Sometimes you discover a great band by turning on the radio and hearing the new single from the latest flavor in mainstream music. Other times you may go to a show and see an excellent up-and-comer before the headliner takes the stage. And sometimes you just take a chance and click on an obscure looking icon of what looks like the back of a mobile home that recently surfaced in your Spotify dashboard. Sure, why not. (more…)
I’ve never heard of Family of the Year before this week, even though they hail from L.A., but they’ve quickly grown on me. FOTY is comprised of a core of four members that appear on the album – Joe Keefe on vocals and guitar, James Buckey on guitar, Sebastian Keefe on drums, Christina Schroeter on vocals and keys, and are also joined by touring bassist Alex Walker to round out the act. FOTY injects their own brand of Americana into a growing company of folk-rockers that include The Lumineers, Grouplove, Mumford & Sons, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetics, and many others. (more…)
Though I’ve been enjoying listening to this band for about a year now, I was a bit skeptical that Walk the Moon would be able to pull off a headliner tour so early in their career. Their first big label album (RCA Records) was just released this summer. The average age of this crowd isn’t old enough to drink, and a good portion of them probably can’t vote either. As an almost-thirty attendee, I was probably among the top 20 percentile at the concert in terms of age. But the fact is that there is more to Walk the Moon than being really really really ridiculously good looking. (more…)