Last show of 2021! We check out new singles for Jenny Don’t and The Spurs, Eamon McGrath, The Strange (with Chris Eckman) and John Paul Keith. We also check out James McMurtry from Austin TX, Pilgrim from Tulsa, OK, Suicide Swans from Australia, all with new albums. And of course, the legendary Neil Young is also here with a track from his new record. We say goodbye to Michael Nesmith, a Monkee and a great songwriter who passed away this year, 10 days before his birthday.
Shannon McNally – You Show Me Yours And I’ll Show You Mine
Jenny Don’t & The Spurs – Three Or Four Nights
Eamon McGrath – Cannonball
Sierra Ferrell – In Dreams
James McMurtry – Decent Man
Pilgrim – Katie
Rosali – Whisper
Suicide Swans – Below Zero
The Strange – Not Now Not Ever
Chapel Hart – You Can Have Him Jolene
Chuck Prophet – One Last Dance
Jim Lauderdale – Sister Horizon
Neil Young – Song of the Seasons
Dori Freeman – Walk Away
John Paul Keith – If We Make It Through December
Michael Nesmith – Some of Shelly’s Blues
Monkees – What Am I Doing Hanging ‘Round
Just as we introduced the new John Paul Keith’s new single, his new album with The Motel Mirrors also came out. It also features Amy LaVere and Will Sexton in the line up. The rest of the new music today are all new introductions. First we have two new bands form Los Angeles: Dommengang and L.A. Witch. Clevelander and a hopeful in the comedy business Dave Hill teamed up with Chris Reifert from Autopsy and Death in a new band called Painted Doll. We also have Bad Moves. They come from Washington DC. Australian Rebecca Louise Chilcott goes by the name of Ruby Boots and another singer songwriter, Sue Foley comes from Canada. They both have new interesting albums. Rench is a guy from Brooklyn who mixes country with hip hop beats in his band Gangstagrass, but this time we check out his new solo record.
Our show today begins with the new single from John Paul Keith, a musician from Memphis who we follow closely with every project. Faux Killas, also out in Memphis are also back with the new record. We also have new stuff out of Boston. Dinosaur JR has a new single and Barrence Whitfield and his Savages are also back with the new album. We introduce two new names for us from Greece, who come with high recommendations from Paul in Rock XS: The Karamazov Project lead by Panos Pantazopoulos and the retro hard rockers Ribbons of Euphoria. Out in Philadelphia, we introduce a new band for us called Hurry, although they’ve been putting the stuff out for at about eight years now. Remember we said Bellrays have a new ep two shows ago? Well, they also now have a full length, so we check out one of the songs from it.
Here we are today with our new episode that brings your the new Boss Hog tune. Yes, Christina Martinez is back! Young Lydia Loveless is back with her third album, and she’s shooting high! John Paul Keith and Amy LaVere are tinkering in studio for the new Motel Mirrors record. Over in Madison WI, Rocket Bureau is working out some healthy power pop. We also Folky Wonky Tonk from Kentucky and Cian Nugent from Ireland. And we finally got that single from the new Evan Dando band The Sandwich Police.
A ton of new things today. A lot of it comes from advanced downloads that artists made to promote their upcoming records, so search, stream and download. Amy LaVere and John Paul Keith have a new duet together called Motel Mirrors. Howe Gelb has a new tune that he recorded together with Will Oldham. City of Cool from Australia also have a new tune and so does Eamon McGrath. His new song Exile is meant to announce a three part series of eps that will eventually comprise his future LP. R. Stevie Moore has a new hilarious song as a support for Pussy Riot and he has a reissue of his 1978 record called Delicate Tensions. Alejandro and Javier Escovedo together with Jon Dee Graham reunited into True Believers and prepared a newly recorded song as an advance for their future new record. Talking about reissues, The Replacements are back together and I saw that over in Toronto. They sounded great and we have three songs bootlegged at the reunion show today. Two new exciting records are also out Bras by Bad Sports and Nobody Realizes This Is Nowhere by Terry Malts. And Dirtbombs! Two new records, one with brand new records done in bubblegum rock style and the other – a compilation of B sides and singles.
We have some interesting reissues today. Tav Falco continues reissues of his opus with a second installment of Lore and Testament which compiles two EPs and one live concert in Vienna from 1986. Another reissue today is a 2cd set that compiles the music from the 80s rock band in Zagreb called Trobecove Krušne Peći. New stuff today is a new song from John Paul Keith, new debut album from The Connection, and the new record for Ty Segall. Tim Williams is back with his Summer Suns with a new record called Eulalie. The only truly new band today is The Torments from Cleveland, who we feature in our regular live in CLE segment.
More bad news this week… Steve Popovich, rock maverick from Cleveland who indebted the world with many great records died last week in Tennessee at the age of 68. Steve was a musical promoter and record label owner in the golden age of ’70s when he helped manage careers of Bruce Springsteen, Cheap Trick, Boz Scaggs, Joe Grushecky, Southside Johnny, Ronnie Spector, Meat Loaf, Johnny Cash – just to name a few. He was a rare breed, a promoter who truly cared for the music he was promoting, someone who believed in what he liked, even if there was no conventional logic for pushing what he pushed. In that way, he is a true inspiration. We also say goodbye to Benny Spellman, a New Orleans singer who also died last week in his hometown at the age of 79. He left behind exciting early rock songs such as Fortune Teller and Lipstick Traces On A Cigarette, both written by Allen Toussaint. We also throw in a few new records. We introduce Dead Rock West from LA, a band clearly influenced by X. Also, we have new albums for Kate Maki and John Paul Keith. Mama Rosin, zydeco band from Switzerland is also back with a collaboration with Hipbone Slim.
Memphis musician John Paul Keith puts together the best sounding live show you’ll ever hear. Moreover, his album Spills and Thrills is also the best sounding vinyl record in years. While most Memphis bands like their sound dirty and wonderfully screwed up, John Paul Keith’s sound is crisp and clean. Still, it belongs to the same musical tradition that still keeps Memphis as the cradle of rock’n’roll. This was recognized by legendary Jim Dickinson who hired John Paul Keith for his last band called Snake Eyes.