Darrel Higham 
and the Enforcers
Bop Machine 
(Foot Tapping)

Darrel's fingers fly atop the fretboard with self-assured familiarity. Each best-friend note has been touched on and fired off innumerable times, in a career spanning years and establishing a solid bridge between the coolness of yesterday and the unfolding promise of tomorrows still grander. 

Plus, given the formidable caliber of men at his elbow, Darrel is able to clutch for and secure new astonishments. 

Recommended: "Bop Machine," "A Game For Fools," "The Brain Freeze," "Rockin' Through the Rye," "The Very Last Knock," "I Knew," "A Dark Sky," "That's the Way"

Videos: "Bop Machine" 
             "The Brain Freeze"
                   "Rockin' Through the Rye"
           

https://darrelhigham.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Darrel-Higham-Music-1426875547608354/


http://www.foottappingrecords.co.uk/

Kitty Rose and the Rattlers
s/t
(Katherine A. Cole / Crackerjill Music)

"Everlasting Love" is cannily crafted roots-treasure. Probably the song of the summer. And the following tracks? All of similar pastoral virtue, with grab-hold rhythms.

Recommended: "Everlasting Love," "If I'dah Stayed Home," "Missing the Train," "Donna Goes To Tiajuana," "Might As Well Be Dead"

Videos: "Everlasting Love"
                 "If I'dah Stayed Home"
                 "Missing the Train"


https://www.kittyroseandtherattlers.com/

https://www.facebook.com/kittyroserattlers/

https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/kittyrosetherattlers3



https://open.spotify.com/artist/2HivYGShDZSOjMJ8w9yz2x

https://airplaydirect.com/music/kittyroseandtherattlers/

Reverendo Frankenstein
Tic-Tac 2-song single
(self)

The dungeon floor keeps shifting. Lunatic psychobilly cacophonies of unnatural essence blast from all sides. It's impossible to focus. Overhead strobes flash in random sequence. Their sporadic lightning makes visible monsters large and small, hulking and twisted. Lurching. Cavorting. There's the exit, So what?


Videos: "Tic-Tac" (live)
             "O Raio Que o Parta"



https://www.facebook.com/ReverendoFrankenstein/

https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/reverendofrankenstein3


https://www.amazon.com/Tic-Tac-Reverendo-Frankenstein/dp/B07QH7X4W4

https://music.apple.com/us/album/tic-tac-single/1459783127

https://open.spotify.com/album/0Q4ZdtWaafLYl3pPOMFfrM

https://www.deezer.com/us/album/93202672

https://ar.napster.com/artist/reverendo-frankenstein/album/tic-tac

The Hungry Williams
Brand New Thing
(The Hungry Williams / Rochelle Records)

In the midst of happily tipsy revelry, with hands-upraised, New Orleans/swing/jump-blues thunderation an unstoppably driven force, not a single thing matters but the moment. The glorious moment.

Recommended: "Brand New Thing," "Everybody Loves Me (Why Don't You?)," "Hook, Line, and Sinker," "Baby Don't Do It," "Go On Fool," "For You My Love," "No More Heartaches," "Whip It On Me," "Get Your Hat"

Video: "Brand New Thing"


https://hungrywilliams.com/

https://www.facebook.com/HungryWilliams/

https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/thehungrywilliams


https://music.amazon.com/albums/B07R4GXLQP?trackAsin=B07R5H63PM

https://open.spotify.com/album/3x0LX1WJ7RYmp90UZqHbDC

https://music.apple.com/us/album/brand-new-thing/1461815749

https://soundcloud.com/hungrywilliams/brand-new-thing?utm_source=soundcloud&utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=facebook

Anth Purdy
Night of the Cobra
(self / Tinstones Records)

A guitarist of high repute ascends anew, combining into formidable manifestation sweeps and ricochet-sparks that burst across everywhere. And ain't it a kick.

Recommended:  "Night of the Cobra," "Alabama Shakedown," "Mad Men," "Let's Go Surfin'," "Hollywood Angel" "Machine Gun Kelly," "Moonshine Shorty," . "Rooster's Rockin' the Barnyard"

Videos: "Night of the Cobra"
                    "Alabama Shakedown" 
                    "Mad Men"


https://www.facebook.com/anthpurdymusic/

https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/anthpurdy3#

Crown City Bombers
Here Comes the Night
(self)

Vivid, resounding illustration that classic stylizings, well dealt, can shatter the moment we're in to ebullient smithereens. Professional sheen accentuates core devotion.

