The Coup (Epitaph, 2012) First, a warning: The lyrics on this album feature the usual hip-hop profanity, and there is no edited version. For many that is...
Music
Sing the Delta Iris DeMent (Flariella Records, 2012) At 51, Iris DeMent is no spring chicken, but her music can seem like a time capsule from someplace long...
Kendrick Lamar (Aftermath, 2012) A warning to our readers: This album uses explicit language standard in the hip-hop vernacular. On his major-label debut...
Mumford & Sons (Luna Park Records, 2011) Here’s the elevator pitch on Mumford & Sons: U2 meets Old Crow Medicine Show at Bruce...
The Citizens Band (Press Hear Records, 2012) Pop music and musicians have long been an integral part of our presidential election circus. The non-partisan...
O' Be Joyful Shovels and Rope (Dualtone Music Group, 2012) The band name suggests a Western movie scene of hanging and burial while the album title sounds...
Rodney Crowell, Mary Karr, et al. (Vanguard, 2012) Over the past 16 years as I’ve read Mary Karr’s three memoirs, I’ve always heard Rodney Crowell’s music as...
Just what the title and artist name suggest, Rappalachia by Gangstagrass is a fusion of rap rhythm tracks and old-time mountain music instrumentation and...
Marley: The Original Soundtrack Bob Marley and the Wailers (Tuff Gong, 2012) Bob Marley, who took reggae music from Jamaica to the world, is one of the pop...
Locked Down Dr. John (Nonesuch Records, 2012) In the deranged days of 1968, New Orleans musician Mac Rebennack decided to join the fun by dubbing himself Dr...
