Lonesome Shadows
Roberta Sherwood - That's Why I Woke Him Up to Say Goodbye
Billy Mize - I'd Rather Have You Than My Pride
Durwood Haddock - California Hillbilly Bar
Durwood Haddock - When the Swelling Goes Down
Stella Parton - Don't Do It Again
Hawkshaw Hawkins - Darkness on the Face of the Earth
Hawkshaw Hawkins - I Can't Seem to Say Goodbye
Harlow Wilcox and the Oakies - Groovy Grubworm
Moon Mullican - I'll Pour the Wine
Roger Sovine - Savannah Georgia Vagrant
Ernest Tubb - A Million Miles from Here
George Jones - The Old, Old House/Wrong Number
Piebald - You Wouldn't Be a Piece Without Your Moustache

Episode image: "Santa Claus vs. The Martians" by _bwood_ is licensed under CC BY 2.0


Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Alcohol and Tears (Mostly) Country Radio Hour Episode 3 - 2020 Holiday Mix



 

Episode 3 is dedicated to my favorite songs of 2020. If you're looking to do some end-of-the-year shopping for your friends and family—or yourself—here's a list of 50 artists that have helped keep me sane this year. A big thank you to all these musicians who have made this year a little more bearable and given me something to smile about.

Zzzwalk - Big Dave
Whitney Rose - Home with You
Cactus Lee - Tootsie
Laura Mae Socks - Mountains
Eric McEntee - Stormgreye
Mike Khalil - Hannukah Hillbilly
Nick Shoulders - Hank's Checkout Line
Willie Nelson - I'll Break Out Again Tonight
Beth Bombara - Map & No Direction (live solo acoustic version)
Swamp Dogg - Memories (feat. John Prine)
Margo Price - Letting Me Down
Kyle Avallone - I'm Ready
Gillian Welch & David Rawlings - Hello In There
Zephaniah OHora - Listening To The Music
Rex Hobart & the Misery Boys - Gotta Get Back to Forgetting You (Live at Davey's Uptown Rambler's Club)
The Mendoza Line - Baby, I Know What You're Thinking
Courtney Marie Andrews - It Must Be Someone Else's Fault
Dylan Earl - Strange
John Prine - I Remember Everything
Winter - Healing
Michaela Anne - Good Times
Paisley Fields - Stay Away From My Man
Matthew J. Rolin - What Comes Next?
Lilly Hiatt - Never Play Guitar
OOF - Too Many Emails
Jaime Wyatt - Neon Cross
Jolie and the Jackalopes - Deep in Love
Karen & the Sorrows - Guaranteed Broken Heart
Amy Rigby - Contractor
Emily Duff - We Ain't Goin' Nowhere
The Paranoid Style - Turpitude
Sean Kershaw - Cleaning My Gun
Seth Kessel - Shackles
Sarah Shook & the Devil - Damn You
Will Beeley - Don't Rain on My Parade
LAW$UITS - Doozy
Jesse Daniel - If You Ain't Happy Now (You Never Will Be)
Sweet Megg - Please Help Me I'm Falling (Live in Asheville)
Lucinda Williams - You Can't Rule Me
Mary Vision - Yes It Is
Coriky - Hard to Explain
Gwenifer Raymond - Ruben's Song
Steve Earle - The Mine
The Men - Call the Dr.
Raspberry Bulbs - 10 Ultra Vires
Blaze Foley - Picture Cards Can't  Picture You (Live at the Austin Outhouse)
Hard Job - One Fell Swoop
Casino Pascal - SuperBowl Sunday
Fun Time Objects - Hey! Joey
X - Goodbye Year, Goodbye

Thursday, April 9, 2020

Alcohol and Tears (Mostly) Country Radio Hour Episode 2 - The Late, Great John Prine

 

Episode 2 of the Alcohol and Tears (Mostly) Country Radio Hour is dedicated to the late, great John Prine, who passed away on April 7, 2020, to Covid-19. This episode focuses on his influence and features mainly covers of his songs by other artists, with some live performances and deep cuts from Prine mixed in. Special thanks to Jason Wang for providing the Prine radio interview, links to his YouTube clip and his Prine setlist archive are below in the links section.
Setlist:
John Prine - Loretta
Eric McEntee and Mike Khalil - Speed of the Sound of Loneliness
Kris Kristofferson - Late John Garfield Blues
Those Darlins - Let's Talk Dirty In Hawaiian
Donnie Fritts -  Why Is My Day So Long?
Buzzin' Cousins - Sweet Suzanne
Cowboy Junkies - If You Were the Woman and I Was the Man
Johnny Cash - Unwed Fathers
Chris Hillman - It’s Happening to You
Lee Hazlewood - Hello in There
John Prine - You Never Even Call Me by My Name
Kacey Musgraves - Burn One With John Prine
Swamp Dogg - Sam Stone
John Prine - My Old Kentucky Home, Goodnight
The Everly Brothers - Paradise
Johnny Cash - The Twentieth Century Is Almost Over
John Prine and Kelsey Waldon - Kentucky Means Paradise
Kurt Vile and Steve Gunn - Way Back Then
Lilly Hiatt and Aaron Lee Tasjan - Angel from Montgomery
Dwight Yoakam - Spanish Pipedream
John Prine and Tom Petty - Picture Show
Betty Lavette - Souvenirs
Donnie Fritts - The Oldest Baby in the World
John Prine - When I Get To Heaven
Swamp Dogg and John Prine - Please Let Me Go Round Again
John Prine and Steve Goodman - Hey Good Lookin / Jambalaya / Your Cheatin Heart / I Can’t Help If I’m Still In Love With You / Lost Highway / Cold, Cold Heart / Mind Your Own Business / Settin' the Woods on Fire

Links:
Eric McEntee
Eric’s ISO JAM FOR THE GRAM Covid-19 relief Patreon
Mike Khalil
Jason Wang’s John Prine Setlist Archive
John Prine radio interview courtesy of Jason Wang

Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Alcohol and Tears (Mostly) Country Radio Hour Episode 1 - Songs about drinking and/or crying

The first episode of the Alcohol and Tears (Mostly) Country Radio Hour is live at Mixcloud!


Most of the tracks were ripped from my 45 and LP collection, with a couple taken from CD or digital.
Episode 1 Setlist
Kay Adams - “Alcohol and Tears”
Rusty Adams - “A Pint of Pain Remover”
Wanda Jackson - “Cryin’ Thru the Night”
Ernest Tubb and the Texas Troubadours - “Just One More”
Sally Timms - “Cry Cry Cry”
Floyd Tillman - “Pour Me a Heartache”
Charlie Louvin - “A Fancy Place ot Cry”
Margo Price - “It’s Not Drunk Driving If You’re Riding a Horse”
Carl Perkins - “Little Tear Drops”
Durwood Haddock - “I Gotta Get Drunk”
Jean Shepard - “Heartaches, Teardrops and Sorrow”
Hank Thompson - “I See Them Everywhere”
Jim Kandy - “Looking Through a Teardrop”
Turkey Mountain Troubadours - “Empties on the Floor”
Dolly Parton - “My Blue Tears (demo)”
Charlie Walker - “Tonight My Solitaire Turns to Gin”
Lee Moore - “I Cried Again”
Justin Trevino - “Get a Bottle, Turn the Cap”
Partners in Crime - “You Ain’t Cried Yet”
Paisley Fields - “I Could Be Drinkin’”
Rosie Flores - “Crying Over You”
Tex and the Horseheads - “I’ll Quit Tomorrow”

Monday, February 18, 2019

"Java" and "The Pookie" by Herb Remington (Hurb Remington) (Stoneway Records, 1973)



This 45 by Herb Remington is mislabeled as "Hurb Remington." No, if you are wondering, this is not some cheap knock off wannabe steel guitar player but the real deal Herb Remington, famous for his steel contributions to Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys. His playing on the Tiffany Transcriptions is remarkable. He also plays on some of Willie Nelson's great early recordings, like "Nite Life," "Man With the Blues," "What a Way to Live," and "Rainy Day Blues."

These two cuts were released on Stoneway Records in 1973 and were also included on his Pure Remington Steel LP, also from Stoneway Records in 1973. "Java," which is an older tune co-written by Allen Toussaint, features Remington's expressive playing which sounds almost human in parts. "The Pookie" finds Remington using the wah-wah pedal throughout, giving the song a psychedelic tinge.

Both sides are great and exemplify why Remington is one of the hall of fame steel players.

Slug - Demo (2021)

If you love hardcore, these are four minutes of your life you definitely won’t ask for back. And if you’re like me, once you burn through th...