Ghost of Vroom – the new band comprised of veteran singer-songwriter Mike Doughty (Soul Coughing) and his longtime collaborator, bassist Andrew “Scrap” Livingston – have announced the release of their eagerly anticipated debut album. GHOST OF VROOM 1 arrives via Mod y Vi Records on Friday, March 19.

World-renowned blues guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Chris Cain will release his Alligator Records debut album, Raisin' Cain, on Friday, April 9, 2021. The album features 12 originals, each showcasing Cain's fiery musicianship and deft, memorable songwriting skills. According to Cain, who recently received two Blues Music Award nominations (for Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year and Best Guitarist), "These are the best pack of tunes I've ever written."

Smithsonian Folkways celebrates the golden age of Bluegrass music in Southwest Ohio with the release of Industrial Strength Bluegrass on March 26. The second single, "Family Reunion" featuring the Queen of Bluegrass Rhonda Vincent and bluegrass music's rising star, Caleb Daugherty releases today.

Sara Watkins of the Grammy-winning groups Nickel Creek and I’m With Her, as well as The Watkins Family Hour will release Under the Pepper Tree on March 26th via New West Records. The 15-song set was produced by Tyler Chester (Sara Bareilles, Margaret Glaspy) and is the follow up to her critically acclaimed 2016 solo album Young In All The Wrong Ways.

For the second and third singles of her new album and video series The St Buryan Sessions, Cornwall-based singer-songwriter Sarah McQuaid delves deep into her back catalog to resurrect “Charlie’s Gone Home”, the first original song she ever recorded as a solo artist, then jumps forward again with “The Day Of Wrath, That Day”, a powerful instrumental composition for electric guitar.

John Mellencamp announces he’s set to unveil his new live album and documentary titled: The Good Samaritan Tour this spring. The documentary, which will be narrated by Academy® Award winner Matthew McConaughey, chronicles Mellencamp’s historic free tour in 2000 when he performed on street corners and in public parks across the country.
 

Drawing influences from the halcyon days of '70s prog bands like Weather Report and King Crimson and the modern jazz psychedelia stylings of BADBADNOTGOOD or Kamasi Washington, Squids takes their listeners on universal and jam-centric thrill rides.

Esther Rose’s homespun brand of country music has drawn comparisons to legends like Hank Williams, modern trailblazers like Rilo Kiley, and a host of other luminaries in between, but those who are doing the comparing always make note: she’s got her own thing going on. Rose’s innate ability to reflect on her own feelings, to not cast blame, and to keep a smile while doing so brings a spark to her music that sets it apart from her contemporaries and influences alike.

Today, emerging NYC indie soul band Melt released its long-awaited EP, West Side Highway. Now available across all streaming platforms, the dulcet six-track project presents musings on life and love from seven twenty-somethings carving out a name in the industry. Dubbed “one groovy super organism” by NPR, Melt has built a name throughout cities and college dorms nationwide for both stellar musicianship and high-energy live performance.

I last reviewed a streamed Billy Strings show in July. A lot has changed since then. Online concerts have grown more sophisticated, with platforms like Twitch taking the tech out of the artist’s hands. Billy’s hair? That too has changed from the oft braided locks of an up and comer to the mullet of someone who has arrived.