Creative

Footer Legal

Main

NavBar

Sections

Topics

Become a subscriber today to get unlimited access

Thanks for reading!

Register to continue

Talkhouse

LA-based indie pop rocker Maddie Ross was once described by The 405 as an &#8220;Alt-Pop Dream Queen.&#8221; Ross writes guitar-driven anthems about her producer, co-writer, and longtime girlfriend Wolfy. In September of 2018, songwriting legend KT Tunstall came across Ross&rsquo;s music during a Twitter exchange, and immediately reached out via direct message to invite Ross to open on a 22-city North American tour. Ross agreed, and quickly released her sophomore EP, Touch Hands, Touch Bodies in anticipation of the tour. Tunstall fans fell in love with Ross&rsquo;s high energy performances, &ldquo;abundant cussing,&rdquo; and candid love songs about being lesbian and proud. In May of 2019, Ross released her debut album Never Have I Ever, produced and co-written by Wolfy. The album was named Billboard Staff&#8217;s &#8220;Top 50 Albums of 2019 So Far,&#8221; and has gained praise from Teen Vogue, MTV, Billboard and NPR Music. Ross toured in support of Never Have I Ever by again opening for Tunstall.
(Photo Credit: Aubrey Devin)

Maddie Ross

Music

How I Found Myself Opening For KT Tunstall on a 22-City Tour

Internationally beloved singer-songwriter/producer/electronic musician Azam Ali’s award-winning career has been defined by boldly defying genres and commercial expectations to heed her creative instincts. In keeping with this fearless spirit, her latest opus Phantoms, is a masterstroke of artistic wholeness and focus. The darkly alluring record is Azam’s first self-produced entirely English language album that melds Azam’s other-worldly, cinematic musicality with gorgeously heartbreaking gloomy electro-pop, adding a whole new dimension to an unconventional artist who has always eluded categorization.
Responsible for every facet of Phantoms from songwriting, singing, programming, to production, Azam Ali pushes through the glass ceiling and enters the largely male dominated tech world to join in the ranks of other visionary female electronic musicians and producers who are shifting and shaping the landscape of electronic music.

Azam Ali

The Sacred Microcosm of the Cocteau Twins

Fury is a hardcore band from Orange County, California consisting of singer Jeremy Stith, lead guitarist Madison Woodward, rhythm guitarist Alfredo Guiterrez, bassist Daniel Samayoa, and drummer Alex Samayoa. Forming in 2014, they established themselves quickly, releasing both a demo on Washington, DC’s Mosher Delight Records and the Kingdom Come EP on Boston’s Triple B Records in the same calendar year. They built on the melodic legacy of Orange County by way of heavy, rhythmic, start-stop guitars and Stith’s wordy and referential lyrics. Then, in 2016, came their debut LP on Triple B Records, Paramount, which was met with respect from the hardcore community and praise from outsider critics.
Now, Fury releases Failed Entertainment, their sophomore LP and debut with Boston-based Run For Cover Records. As with their previous records, “Failed Entertainment” was recorded by Colin Knight and their own guitarist Madison Woodward at Paradise Records, in Anaheim. This time, though, the band also sought new surroundings and outside expertise, collaborating with engineer Andrew Oswald at Secret Bathroom Studios, as well as mixing engineer Jack Endino (Nirvana, Soundgarden, Seaweed).

Jeremy Stith

Fury Finds Inspiration in Wim Wenders and Sam Shepard

Mackenzie Howe is one of the singers, songwriters, and guitarists of The Wild Reeds. The Los Angeles band released their third studio album, Cheers, on March 8th via Dualtone Records. The band will be touring throughout the U.S. this spring. Check out dates <a href="http://thewildreedsmusic.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Mackenzie Howe

Queen of the In-Betweens

Alt-rock godfather and Chainsaw Kittens frontman, Tyson Meade, is back yet again with another fabulous new album, Robbing the Nuclear Family. Like his critically-acclaimed 2014 solo release Tomorrow in Progress, which included fantastic contributions from Smashing Pumpkins’ Jimmy Chamberlin, Other Lives’ Jesse Tabish, and The Flaming Lips’ Derek Brown, Robbing features contributions from elder statesmen of the Beijing rock scene PK 14, Shanghai violinist Haffijy, The Flaming Lips’ Matt Duckworth, and Grammy-award winning drummer Rob Martin. Robbing also has the heavy imprint of multi-instrumentalist David “Immy” Immerglück of alternative rock greats Counting Crows, Camper Van Beethoven, and the Monks of Doom.
Through the years, Meade has toured with Iggy Pop, Smashing Pumpkins, Jane’s Addiction, the Meat Puppets, and many others. Butch Vig and John Agnello have produced his albums, and Spike Jonze, George Salisbury, and Phil Harder have directed his videos.

Tyson Meade

A Billion Dollar Baby on the Desolate Plains

Adam Weiner is the frontman and songwriter for the band Low Cut Connie. He has written articles for SPIN, Billboard, and TIDAL. He lives in Philadelphia.
(Photo Credit: David Norbut)

Adam Weiner

Pour on the Steam: Little Richard at Age 19

Drew Holcomb and his band the Neighbors turned a new corner with 2017’s Souvenir, a highly collaborative album that debuted #1 on iTunes and Amazon and garnered acclaim from Rolling Stone, CMT, Entertainment Weekly and more.  A road warrior for more than a decade, Holcomb has spent adulthood traveling from place to place with a catalog of vibrant, honest songs that explore the full range of American roots music.  Holcomb &amp; crew have appeared at Bonnaroo, Outsidelands, Stagecoach and more, while sharing stages with legendary artists including Willie Nelson, John Hiatt, Ryan Adams, and The Avett Brothers.
An Emmy Award-winner with his music synced in over 75 of TV’s most watched shows, Holcomb has also appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! twice, most recently for his collaborative EP Goodbye Road with JOHNNYSWIM performing their resounding single “Ring the Bells” in summer of 2018. Among Holcomb’s ambitious projects are his Moon River Music Festival, an annual event benefitting local and national non-profits and Magnolia Records, a monthly vinyl subscription service, both curated meticulously by Holcomb himself. In 2019, Drew and his wife Ellie have teamed up for the Electricity EP which features two new original songs and a stunning Willie Nelson cover, “On the Road Again,” as well as limited engagement tour – The You and Me Tour: An Evening with Drew &amp; Ellie Holcomb &#8211; to kick start what promises to be a busy year.

Drew Holcomb

On the Road with Willie Nelson

Ryley Walker is a singer-songwriter who grew up in Rockford, Illinois. His latest album is a lovely, unironic tribute to a lost Dave Matthews record, The Lilywhite Sessions.
(Photo Credit: Evan Jenkins)

Ryley Walker

God of the Townies

Jerry David DeCicca’s most recent album is The Unlikely Optimist and His Domestic Adventures, featuring Augie Meyers from Sir Douglas Quintet. DeCicca is also the producer of albums by singer-songwriters, Larry Jon Wilson, Ed Askew, Will Beeley, Chris Gantry and others. He works in social services in San Antonio, Texas.

Jerry David DeCicca

Better Days: on Depression, Mental Health Care, and The Boss

Hutch Harris was born in New York City, raised in Silicon Valley and has resided in Portland, Oregon for the past twenty years.  Harris founded and was the lead singer/songwriter of the Thermals. He is currently working on his first solo LP. Follow Harris on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/instantanxiety" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&amp;q=https://twitter.com/thethermals&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1539364798634000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFoiS1M3sGWO60C3dnqFFla-DuGbw">here</a>.
(Photo Credit: Westin Glass)

Hutch Harris

Never Meet Your Heroes, Unless They’re Kim Deal

<div>William Rutledge is an overly emotional insomniac living in Brooklyn. He writes, records, and performs as Horror Movie Marathon. He goes to therapy and thinks you probably should too.</div>

Horror Movie Marathon

Finding Love in Mall Goth Purgatory

Following several monumental decades of moving  from South Africa to America, building a worldwide audience for his music while also raising his children to adulthood, sing/guitarist Jonathan Butler arrived at a crossroads in his marriage which ended in divorce. A few years later Jonathan met violinist Nadira  Kimberly, who brought profound new meaning to his life. Her presence by his side became the inspiration for Close To You, his tribute to the hallowed pop canon of Burt Bacharach (music) and Hal David (lyrics).
Butler’s musical story began at age 12 recording the Burt Bacharach song “Please Stay,” originally recorded by vocal quartet The Drifters in 1961. Escaping then-­Apartheid-­poisoned South Africa through a love for music instilled within him from his parents and siblings, Butler has become a world-­renowned singer, guitarist and entertainer via songs ranging from the pop of “Sarah, Sarah” and the soul of “Do You Love Me” to the jazz of “Deliverance” and his contemporary gospel classic “Be Encouraged.” Now 56, Butler has come back to Bacharach full circle with the music of Close To You.  
<a href="http://www.jonathanbutler.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">http://www.jonathanbutler.com</a>

role models