Eliza Neals: "Thunder In The House" (2026) CD Review

These are days when you just want to scream at people, "Stop being so awful." And there aren't always the right, or appropriate, outlets for that energy, but keeping it inside just eats at us. Fortunately, there are some voices that seem to take that energy and send it in a more positive direction, and listening to them works to release and even transfer that energy in us. It's a special kind of magic that certain singers are able to do. Eliza Neals is especially adept at it. It's almost a relief that she has a new album out. Titled Thunder In The House, it contains all original material, written or co-written by Eliza Neals. Joining her on this album are Michael Puwal on guitar, Doug Woern on bass, Steve Lacross on drums, and Justin Headley on drums, along with guests on a few tracks. The album was produced and arranged by Eliza Neals, and co-produced by Michael Puwal.

Eliza Neals opens the album with "Speedy Beady," with a good, mean blues vibe to immediately set the mood. "I got a red rooster," she sings at the beginning, which reminds us of another great blues number, "Little Red Rooster." But this original number soon goes in its own direction. I love that moment when it kicks in with a brutal force. The power was already there in Eliza's vocals, of course. This song doesn't shy away from violence, from death. "That boy protected me from harm/Then a mangy, mangy dog came sneaking up around/And he chomped Speedy Beady up into his jaws/He killed my favorite rooster/Now he's in the ground." But there is also a playful spirit to this song, a certain humor. This song was written by Eliza Neals, Michael Puwal and H.J. Neals. It's followed by "Love Will." "Can you spare a touch, can you spare a kiss?" Eliza asks at the beginning of this one. "We're all alone in the dark/Open up your eyes/We're all alone in the dark." Indeed. Then she tells us, "So many people losing their way/We need love to brighten up their day." See? She is able to take our frustration and channel it in a much better direction. "Love's the antidote." It's interesting to hear that message wrapped in a great, mean blues garment. The trouble, the frustration is still there; this isn't some kind of sunshine pop song, promising everything is going to be okay without any effort on our part. It's going to be work, the music tells us. But we can do it, the music also tells us.

With "Blues Bombshell," Eliza Neals gets sexy and seductive, sounding so inviting. Because of course a song called "Blues Bombshell" must be a personal number coming from such a vocalist. "I did not mean to tear you apart," she sings. She inserts a slight pause after the word "mean," providing us with just enough time to begin to guess where she might be taking us. Did any of us correctly guess how that line was to end? This song is a cool, slow strut. "I'm your blues bombshell/Saving souls from hell." This music does save us from the hell of the current political and social landscape, driving away all those demons. Interestingly, she later sings, "Don't take me apart." This track features some great stuff on guitar, as well as some cool stuff on keys. Mike Hepner plays both organ and piano on this track. "All Alone" then surprisingly begins on keys, kind of easing in. This time it is Eliza Neals herself on organ and piano. And there is a beautiful ache in her voice as she sings, "I'm looking for you every day and every night." This song has a different vibe, a different tone, with a heavy kind of pop flavor. "I'm all alone in my dream/Won't you rescue me."

"Locked Up" opens in a somber, introspective place, with some nice work on piano by Eliza Neals. "I done lost, lost everything/I even lost, lost my wedding ring," she sings. I assume what she means is that the marriage has ended, and focusing on the physical object is an interesting way of conveying that loss, like the last remnant of a relationship. Eliza Neals provides her own backing vocal work, which has a different tone from her lead vocals, showing even more of her range. "I'm locked up (locked up) from the inside." And I think we can all relate to these lines: "Next thing I lose/Sure gonna be my mind." Michael Puwal delivers some excellent guitar work. "So many people living in poverty/Wake me up from this crazy scheme." I love that in that line she uses "scheme" instead of "dream." That's followed by "Wicked Heart." The first line is delivered a cappella, then the band comes in. This one has a groove you can dance to, and is more in the rock realm, but of course still with that delicious raw power. Mark Leach is on organ for this one, delivering some really nice stuff. "So many times/I look you right in your eyes/Just lies, lies, lies."

In "Unoriginal Bitch," Eliza sings, "Unoriginal, everything you say and do/Come to bother me/Make me feel like slapping you." Oh yeah, we are right with her. I love this song, and I love the attitude in her delivery. By the way, some people deserve to be slapped. They just do, and there should be no punishment for doing what needs to be done. This is a wonderful and fun song, featuring some strong guitar work. Then "One Monkey (Don't Stop No Show)" begins with a strong beat, and soon it features some cool work by Mark Leach on organ. Frankie Maneiro is on guitar for this track, and Michael Puwal is on drums. I only wish this song didn't use that "shelf"/"self" rhyme (and it uses it twice). Other than that, this song is a fun, totally enjoyable number with a good energy. The album concludes with its title track, "Thunder In The House," which begins in a delicious, haunting atmosphere, the music soon breaking through the smoke, the darkness. This track, which was written by Eliza Neals and Michael Puwal, features another powerful vocal performance. Powerful and moving. There is also great use of percussion on this track. It's a captivating number.

CD Track List

1. Speedy Beady
2. Love Will
3. Blues Bombshell
4. All Alone
5. Locked Up
6. Wicked Heart
7. Unoriginal Bitch
8. One Monkey (Don't Stop No Show)
9. Thunder In The House

Thunder In The House was released on March 26, 2026.

The Stu Olsen Band, The Smokey Lonesome, and Luna Sea at Music Garden L.A., 6-28-26: Photos

What's better than spending an afternoon outdoors enjoying some great music with good friends? Not much, as far as I'm concerned. Yesterday The Stu Olsen Band, The Smokey Lonesome and Luna Sea each delivered strong sets at Music Garden L.A. in Highland Park. Here are some photos from the show:

Luna Sea (Darlene Luna) was up first, backed by Bob Pritchard on drums. The two delivered some really nice original material, along with a couple of covers. I especially enjoyed "I Thought You Were The One" and "All Alone."

