This band has been one of my favorites since they first joined forces around 2021 and although the lineup has changed slightly since then all the music has been great. Greg Norton (Hüsker Dü) has remained the front man throughout and seems to have a special talent for both finding skilled musicians to play with and also for pulling them from bands that I have spent a lot of time listening to over the years. In this current version of Ultrabomb he is joined by Derek O’Brien (Social Distortion, D.I. and Adolescents) and Ryan Smith (Soul Asylum).
For me the best thing about this track is the overall tone and sound that it has – there is something just a little bit vintage and throwback about the whole thing and I find it awesome. I was fortunate enough to grow up in the Minneapolis music scene of the 80’s and there are echoes of the energy and urgency from those days coursing through this song. These three musicians are tight and seamless in their playing with driving drums, a punchy bass line and the kind of melody work that sticks in your head.
You can check this out on your streaming channels (quick link here):
I was looking around for some good blues guitar to listen to and managed to cross paths with this release which just came out in early December 2025. I had previously heard her 2021 album Pinky’s Blues which has a great song on it (“Stop These Teardrops”) which also appears on this El Mocambo record.
There are those artists who put out good albums and then you see them live (or in this case heard a recording) and that just elevates your appreciation of their craft. Foley has a great voice to begin with but it gains a special edge and depth in this live environment.
The twelve tracks on this are solid all the way through from bluesy groovers like “Sue’s Boogaloo” to the meditative “Mediterranean Breakfast” and rippers like “Hurricane Girl.” There are some great jam moments along the way as well which is always a high point for me and the final track “Lightnin’ Boogie” closes it out just that way and in good style. You can spend a very happy hour or so listening your way through this album.
Musicians on this are: Sue Foley (guitar, vocals), Jon Penner (bass, vocals), Corey Keller (drums, vocals)
Yes indeed…I am late in getting around to this album (and I mean really late….more than 9 months!). I was fortunate to have Adam Dawson from Broken Jukebox Media send out an end-of-year “in case you missed it” email with this and other releases included. There are some others that were also detailed within that comm which I hope to get to soon but I started with this one as I recognized her name from an interview I read several years ago.
The album leads off with “Copperhill” and a great opening guitar riff that sets a little bit of an edgy vibe for the song. There is a punchy drum that drives the music and it is joined by the nice interplay of several guitars. The lyrics really set the scene for the story here and are delivered by Cronin in a voice that has strength and feeling behind it.
Another favorite of mine on this is the title track which has a wistful tone to it which evokes New Mexico in a way that is hard to explain if you have not found yourself wandering around that slightly mystical state. The guitar on this song is subdued with a slow bass line that complements the reflective mood set by the vocal delivery.
There are ten other tracks on Maybe New Mexico which range from the uplifting power of “Maker’s Mark” to the therapeutic “Dear Life” and the immersive storytelling of “Rifleman.” All of the songs on this album as well-arranged and highlight the skills of the musicians involved (who I unfortunately could not find a definitive list of anywhere). Cronin’s voice is also a major feature of course and she delivers these songs with clarity, emotion and an openness that is sometimes startling in its depth.
You can find this on all of your streaming channels of course (and if you do please think about purchasing when you can :). You can also check out her website here:
This just released single is from a band that is new to me, in this case hailing from the Italian alt music scene. After giving this one a few listens I also jumped back in their catalog and gave their 2022 EP Worst Weekend Ever a spin. It is a good one with a few different vibes and sounds going on that keep you interested. You can check it out as you wait for the expected upcoming new album from them.
“Lit” is loud right from the start with drums and nice little squealing guitar clips in a couple places as it leads into the vocal track. It keeps the guitar sound at the front throughout and has a supersonic bass that really fills a lot of the back space with buzzy goodness. This song moves along at a nice pace and has an engaging energy that makes it memorable.
You can check this on your usual streaming services and catch it here also:
So, a song title like that is likely to give you a second or two of pause…it did for me anyway. Not that I do not like interesting song titles…you may already know that I am a huge fan of such things. This one though has a bit of the mystical about it so I was caught off guard for a moment as I opened up the press release from Earshot Media. In my mind was the question, “What the heck is this all about?” I had not heard of Dhärä before that moment so I read on and quickly found out that they are a progressive rock band. That genre is outside of my usual space and those opportunities always intrigue me so we were now officially at, “Exactly just what the heck is this all about?!”
I pushed play to find out the answer and wow, what a cool experience! This is a composition with great instrumentation and quite a range of atmospheres within its 4:18 play time. It opens with brash guitars and drums that rise up before falling away to a subtle, melodic place with a swaying bass line to carry you along. Eventually you get to about mid-point in the song which is this great combination of guitar sound set against a rumbling drum line. And then…a fade out to a quiet space that slowly fills with a pulsing note pattern, kind of reflective but a bit demanding also…like it is asking a question that you cannot answer.