Recommended: "Rockin' Tomato," "As Long As I'm Movin'," "Here Comes the Night," "Things I Used To Do," "If Only," "I'm the Lonely One," "Tore Up," "40 Cup," "A Big Hunka Love"

Video: "Rockin' Tomato"
                 "As Long As I'm Movin'" (live)
                 "Here Comes the Night" (live at Viva Las Vegas 22)

https://www.reverbnation.com/crowncitybombers?fbclid=IwAR0vOIkRV52ZO0H1YA0n8KCZjSCuMZAbm76xHg6ugjxelLWRxBPr8GXAX_I

https://www.facebook.com/CCBombers/

https://crowncitybombers.hearnow.com/


https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/crowncitybombers

Big Time Lew and the Screamin' Rockets
Let's Swing!
(self / Blue Coati)

Lew is the man the mission demanded: An on-fire 88s-pounder who can throw back his head and roar with neon-baccanaliac command, romping through wee-hours joints to the reeling joy of folks up to good times.

Recommended: "Let's Swing," "Rock 'n' Roll Sweetness," "Big Time Lew," "We're Better Together," "Do the Boogie," "Party Queen," "Karolane"

Videos: Promo (live)
             Promo 2 (live)


https://www.bigtimelew.com/

https://www.facebook.com/BigTimeLew/


https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/bigtimelewandthescreaminrocket

Matchstick Johnny
Let Me Tell You About My Baby
single
(self / Reeltone Recordings)

Turn that wriggling burlap poke upside-down and let's get a look at what's in there: Slide guitar on the verge of an episode; whoops, glottal stops, ominous intonations, and undefinable vocal pyrotechnics; authoritative slap-bass striding inexorably; and the same whipcrack beat that's made ecstatic converts out of vulnerable neophytes since Hector was a pup. 

Video: "Let Me Tell You About My Baby"


https://matchstickjohnny.com/

https://www.facebook.com/matchstickjohnny/



https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/matchstickjohnny4

https://matchstickjohnny.bandcamp.com/album/let-me-tell-you-about-my-baby-single

https://open.spotify.com/album/0vE8ajZzvlkIVwL4ByuQVH

https://soundcloud.com/matchstickjohnny/let-me-tell-you-about-my-baby

The Kokomo Kings
Fooled By the City Lights single
(Rhythm Bomb)

.
Were rock'n'roll a monarchical proposition, the Kokomo Kings would be found in the succession line. But in our musical community, every man's a king. And, as is so well demonstrated here, there ain't nothin' to it, but to do it.

"Fooled By the City Lights" (CD Baby link)


http://www.kokomokings.com/

https://www.facebook.com/KokomoKings/

http://www.rhythmbomb.com/the-kokomo-kings/



https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/thekokomokings9

https://open.spotify.com/album/2uwpf4dJvXPu0mNJhyDE3E

https://music.yandex.ru/album/7576918

Awaken I Am
Beauty In Tragedy
(Victory Records)

The steadily amphetemine pulse undergirding sheets of guitar, layered vocals, and audio effects ensures consistent progress on an odyssey sensational.

Recommended: "Kin," "By Your Side," "Dissolution," "Indifference," "The Stages of Grief"

Video: "Dissolution"


http://awakeniam.co/

https://www.facebook.com/awakeniam/

https://www.victoryrecords.com/awakeniam


https://www.amazon.com/Beauty-Tragedy-Awaken-I-Am/dp/B07LC5QYLG

(Credit: Dustin Smith / RockYourLyrics.com)

The Royal Hounds
Low-Class Songs For High-Class People
(self)

Such cohesiveness as to not even allow air bubbles. Virtuosity all over the place. Listeners might notice these guys are having as much fun as anyone, were said listeners not too busy dancing.

Recommended: "Manteiga Braganca," "The Walk," "Pororoca," "Wackety-Do," "Ghost Riders In the Sky," "Tweakers From Outer Space," "Road Scholar"

Videos: "Tweakers From Outer Space"
             "Manteiga Braganca"
                  "Wackety-Do"
             "Pororoca"
             

https://theroyalhounds.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Theroyalhounds/

https://kgmusicpress.com/the-royal-hounds-press-release

Brioles
I Wanna Go Home
El Toro

Yes, ominous Old World melodies and determinedly propulsive exertions can indeed meet up in a dark alley and throw down something pretty damn cool.


