Glass Animals, “I Love You So F***ing Much.” Riding on the high of their 2021 mega-hit “Heat Waves,” British pop band Glass Animals have big shoes to fill with their newest album. Can the group achieve another chart-topper while also satisfying their longtime fans, many whom generally prefer the…

Deep Purple, “=1.” For a band that’s been around for more than 55 years, Deep Purple has been on a bit of a hot streak for the past decade. Its three albums of original material over that span—-2013’s Now WHAT?!, 2017’s inFinite and 2020’s Whoosh!—weren’t just artistic achievements for…

Megan Moroney, “Am I Okay?” After a whirlwind year with a headlining tour, a speedy rise to fame and a Stagecoach festival performance in Southern California, Megan Moroney is ready to show the world who she is with her sophomore LP, Am I Okay? Am I Okay? Megan Moroney…

Uncle Kracker, “Coffee & Beer.” It’s all about the simple life these days for Michigan-born singer Matthew Shafer, better known as Uncle Kracker. Paying the bills, punching the clock and grabbing a beer at the end of the day are the sentiments that the 50-year-old crooner carries. Coffee &…

Cigarettes After Sex, “X’s.” Greg Gonzalez of Cigarettes After Sex cuts straight to the chase when it comes to the meaning of X’s. He briefly references it in an intimate verse on the album’s opening track. It calls out Bert Stern’s Marilyn Monroe crucifix photos, taken weeks before her…

Phish, “Evolve.” Jam band Phish has been around a really long time. “As the band has evolved and the world has evolved, the fanbase has evolved with it,” Vulture wrote in 2019. Evolve Phish JEMP, July 12 8/10 Get the album on Amazon Music. The comment was prescient. but…

Kehlani, “CRASH” On one level, it’s Kehlani’s superb voice that’s the driving force of their latest album, CRASH. A voice that that stops a song from being background music and forces you to stop what you’re doing, lean in and listen. On another level, alternate level, it’s the lyrics…

Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, “South of Here.” Rags-to-riches stories are easy to write. What is considerably more difficult is telling the story of what happens next. Often, the hero, who we have staunchly supported through tough times, becomes an insufferable egoist, a petty tyrant or a tremendous…

Gracie Abrams, “The Secret of Us.” Gracie Abrams had a whirlwind 2023 and her sophomore album, The Secret of Us, is certainly something to show for it. After releasing debut LP Good Riddance and opening for Taylor Swift on the Eras Tour, Abrams would be forgiven for wanting to…

“Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty.” Two things come into clear focus while listening to the 20 Tom Petty songs on the new Petty Country compilation album, meant to emphasize the rocker’s Southern roots and his influence on country musicians. Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration…