Alternative Country
Angel Olsen Delivers Country-Sized Emotions on Big Time
Angel Olsen has never repeated herself. Her debut Half Way Home introduced Olsen as a psych-folk songwriter with a powerhouse voice, before the lo-fi indie of Burn Your Fire For No Witness reframed her within the context of a band. Two years later, My Woman upped the production value and saw Olsen at her most intense and confrontational. All Mirrors wiped clean any pre-conceptions of Olsen, and even when she literally repeated herself with Whole New Mess, it felt like an entirely new statement. Since the one-two punch of All Mirrors and Whole New Mess, Olsen has kept fans guessing on which direction she might be headed next. In 2021, she released her Sharon Van Etten collaboration “Like I Used To,” a victory lap of an indie rock song for two of the genre’s most accomplished singer-songwrit...
Erin Rae Breaks Down Her New Album Lighten Up Track by Track: Exclusive Stream
For our Track by Track feature, artists open up about the stories behind each song on their latest album. Today, Erin Rae takes us track by track through her new album, Lighten Up. After releasing her debut effort, Putting on Airs, in 2018, Erin Rae was living as the troubadours do. She spent the years between that release and the start of the pandemic on the road and, like any other artist, found that life come to a screeching halt. On Friday, February 4th, she’ll return with her new album, Lighten Up, an appropriate title both for our times and for the album. This latest collection is an amalgam of dreamy, psychedelic country, indie-rock, and believably vintage folk. Thematically, too, the album is a bit like an old kaleidoscope — social commentary and musings on gender equality mor...
Jeff Tweedy Announces New Album, Covers Neil Young’s “The Old Country Waltz”: Stream
Jeff Tweedy has announced a deluxe edition of his 2020 album Love Is the King, featuring a new collection of live versions of its songs titled Live Is the King. Due out December 10th via dBpm Records, it comes with a new cover of Neil Young’s “The Old Country Waltz,” which is out today. Live is the King sees the Wilco frontman accompanied by a band consisting of his sons Sammy and Spencer Tweedy, as well as Liam Kazar, James Elkington, and Ohmme’s Sima Cunningham. The live versions were recorded at Wilco’s Chicago studio the Loft, as well as the Chicago venues Constellation and The Hideout. You can pre-order Love Is the King/Live Is the King now. Watch Jeff Tweedy and the aforementioned band’s performance of Neil Young’s “The Old Country Waltz” below, followed by the deluxe editi...
Jeff Tweedy’s Love Is the King Conquers Anger and Fear with Happiness: Review
The Lowdown: Who in 2020, a year defined almost exclusively by fear, hate and unprecedented political division, has the nerve to release a record called Love Is the King? That might sound a little too optimistic for Jeff Tweedy, but while the Wilco frontman doesn’t always paint a rosy picture in his songs, he knows how to offer calm reassurance in dark times. Few songwriters possess such an acute ability to make sense of the craziness around them, and if Tweedy’s latest solo endeavor proves anything, it’s that sometimes that’s good enough. [embedded content] The Good: There was a time when recording a record amid such social or personal turmoil would have sent Tweedy down the path toward artful rancor. But Love Is the King is the latest in what has been a string of relatively calm releases...
Kathleen Edwards on Why She Left Music for Coffee
Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS Kathleen Edwards speaks with Kyle Meredith about Total Freedom, her first new album since 2012’s Voyager. The two discuss her need to leave music and start a coffee shop called Quitters, her barista abilities, and making foam butt cracks. The Canadian songwriter also talks about singing about her comeback within the new songs, taking inspiration from The War On Drugs for her sound, and appreciating the work that Cracker’s David Lowery is doing for copywriting. Edwards also takes us back to her early days of touring with My Morning Jacket and tells us why she keeps a Louisville Slugger beside her bed. Kyle Meredith With… is an interview series in whic...