Recommended: "Lejos del Desierto," "I Wanna Go Home," "El Afilador," "Tell Me," "No Train For Me" 

Video: "I Wanna Go Home"
                 "Lejos del Desierto"
            "El Afilador"


https://www.facebook.com/Brioles-47004889331/

https://www.eltororecords.com/El-Toro-Records/New-Talent/BRIOLES-I-WANNA-GO-HOME::477.html



https://www.amazon.com/I-Wanna-Go-Home-Brioles/dp/B07LFKLMDN/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=Brioles&qid=1557630950&s=dmusic&search-type=ss&sr=1-3-spell

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/i-wanna-go-home-ep/1447308708

https://open.spotify.com/album/5akdyzoFJaH95WLYgnRENz

Raise your glass to local-market radio

A June 7 Guardian article was headlined "America's rural radio stations are vanishing -- and taking the country's soul with them."

"Small-town radio is fizzling nationwide, as stations struggle to attract advertising dollars," writer Debbie Weingarten told readers. "And as station owners are forced to sell, media conglomerates snap up local frequencies for rock-bottom prices, for the sole purpose of relocating them to urban areas. In a more affluent market, they can be flipped for a higher price. With limited frequencies available, larger broadcasters purchase as many as possible -- especially those higher on the dial -- in a race not dissimilar to a real estate grab."

The Guardian writer profiled Arizona country station KHIL, which is run by Mark Lucke. Founded in 1958 by Rex Allen ("the last of the singing cowboys"), it is located in the small town of Willcox. Per Weingarten, KHIL "has long been the daily soundtrack for this frontier town (population 3,500) that prides itself on its cowboy culture and quiet pace of life."

KHIL shares access to a 5,000 watt tower with several other stations. And its "dungeon" space is occupied by only stacking radio conductors and a washing machine.

"Lucke explains that country music star Tanya Tucker 'used to hang out here with the jocks.' This was before she recorded 'Delta Dawn' at the age of 13 [in 1972] and left Willcox to produce a slew of hits, which landed her in the Country Music Hall of Fame. Her familiar drawl can still be heard at the top of every hour on KHIL, saying 'Hello, Willcox. This is Tanya Tucker. And you're listening to the station I always listened to when I was a kid.'"

It's been decades since singular limited-market radio was either shoved aside or subsumed by the corporate-radio behemoth, with its product-moving mindset and numbingly formulaic nationwide playlists.

The Guardian piece put me in mind of simpler eras, ones in which tectonic culture changes were possible by boldly dropping broadcast needles on 45s.

I thought of local radio stations' pivotal role in taking the music to the people, of the indispensable role DJs had played in both rock'n'roll's development and its access to young listeners. 

In the 1950s, those kids huddled around stand-up consoles or carried portables. And in my early 1960s pre-teen years, we cradled a hand-sized transistor lovingly under bed-covers; its tiny glow, DJs' voices, and the brash rebel music were our vital connection to the cool-world that pulsed after dark across the country.

We were an underground community, shoulder-to-shoulder in love with the music all our own.

I thought of Dewey Philips and his Red, White, and Blue show on WHBQ, in Memphis. Sun Records owner Sam Philips (no relation to the DJ) had visited Dewey at the radio station to deliver Elvis's 1954 cover of Arthur Crudup's "That's All Right." And when Dewey did play that first Elvis single, something big started that shook the world and will surely continue into perpetuity.

Another landmark the Guardian article brought to mind was Alan Freed's nationally impactive, Cleveland-based Moondog's Rock'n'Roll Party. Freed exposed his teen audience to a range of styles, from doo-wop to the stormimgs of Chuck Berry, Gene Vincent, and Richie Valens. 

Like rock'n'roll itself, Freed's work advanced the breaking down of racial barriers. Better living through downbeats.

With his radio show, Freed made a massive contribution. The upstart musics we dug became part of the uniquely American popular culture vernacular, one that was created from diverse racial, folk, and generational experiences.

I thought, too, of the numerous pirate radio operations that once dotted the Texas/Mexico border. Underground DJs like Wolfman Jack (long before his celebrity) had given wee-hour visibility to sounds reflective of real cultural expression generally ignored by status quo taste arbiters. 

