AvaxHome Music Community Requests for Music

Joan As Police Woman's sophomore album To Survive was released on June 10th. The sensual beats and unusual phrasing of her debut Real Life now yield to a languidly melodic melancholia inspired by the battle with cancer and subsequent death of Joan's mother. Joan Wasser was formerly a member of Antony & The Johnsons and she now counts among her fans Lou Reed, Juliette Lewis, and Rufus Wainwright - the latter contributes vocals to the new album.

“

Justin Hayward wrote: I don't think I've ever been so happy in a recording studio as I was on the sessions for "The View From The Hill". Phil Palmer fixed everything and the laughter and joy as well as the inspiration in the music from everyone involved was magical. On top of all that, it was then that I first met the wonderful Alberto Parodi, who with his family looked after us all (Micky Féat, Phil, Paul Bliss and the engineer Stephen Tayler). Alberto has become a great friend over the years and his friendship has now extended to the Moodies as well. Paul was the musical arranger on this album and the direction for the majority of the songs came from him in the pre-recording sessions he and I had before we went to Italy. The quality of the musicianship is of the highest order and even the drums are real, not programmed. This is an immaculate album.

”

The Moodies, throughout most of their history, have tried to distance themselves from this album. In fact, they have refused to play any songs off of it since the The Other Side of Life tour in 1986. However, this knowledge should not be taken as an indictment of the album itself, but rather of the circumstances surrounding it. After all, the guys were all in their late 30's now, and they were coming to grips with the fact that their youth was slipping away. Regardless, this album is terrific, and their last great album for several years.

Reeltime Travelers create a unique blend of old-time Americana music rooted in the pre-record era string bands of Southern Appalachia. The band draws from that deep tradition to create new songs and sounds. Their shows are high-energy mixes of traditional, fiddle-driven dance tunes, mountain harmonies, original banjo and fiddle tunes, and new songs with ties to the Old-Time tradition. From the Grand Ole Opry to Jamband festivals, the Reeltime Travelers demonstrate reverence for Tradition and produce their own "Reeltime" Americana music.

While not actually a “new band,” Austin based Nelo (rhymes with jello) are releasing their debut CD on Houston’s Justice Records as well as Pedernales Records, owned by Willie Nelson and the discs producer (and Willie’s nephew) Freddy Fletcher.

Willie Stradlin is a Red Dirt/Southern Rock band from Northwest Arkansas. They have been together since late 2005. The name was derived from their heroes, Willie Nelson and Izzy Stradlin (formerly of Guns and Roses). They are heavily influenced by the Texas/Oklahoma Red Dirt scene, and bring to the genre their own brand of rowdy southern Rock ‘n’ Roll.

The Rattling Wheel is the fifth CD release from Australian singer-songwriter, Derrin Nauendorf. This came as a surprise to me from the moment I heard Derrin’s resonant guitar tones on the album opener, "Universe Demands." How had I not heard of this guy before?

Seven years have passed since Chris Hillman's last solo recording, 1998's Like a Hurricane. This gave him plenty of time to conjure 'The Other Side's' 14 new recordings, even with four songs, including an elegant and filigreed version of the Byrds classic "Eight Miles High," being reworkings of previous efforts.

John Riley and the Lighthorsemen have traveled Oklahoma and Texas since the fall of 2005. John and his band have performed with Red Dirt and Texas Country artists Level Route, the Bois d'Arcs, the Turnpike Troubadours, South 40, Fat Dixie, the Mike McClure Band, the Randy Rogers Band, and Kevin Fowler to list a few. They have played some of the best venues in the region and still enjoy performing at small honky tonks as well.

'Mile by Mile' is how Honeybrowne has gained its large, loyal and growing fan base. It also happens to be the title of the bands fourth studio release on Smith music. Strong songwriting, edgy musicianship, and their availability to fans have kept Honeybrowne a staple in the regional Texas music circuit for ten (plus) years.

Previously released on VHS and Beta and only available through mail order, Frank Zappa's Dub Room Special is an extremely rare TV special comprising two live performances from one of Rock's great individuals. Zappa's unparalleled abilities as a composer, guitarist, and absurdist/social commentator run rampant on The Dub Room Special -- and it is a unique window on his willingness to push the envelope of what is possible no matter how improbable. Selections from two separate concerts, one, called A Token of His Extreme, shot in 1974 at Los Angeles public television station KCET and one in 1981 filmed at his annual New York Halloween show, are interspersed with then-cutting edge claymation/stop motion animation from Bruce Bickford and assorted comedy bits.