Matthew Keefer's Blog: Music Ravings by Matthew Keefer, page 6

Newport Folk Fest, Friday: The Folk and the Fury

And here we are again, recapping our Newport Folk Fest weekend. This is our 11th year covering the folk fest (tenth for Music Ravings!) and we need to thank y’all for stopping by. We hope you find our blog useful to you whether it be in finding new music; knowing which albums to avoid; or just generally having fun with our rather randomly constructed interviews. So every year at the folk fest we make a promise to ourselves to smell the flowers, hear the folk and not run ourselves wild from st...

Rick Massimo on the Newport Folk Fest: “Prove People Wrong”

Arts and Entertainment reporter Rick Massimo is well aware of the lack of historical research on the Newport Folk Festival. The 53-year-old’s “I Got a Song: A History of the Newport Folk Festival” is perhaps the one book that fills that void, in a thorough and intensely researched way. “I feel like a lot of people take the festival for granted,” said Massimo in a recent phone interview. “There’s just an attitude that it runs itself at this point.” Few realize the modest start that the Newport...

Oliver the Crow Debut Doesn’t Quite Soar

Oliver the Crow – Self-Titled Self-released -out June 22 3 / 5   We brimmed with excitement at the Civil Wars-inspired Nashville duo Oliver the Crow. Kaitlyn Raitz and Ben Plotnick trade cello and violin riffs respectively, and weave their vocals throughout their confident self-released folker of a debut, and we greatly enjoyed picking this album up. Their instrumentation is very barebones, their vocals simple, and their sound sparse; they make a lot with very little. But the proof of the pud...

Jalen N’Gonda Sports Suit, Most Beautiful Voice You Are Likely to Hear

The Loft, Portsmouth, NH. Sun. 6-10-18, Doors 7pm. $15. The Narrows Center for the Arts, Fall River, MA. Fri. 6-15-18, Doors 8pm. $17 adv., $19 day of show.* Great Scott, Allston, MA. Sat. 6-16-18, Doors 8:30 pm. $15.* *opening for River Whyless   This is something special. Jalen N’Gonda is a soul/R&B singer with a silvery pure voice. Perhaps his parents knew this before he was born, and chose the appropriate birthplace of Silver Spring, MD. In either case, N’Gonda has one of those voices tha...

Crofton’s “Hello” Earnest, Vulnerable, Uninspired

Chris Crofton – Hello It’s Me Arrowhawk Records -out June 22 2.5 / 5   Nashville’s macabre comedian Chris Crofton fights through alcoholism and the loss of a relationship in Hello It’s Me, a smattering of laid-back rock tracks centered around his newfound sobriety. Coming through the other side of a life change has given Crofton a soft, earnest sound and desire to share his insight, and a handful of mainstream musicians have come together to support him: Jim James’ guitar is here, as well as...

Folkie Justin Townes Earle Rides into Mass.

The Sinclair, Cambridge, MA. Mon. 5-21-18, Doors 7pm, Show 8pm. $25 adv., $30 Day of show. The Narrows Center for the Arts, Fall River, MA. Fri. 5-25-18. Doors 7pm, Show 8pm. $35 adv., $40 Day of show. Space Ballroom, Hamden, CT. Sat. 5-26-18. Doors 7pm, Show 8pm. $27.50-$30. NOTE: Lilly Hiatt opens; VIP tickets available all three dates.   Question: this folkie singer-songwriter is reminiscent of a spry James Taylor; he also has a lucky seven full-lengths to his name, hit the Newport Folk Fe...

Lake Street Dive “Freed Up” in Old Groove

Lake Street Dive – Free Yourself Up Nonesuch Records -out May 4 3.5 / 5   Lake Street Dive has come a long way from the dives they (and streetcorners) they’ve performed on. Former Bostonites and now current New Yorkers (no bitterness here!), the quartet digs into a groove similar to their 2014 Bad Self Portraits, a groove of jazzy quartet with pop tendencies and non-standard song choices. Their latest Free Yourself Up hits upon their more whimsical notes (lyrically) in common with 2016’s Side...

Shakey Graves’ Can’t Wake Up a Soft Dream

Shakey Graves – Can’t Wake Up Dualtone Music -out May 4 4.5 / 5 We have some misplaced anger at Austin-ite Shakey Graves. You see, his albums (specifically his last one, 2014’s And the War Came) are incredibly difficult to review. We reluctantly gave this one a 3.5 (see the review here) when, really, it’s one of our favorites of the year. Shame on you, Alejandro Rose-Garcia, for flying under the radar! The “problem” with his music is that it’s difficult to categorize, and to compare to other...

Digital Copies of Keeper – Right Here!

Hello faithful readers! We’ve decided to add the digital pdfs of The Keeper of Dreams Vols. 1 and 2 to our blog right here. And we’re going to drop it from Amazon as well. What’s that? Seriously? How much? Free. Isn’t that great? We’d like to have your email address for our mailing list, that’s all (entirely voluntary). What’s going to be on the mailing list? Drafts of new stories, of course. And links to those that land themselves in lit mags. So stuff to read and keep busy with! Sign up, an...

Part Lady Parts, Part Justice League, All Telethon

Today we want you to catch up on your comedic telethon intake; we suspect you might’ve come a bit short after the Super Bowl weekend. On Feb 1st, the Lady Parts Justice League held a telethon celebrating… ummm… vagi- we mean, lady parts (tee hee). Do check out the fundraiser at their satellite site, www.ladypartsjustice.com, and bid on some of the ridiculous items up for auction (see below). These auctions end on Feb. 14th: Valentine’s Day warning! The LPJL is an organization of comics and ot...