Jake Xerxes Fussell deftly balances the imperatives of research and performance. A second-generation folklorist raised in Columbus, Georgia, he draws much of his material from field recordings made throughout the American south. His four albums, all released by North Carolina label Paradise of Bachelors, scrupulously credit the folk-song collections from which he sources his material. […]
Tag: country music
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Barbecue, blues, and circus arts
Windy City Smokeout kicks off a weekend of beer, barbecue, and bands representing both new faces in country music and some old favorites; tonight’s 9 PM headlining set by Willie Nelson and Family, his longtime touring and recording group is a great chance to see a master at work–accompanied by at least one actual Nelson […]
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The Cosmic Country Cookout promises to be out of this world
The Cosmic Country Showcase is an acid-infused variety show that happens a handful of times per year at the Hideout, and on July 24, its presenters are repotting this ravenous alien plant (think Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors, except in a cowboy hat) as the Cosmic Country Cookout at Logan Square’s newest whiskey […]
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Wilco’s folk-driven double album Cruel Country gives long time fans something fresh to love
In 1997, Wilco’s double album Being There became a fundamental pivot for the Chicago band in a decade filled with triumphs. Twenty-five years later, those songs live on in the band’s live shows, even though in the studio Wilco have traveled to a very different place. The evidence lies on Cruel Country, the band’s second […]
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When Orville Peck’s mask came off, his walls went up
When the masked country crooner who performs as Orville Peck dropped his 2019 debut record, Pony (Sub Pop), his decadent baritone and mysterious persona immediately earned him a cult following. Created in the safety of anonymity, his descriptions of heartbreak and loneliness washed over listeners, their intimacy heightened by sparse musical accompaniment. But as quickly […]
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Freakwater and the Mekons unite to sing about coal’s dark, transatlantic legacy
In the early days of the COVID pandemic, retail clerks, day-care staff, public-transportation employees, and many other workers learned what coal miners have known for a very long time: that the authorities who deem their labor essential don’t necessarily feel the same way about their lives. Freakwater and the Mekons have each sung folk ballads […]
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Otherpeace kicks off a Hideout residency to support a restorative, rootsy debut album
In the early months of the pandemic, Wandering Boys banjo player Rob Jensen reached out to Matt Clark (of slowcore trio Pinebender and drone duo White/Light) with an invitation to jam. The music they made together planted the seeds for Clark’s new solo endeavor, Otherpeace, a loose group where he’s backed by Jensen (drums), Pinebender […]
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Sarah Shook & the Disarmers find dusty splendor on Nightroamer
Sarah Shook & the Disarmers are known for their roots-driven sound, but on their new third full-length, Nightroamer, Shook’s country aesthetics battle for space alongside some pretty healthy indie inclinations. The production is a bit denser on this recording compared to its predecessor, 2018’s Years—keyboards occasionally factor into the arrangements—and Shook herself gives off less […]
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Lydia Loveless hits new highs on a recent pair of digital singles
Update as of 12/31/21: Both of Lydia Loveless’s concerts at FitzGerald’s have been postponed in deference to the COVID-19 surge. New dates have not yet been announced. In August, Lydia Loveless released two songs digitally that deserve a proper vinyl seven-inch treatment. For the B side, I’d pick “You’re Leaving Me,” a moody country torch song […]
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On their debut album, Chicago’s Tobacco City get to the roots of their wistful country
Chicago country five-piece Tobacco City formed to cover Neil Young songs for a Halloween show, but thankfully they’ve since developed their own sound. Like Young, they have a way with plaintive melodies, but their music is rooted in bluesy honky-tonk and earthy, wistful country, with supple, pop-driven harmony vocals. Tobacco City’s surefire rhythm section—drummer Josh […]
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Wynonna Judd and Cactus Moser invite you to crash their party
UPDATE: as of Wednesday, July 28 at 9 AM, both Wynonna Judd & Cactus Moser concerts have been canceled. Ticketholders should contact their point of purchase for refund or exchange information. Wynonna Judd’s voice is like chugging diet pop. Her raw, forceful alto sometimes burns a little going down, but the addictive sweetness keeps you […]
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Four bits for the ferryman on the gig poster of the week
This week’s featured gig poster was created by Chicago artist Jason Castillo for a concert headlined by Wild Earp & the Free for Alls.
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Chicago’s Thomas Comerford assembles a cast of local musicians for an album of beguiling country
Chicago has its share of bands playing country or alternative country, but Thomas Comerford’s lonesome sound is in a category of its own. Comerford straddles the singer-songwriter era of the 1970s and the dusty, deadpan observations of psychedelic iconoclasts such as Bill Callahan. He’s also an independent filmmaker—he teaches film and art history at the […]
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Guitarist Sunny War boils life down to its essence on Simple Syrup
The Nashville-born, Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Sunny War is known for her clawhammer fingerstyle guitar playing, vivid autobiographical lyrics, and distinctive sound that starts at the crossroads of blues, country, folk, and punk, and only expands from there. She left home as a teenager to busk on Venice Beach and in San Francisco with friends she […]
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Valerie June leaves her roots for the stars
Valerie June’s best-known album, 2013’s Dan Auerbach-produced Pushin’ Against a Stone (Sunday Best), is a raw, playful mix of blues and country. Eclectic and ambitious as that effort is, though, it doesn’t capture June’s full range. On the cover of her new fifth album, The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions for Dreamers (Fantasy), June wears a […]