Angel Olsen Reveals New Album Whole New Mess: Stream
Angel Olsen has released her new album Whole New Mess. Stream it below via Apple Music and Spotify. Today’s release follows last year’s stunning All Mirrors, which was one of the best records of 2019 and the 2010s overall. However, whereas that effort was an opulent extravaganza of 11-piece string arrangements and orchestral ambiance, Whole New Mess is a decidedly quieter and more intimate affair. It mostly features early, acoustic renditions of songs off All Mirrors, but also offers some new material like the beautiful title track. It’s technically the first true solo album Olsen’s made since her 2012 debut Half Way Home, but she sounds comfortable as ever in this raw and emotive musical environment. In a revealing interview with Pitchfork, Olsen opened up about how the aforemen...
Angel Olsen Announces New Album Whole New Mess, Shares Title Track: Stream
Last year, Angel Olsen released the orchestral All Mirrors, which quickly became not only one of the best albums of 2019, but of the 2010s in general. While promoting the effort, she frequently mentioned that early versions of the songs were intended for a separate, much more raw release. Today, Olsen has finally announced that companion record, Whole New Mess, and it’s due out August 28th via Jagjaguwar. Nine of the 11 tracks on Whole New Mess will at least be partially familiar to All Mirrors listeners, only here they’re presented in their original, stripped-down form with slightly different titles. You’ll see “Lark Song” instead of the powerful “Lark”, “(Summer Song)” instead of simply “Summer”, and “Chance (Forever Love)” instead of “Chance”. These versions were recorded alon...
Bill Callahan Releases Gentle New Song “Pigeons”: Stream
This September, Bill Callahan will drop a new album titled Gold Record. The esteemed folk songwriter is teasing the project today with the first single and opening track, “Pigeons”. Set in the heart of Texas, the gentle tune sees Callahan reflecting on marriage from the perspective of a limo driver who often shuttles around newly hitched couples. “Well the pigeons ate the wedding rice and exploded somewhere over San Antonio,” he sings. “I picked up the newlyweds and asked them where they wanted to go/ They said, ‘We don’t know, we don’t care, anywhere… just go.’” Ride along by streaming it below. Editors’ Picks Gold Record, the follow-up to his solid Shepherd in a Sheepskin Vest from 2019, officially arrives September 4th through longtime label Drag City. As promised, Call...
Grace Potter Performs “Eachother” with Jackson Browne, Marcus King, and Lucius on Colbert: Watch
Last month, Grace Potter released “Eachother”, featuring soaring vocals from Jackson Browne, Marcus King, and the gals of Lucius. On Friday, Potter re-assembled that superstar ensemble for a social-distance performance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. “Eachother” is an uplifting ballad for the time of coronavirus, with imagery of empty streets, bare shelves, and neighbors who talk, “but we don’t get too close.” The first time that all the voices join together in bewitching harmony, it’s like a streak of sunlight bursting through the clouds. Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig of Lucius blend their tones unselfishly, while Marcus King steals the show with his smoky, searing tenor. Jackson Browne, fully recovered from COVID-19, grounds the proceedings with his bluesy lower register. Grace Pot...
New Music Friday: 5 Albums to Stream
New Music Friday with Jason Isbell (photo by Ben Kaye), Perfume Genius, and Kamasi Washington (photo by Russell Hamilton) Every Friday, Consequence of Sound rounds up some of the week’s noteworthy new album releases into one nifty streaming post. Today, May 15th, brings fresh jams from folks like Jason Isbell, Joe Wong, and Kamasi Washington, as well as Perfume Genius, Moses Sumney, and Alma. Also be sure to check out new albums from Charli XCX, Polo G, and Future, and new live records from David Bowie and Prince. Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit – Reunions <img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1029993" data-attachment-id="1029993" data-permalink="https://consequenceofsound.net/2020/04/jason-isbell-moves-album-release-date-indie-record-stores/jason-isbell-reu...