This is available for streaming in your usual places and there is quite the interesting video here (which also includes the opening piece of the album called “the conduit”:
Musicians on this are: Austin Sandick (guitar), Chris Rodriguez (drums), Kay Tyagi (guitar) and Ryan DiPietrantonio (bass)
It is a big help to the band if you pre-save the album (due out January 11, 2026) and you can do that here:
Like in many other instances over the years, I had first found Calling All Captains through one of my sessions cruising through music news sites and blogs back in the early 2020’s. There was an article about the band and their Slowly Getting Better album. I went back and tried to find this and am pretty sure it was the one still on the New Noise Magazine website.
That had prompted me to check out some of their music (although I somehow never did get to listening to Slowly Getting Better) and I had picked up their 2019 EP Nothing Grows Here which is a solid five song alt-rock set. My favorites are “Chasing Ghosts” and “Disconnected” and they are definitely worth a listen if you have time. On a side note, in the article I read it had referenced some co-writing by a friend of the band named Ty Elgie. He also co-wrote some songs on Nothing Grows Here which led me to check out his band Norell and the very good 2017 album Careless which is another worthy side mission.
The preview opportunity for this upcoming release from Calling All Captains came courtesy of Mike Cubillos at Earshot Media and it has been great to listen to for the past few days. There is a lot of energy in the seven songs and some interesting arrangements that keep your ears alert …these are not dozing off compositions. It opens with “Stay Away” which is hard drums and booming guitars right from go and that wall of sound is maintained at the front of this track all the way through. They drop in a bit of a different groove on “A New Type of Grey” which has some subdued, melodic moments that rise up into loud choruses framed by anguished vocals. As with much of their music the lyrical themes on this are about dealing with hard things in life and getting through those challenges. They bring much feeling and power to their music and this entire album reflects that very well.
You can check out the video for the single “Blood for Blood” off of this upcoming album (out January 9th on New Damage Records) here:
Musicians on this are: Connor Dawkins (guitar, vocals), Tim Wilson (drums), Luc Gauthier (vocals) and Brad Bremner (guitar, vocals).
Denise Kovalevich from dmk Publicity was kind enough to give me an advance preview of this upcoming album (on Bell Buckle Records) and I owe her many thanks as this release is quite the unique experience. Prior to getting her email I had not heard of Valerie Smith which apparently has been a blind spot in my Americana / bluegrass experience. A little poking around on the Interwebs revealed a long discography which I will be attempting to catch up on in the future.
As for this album…it was crafted over 12 years by Smith after the journal of her great-grandmother was discovered in an attic. As described in the press release:
“A true labor of love, Maggie’s Journal seamlessly blends bluegrass, Americana, and roots traditions into a vivid sonic tapestry. Original songs intertwine with spoken-word excerpts taken directly from Maggie’s handwritten journal—discovered decades after her death by Smith’s cousins, Kathy Eaton and Fonda Wells, tucked away inside a “Car Load Tablet” buried in an attic trunk.”
Now for a history and music buff like me, that description is like solid gold especially as Maggie was living in the post Civil War times which are a particular interest of mine. Add in the bluegrass component and we are officially on a good path.
So it was with some real anticipation that I hit play and was met with “Introduction – The Dream Story” which is a reflection by Smith on a vision she had after reading her great-grandmother’s words. It gives background on the inspiration for the album and is followed by the first journal excerpt (there are 15 of these out of the 30 total tracks on the album). Through those selections you really get to know Maggie’s story and her rather hard path through life. These readings are set against subtle musical backgrounds that seem to be crafted to fit the mood of each part of the story.
The 14 original musical tracks on the album are all strong and well composed. Lyrically they are stark and poignant, telling simple stories while providing many little details that really allow these songs to live in your mind. A few standouts for me were:
“That Was A Long Time Ago” – the slow pace of this song leaves a lot of room for some great instrumentation that features a nice mix of stringed instruments that play masterfully off of each other. There is also a strong bass line that is like a heartbeat of the remembered life told by the lyrics.
“Misery of Green” – the violin on this track weaves in and out of prominent place at just the right moments, sitting behind for atmosphere in some places and then soaring up to bring the tender, sorrowful mood needed by the story. There are also some great mandolin sounds here.
“When You Aint Got Nothin’” – I love to listen to a composition where great musicians can bring a clear, specific vibe with their vocals and instruments and this one is a perfect example. It has attitude and feistiness throughout with energetic vocals, a sassy violin, punchy guitar and a subtle but true boot-stompimg rhythm. For a cool side mission, strap on those good headphones and pick out the banjo on this one as there is much awesomeness going on there.
