STATION_MANAGER for Hambone's Blues Party
Long Grove, Illinois, United States
Scott "Hambone" Hammer, a Chicago-based attorney, went on-air with Hambone's Blues Party in November 1995, broadcasting from a small Arlington Heights radio station, WCBR 92.7FM. Thirteen years and 650 shows later, he currently can be found on listener-supported public radio, WDCB 90.9FM, simulcast on the web at www.wdcb.org, every Thursday, from 10 p.m. until midnight.
Hambone's Blues Party has been featured in the Chicago Tribune, Sun-Times and Daily... Read More
Latest Album Reviews
Review of Through With Cool
Album Info: Through With Cool
Al Basile Album: Through With Cool Label: Sweetop Genre(s): Contemporary Blues Posted By: Duane Verh
Aug 7, 2022
Review
The deliberate horn phrasing and a convergence of vocals and lyrics that conjures a worldly-wise blues “Everyman” persona are reliable features of an Al Basile release and his newest is no exception. The cornet chorus on the moody “Say My Name” evokes classic film-noir melancholia and goes by all too quickly. Other standout moments include the leadoff track, “Keep On Living” and the ballad “We Belong Together”. Nice guitar work from Kid Anderson as well.
Review of La Flor del Dimoni (The Flower Of The Devil)
Album Info: La Flor del Dimoni (The Flower Of The Devil)
Claudia Colom Album: La Flor del Dimoni (The Flower Of The Devil) Label: Segell Microscopi Genre(s): World Posted By: Joe Ross
Aug 2, 2022
Review
Born in 1988 in La Seu d'Urgell, a town in the Catalan Pyrenees in Spain, Clàudia Colom moved to Barcelona as a teen to study classical ballet. She has degrees in Catalan Philology and Medieval Cultures, and she’s currently pursuing a doctorate in Romance Languages and Cultures. Simultaneously, Colom has pursued a career as a singer that has resulted in several musical projects, including the band Malva de Runa’s 2014 album Cor i Destral. Deciding to pursue a solo career in 2018, she has appeared at the famous Festival Tradicionàrius, cultivates her dancing skill, and teaches classical Persian dance.
She has now released her first solo album, La flor del dimoni, a thematic musical journey with a dozen deeply sensory songs that present lyrical dialogues, accompanied by Anatolian and western instruments, about love, sex, death, hell and God. Her musical
Tony Rook Band Album: Matters of the Heart Label: Self-Release Genre(s): Contemporary Bluegrass Posted By: Joe Ross
Jul 27, 2022
Review
Tony Rook hails from North Carolina but currently makes his home in Minnesota. He started playing rock music as a teenager, then turned to folk music. In his early 20s, Tony had a folk duo called Riggs and Rook. He then learned to play banjo from Bobby Hicks. In North Carolina, Tony performed with the Eno Ramblers and also had a group called Rook and Wood, releasing one album Labor of Love. In 2006, he moved to Minnesota and joined Dick Kimmel & Co. as their guitarist. In 2016, he released a solo project called The Road Back Home, in 2018 Reflections, and his Tony Rook Band now follows that with Matters of the Heart.
Songwriting remains a focus for Tony, and this album features six original contemporary songs that he had a hand in including “You Never Said Goodbye,” “I Will Pray For You,” “In a Room of Strangers,” “That Song That Says
Britt Pernille Frøholm Album: Arringar Label: Kviven Genre(s): World Posted By: Joe Ross
Jul 27, 2022
Review
Norwegian hardanger fiddler Britt Pernille Frøholm grew up in Nordfjord, was introduced to the local music by her grandfather, then earned degrees at the Ole Bull Academy and Telemark University College. Her on-going musical projects have included traditional music from the northwest, poetry for hardanger, improvised original contemporary music, and various jazz duos and trios. She clearly has many interests, and her experience and skill allow her to merge musical elements from a wealth of styles. A few years ago, her third solo album Fokhaugen was a tribute to the great players in the northwest, brothers Ola and Ivar Kjelstad from Sunnylven. Bringing the past alive again, the master fiddler played old songs that were big hits in their time, from composers who were great personalities. Fokhaugen conveyed the power, tenderness and relevance of their legacy.
Now, on
Nani Noam Vazana Album: Ke Haber Label: Cadiz/Music and Words Genre(s): World Posted By: Joe Ross
Jul 26, 2022
Review
A few months ago, I reviewed an album called Hixa Mía from Spanish viola da gambist and vocalist Pilar Almalé who wistfully sang several traditional songs on it in Judaeo-Spanish (aka Ladino), a Romance language derived from Old Spanish spoken by Sephardim who settled in the Eastern Mediterranean after their expulsion from Spain in 1492. Now, I find myself reviewing an entire album called Ke Haber (What’s New) from Israeli artist Nani Noam Vazana who sings and writes in the endangered language that’s only spoken today by about 60,000 people. Her inspiration can be traced back to hearing her grandmother sing in Ladino, accompanied by fascinating rhythms, in her Moroccan kitchen.
Vazana captures the spirit of the ancient, matriarchal language, delicately accompanied by piano, guitar, bass, percussion and a few hints of cello, charango and trombone. Lyrics
Jul 26, 2022 -
Oslo-based American-Norwegian trio Buster Sledge released their first studio album Call Home in May 2022, following up on their self-recorded and... Read Full Article
Jul 16, 2022 -
PIONEERING INSTRUMENTAL SYNTH-POP BAND DELAY TACTICS REUNITES FOR 2022 ALBUM “ELEMENTS OF SURPRISE”
FIRST SINGLE “VIOLA’S... Read Full Article
Jul 6, 2022 -
Austin, TX - Of course, Lone Star State honky-tonkers The Western Express are aware of the renewed interest in the eras of country... Read Full Article
Jun 22, 2022 -
With the release of his sophomore album, Noli Me Tángere, saxophonist, composer and educator Matthew Muñeses magnifies the... Read Full Article
Jun 19, 2022 -
George Lernis is a drummer, percussionist and composer whose unique musical influences and upbringing meld to create a sound and vision that... Read Full Article
Jun 19, 2022 -
Drummer and composer Clemens Grassmann’s latest creation, Grass Machine, is a tale of the strength of community and support amidst the... Read Full Article
Jun 19, 2022 -
Elsa Nilsson is a flutist, composer and educator from Gothenburg, Sweden currently residing in Brooklyn, New York where she can often be found... Read Full Article
Jun 10, 2022 -
Trumpeter and composer Kalí Rodríguez-Peña blurs the lines between genres as he pays homage to the 21st-century mindset with... Read Full Article
Apr 15, 2022 -
Cantodiscanto has come out with a new album entitled Pandemusica. There are significant collaborations with artists, old and new fellow travelers... Read Full Article
Apr 15, 2022 -
Visage Music is a record label founded by Claudio Carboni and Riccardo Tesi, focused on the production of world music and Italian songwriting.... Read Full Article