Later recognition was paid crucial pirate radio by the American Graffiti film, the Blasters' wonderful "Border Radio," and various CD compilations of undersung-but-effectual recordings.

The Guardian article contained particular information about a tiny station struggling against indifferent engines of change. But we all had for decades known of general moves away from the independent local broadcasting that so enriched American popular culture and gave important spotlight to less-respected expression.

Free from the oppression of commercial obsessions and social dictates, local DJs had created an atmosphere in which experimentation could develop and marginalized voices state their validity.

Once glorious realities, such outlets had first faded into memory, and now were slipping into complete nonexistence.

I was already sad. The Guardian article only made me more so.

Beegie Adair
Grover's Hat Project
(Adair Music Group LLC)

Noteworthy among the many splendors here aggregated is a deceptive simplicity; the warm sort that welcomes all while doing handily what so few can. 

Recommended: "Darkness On the Delta" (feat. Vince Gill), "King-Size Papa" (feat. Jonell Mosser), "San Antonio Rose," "Anytime" (feat. Ranger Doug), "Honey, Come and Dance With Me" (feat. Kenny Sears), "That's My Desire" (feat. Ray Stevens), "If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)" (feat. Delbert McClinton), "Twelfth Street Rag," "Someday Soon, Sweetheart" (feat. Carolyn Martin)

Videos: "King-Size Papa"
                    "San Antonio Rose"
                    "Honey, Come and Dance With Me"


https://www.beegieadair.com/home

https://www.facebook.com/Beegie.Adair.Music/

https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/beegieadair25


https://www.amazon.com/Grovers-Hat-Project-Beegie-Adair/dp/B07L22KDW9

https://us.7digital.com/artist/beegie-adair/release/grovers-hat-project-8747336

https://open.spotify.com/album/03h6Ue9jM1mPnOpwx5PdE0

Mike Jacoby
Long Beach Calling
(self )

Ex-Haymaker Mike crafts reassuring country-familiarity interlaced with arresting alt mind. Intriguing avenues flare up unanticipated in the midst of roads recognizable and favored. Don't loll on assumptions.

Recommended: "Long Beach Calling," "Play Like Richards," "Here and Now," "Smile," "Pine Box," "Your Love Song," "Hangers (A Christmas Song)"

Video: "Long Beach Calling"


https://mikejacobymusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/mike.jacoby.5



https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/mikejacoby3

https://www.amazon.com/Long-Beach-Calling-Mike-Jacoby/dp/B07R7TDK8J/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=mike+jacoby&qid=1559433134&s=music&sr=1-2-catcorr

Stevie Bart
Tell Me If Your Love Is True single
I Just Have To Rock single
(copyright Dennis Preston / Stevie Bart)

Broad spaces give room for direct downbeats, material and vocal presence recalling Roy Head. Sixties-styled, go-go soul and rock'n'roll fun-shimmy, with all participating of crack caliber. Very much worth attention.


"Tell Me If Your Love Is True"
"I Just Have To Rock"


https://www.facebook.com/DennisPrestonOfficial/
(Guitarist Preston leads the Rockin' Ambassadors, who accompanied Bart on this single.)

https://www.facebook.com/therockinambassadors/


https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/steviebart https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/steviebart2

https://open.spotify.com/artist/5nDAv3cXfmbwStcrYTOWCQ?si=d5QiCGtARRaVPy91I2WhBQ

https://music.amazon.in/albums/B07S8GMFB1?force=true

https://music.amazon.in/albums/B07S9JWMF2

DeadShots
Wanted
(Western Star)

They get in, make their powerful points, and get out. Which is exactly what raw-boned rockabillies ought to do.

Recommended: "Wanted," "Boppin' Gal," "Blood, Sweat, and Beer," "Lovin' Man," "Everything's Alright," "Lovin's Easy,"  "Cry Over You," "Mean Girl," "Ain't No Rest Foe the Wicked"

Videos: "Wanted" (live) 
             "Boppin' Gal" (live)


https://www.thedeadshots.co.uk/

https://www.facebook.com/TheDeadShotsRockabilly/

https://western-star.tmstor.es/cart/product.php?id=41148&cur=USD



https://www.amazon.com/Wanted-DEADSHOTS/dp/B07MPK2DZ7

https://open.spotify.com/album/6QUcGI4VFKtv8h6oZ94iWX

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/wanted/1449751834