A technical note also that this album is exceptionally well done by Tim Carter & Scott Vestal (engineering), Donna Ulisse (producer) and Chris Latham (mixing, mastering). You can tell the care that went into every step of the process when you hear the results, especially when you take some extra time to really listen carefully. There are some truly exquisite moments in these songs that take a very dedicated and skilled team to achieve.
Musicians on this, in addition to Smith are: Cody Kilby (acoustic guitar, mandolin), Stephen Burwell (violin), Evan Winsor (upright bass), Scott Vestal (banjo) and backing vocals by Donna Ulisse, Josie Smith, Mike Rogers, Rosa Vestal and Aaron Vestal.
This album is one of those unique experiences that are hard to come by and one that I was fortunate enough to be able to preview. I would recommend this one to you and it will be out for purchase on January 1, 2026 via Smith’s website https://thevaleriesmith.com
Let me know you think!
And as always – appreciate the great community you have surrounding you 🙂
At some point, somewhere along the course of many trips to California I had heard some music from this group, probably around 2019 or 2020. After getting the press release on this from Earshot Media I had to go back and listen through their Bandcamp portfolio to try to figure out what I had heard back then and I think it was “Every Time” (off 2017’s Plate Lunch). That album is a pretty decent offering on its own and combines some hard rock vibes with punk and a little reggae groove to good effect. Much of their prior press highlights this multi-genre style in their music and it is definitely a strength for Wanted Noise.
This new single has a subtle and melodic lead-in that goes on just long enough for you to give that head turn of curiosity before it slams into a wall of guitars and furious rhythm. This track has a definite message to convey as explained by lead singer Suri Sherman:
“’Burn The Time Away’ was written about life with our crew in Goleta, where I grew up—capturing the duality of living the dream while also facing the tragedy that can come with life on the edge, but experiencing all of it together.”
This is a solid and energetic song and a nice advance peek at what is coming from the band. You can pre-save here and this is due out on January 6, 2026:
Musicians on this (other than Sherman who also plays guitar): Taylor Wagner (drums), Matt Lappin (bass) and Caleb Adkins (guitar, vocals).
As another random and cool thing to know and check out – Sherman is a close friend of Mendeleyev (https://www.levsongs.com) who has a rather interesting project going on. I also read about this in the Earshot Media press release and then poked around on Apple Music to find the IN WAVES concept album. I have failed to properly absorb this collection of pretty cool takes on his “In Waves” song but will be continuing to work on it – you might find it interesting also. Additionally, there is a version of this by Wanted Noise being released today as part of a second project from Mendeleyev.
You and your community are powerful – get out there and explore it 🙂
Somewhere back in 2013 a friend of mine had seen this band at the Fine Line in Minneapolis and gave me a heads up to check them out. It took some poking around but I did eventually find their EP The Holiday (although I never did find their debut EP The Swag back then…eventually tracked down on Bandcamp years later). That Holiday album had a pretty cool song on it that I liked called “Everyone We Know Is A Ghost.” They do have a few other releases out there and if you want a nice set that covers music from some of their other albums I would suggest picking up Too Loud? Too Bad! A really nice rocker on that is “Citizen Zero” or you can slow it down with “Where Was I? (When I Needed Me)”. They faded away in 2016 but are back now with a new single!
The Modern Era style of music has always been a little bit hard for me to explain – it is definitely rock-style but has this unique mix of punk and classic and sometimes almost anthem to it that keeps it pretty interesting. This new offering starts with some steady drums and quite prominent bass before adding great screaming electric guitars that bring the attitude way up before dropping down into a more subdued vocal track. Those vibes trade off throughout the song before finishing on a sweet extended fade out. This is a solid track, full of energy and well produced, and a nice teaser for the anticipated full album in 2026.
Musicians on this are: Jack Swagger, Josh Ripley, Ben Pelowski, Nick Pelowski and Chris Fister.
There is a video for this but when I checked it was time locked to 11 am December 28th…but maybe you will have more luck 🙂
Steaming on your usual places and if you can please think about purchasing it – streaming music does not pay well even times a thousand.
Back in September I had the opportunity to preview the single “Longsword (4th Place)” off of this new album. I enjoyed that track especially the harder guitar riffs and some of the subtleties of the melody. This full set just dropped on November 21st and is a really solid collection of edgier-than-usual emo music.
Right from go the lead-off song “In the End, It’s Just Starting Again” brings much energy from a cycling, buzzing guitar riff and a prominent but simple drum line. That track also features a really nice down-tempo moment right around the 00:40 mark before rising into some anguished vocals. Other stand-outs on this for me were “Ordinary Hell” (cool drum / bass interplay) and “I’d Bet My Life On It”” (nice, subtle guitar melody and a bit of a sonic buzz groove).
You can stream it in all of your usual places and if you have the inclination please think about purchasing it as streaming music does not pay well even times a thousand.
jack mesenbourg 