The Smokey Lonesome was up next. These guys always deliver the goods, and yesterday's set was particularly delicious. It included great versions of "Mojave," "Cannabis" and "Desert Run," along along with some wonderful covers, including "White Freightliner Blues," "Silver Threads And Golden Needles" and "Your Cheatin' Heart."

Closing out the afternoon was The Stu Olsen Band. The band, by the way, was Tranquilina, and this time they backed him for the entire set, which was fantastic. They opened with "Bright Burning Street," his song about Townes Van Zandt. Sophia Delgado played lap steel on that one and the next two songs, then switched to electric guitar for the rest of the set. "This is where we turn into a punk band," Stu said before the switch to guitar. Other highlights included excellent renditions of "It Ain't Medicine" and "Valkerie."

That was the end of the scheduled performers, but then James and Sophia did a brief set of Gram Parsons songs, including "$1000 Dollar Wedding," "Return Of The Grievous Angel" and "A Song For You." A special treat to wrap things up.

Music Garden L.A. is located at 5133 York Blvd. in Los Angeles, California.

L. Shankar: "Answers" (2025) CD Review

We could all use some answers these days, right? And we're not going to get them from any "official" sources. So it is to music that we turn for a little wisdom. Violinist and vocalist L. Shankar provides some on his latest release, 2025's Answers. He plays double violin, an instrument he famously created, and provides the vocal work. And he's joined by Tony Levin on bass, Josh Lopez on guitar, Scott Seiver on drums, Stephen Perkins on drums, Dave Palmer on keyboards, Dileep Palakkad on keyboards, Zac Baird on keyboards, Jeff Gross on percussion, and Juliett Rose on backing vocals. The album features all original material, composed by L. Shankar. Songs about the human condition, and about the questions that arise from it. Songs that contain advice about how to address these questions and remind us that we are all facing the same challenges, that we are all in basically the same situation.

The album kicks off with its title track, "Answers," which has a good groove, with a bit of funk. It's a song about looking for answers, so a good place to start with lines like "Saying goodbye to my past" and "Not knowing what to find." There is a gentle, kind of soothing aspect to the vocal delivery. And when he sings, "I'm ready to face it all," he brings us along with him. And the music itself helps us face whatever it is we have to face. The violin is a natural part of the sonic landscape here. Then "Lot Of Things" contains a really nice intro, the drums creating an unusual and engaging rhythm, while the violin creates an interesting atmosphere. "You said a lot of things to me in the past/Most of it was not true/You've got a lot of guts to lie to me," L. Shankar then sings. Truth isn't always easy to come by these days. People are now quite comfortable with dishonesty. In this country, it is basically patriotic to lie now. In addition to the rhythm of the drums, the rhythm of the vocal line has a certain appeal. "It takes a lot more courage to tell the truth than a lie," L. Shankar sings here. Maybe that's true, but I find it's much easier to tell the truth. Who can be bothered to recall lies? It would be too much work remembering what was told to each person. I don't have that kind of extra time.

"Innocent" takes on more of a rock vibe in certain sections, as L. Shankar sings, "Don't let no one stop you," particulary in the guitar work. This song offers some advice, such as "Don't lose your light within" and "Follow your instincts" and "No matter what happens/Try to keep your innocence." I sometimes think that much of our adult lives is spent trying to recapture what it was we had during our childhoods, that sense of wonder, that sense of play which can be considered innocence. And isn't that interesting? L. Shankar sings, "Everyone is born innocent/When they come into existence." I appreciate those lines. They are quite a bit different from the craziness I was fed in my childhood, that we are born as sinners, a horrible thing to tell children. I love when the violin begins to soar in the second half of this track. L. Shankar delivers some fantastic work. Juliett Rose delivers some wonderful backing vocal work. That's followed by "Heaven And Earth," one that L. Shankar wrote a while back, a song about a natural disaster, the 2004 tsunami. Something like that reminds us how small and powerless we are when faced with nature. Our plans, our desires, our joys, our relationships... all can be wiped out in a moment by an indifferent natural force.

From a power without, L. Shankar then takes us to "Power Within." Here he sings, "So many people have different ideas/How I should live my life/They have nothing else going on for them." I suppose those lines have always been true, but they seem particularly relevant today. And L. Shankar adds how people are apt to offer their opinions on what you're doing, whether those opinions are solicited or not. He also points out, "What they say and what they do/They are totally different things." This is a song about finding the answers within yourself, and it offers this bit of advice: "Never try to hide who you are." There is no point in doing so (unless, of course, you're a horrible person). Then there is a sweeter, more contemplative vibe to "For You." "I've been waiting for you/It's been a long time/I never felt this way/With anyone before." Yes, it's a love song, about a love that happens perhaps a bit later in life. And maybe that's better, because we're better prepared for it, right? We know ourselves, and so are in a position to really get to know another person for who she or he really is. This song is also about a larger picture, as he sings "Actions do affect people/It's all about giving/Expect nothing in return." This track features some beautiful vocal work.

"You only live once, so live a good life," L. Shankar sings in "To Live." I wish people would keep this in mind. There is probably nothing after this, so make the most of this life. He then sings, "Live every day as if it's your last day." That, however, might not be the best advice, because if you happen to wake up the next day, you'll be forced to address the consequences of all you did the previous day. "What would you do if you knew you had only had a day live/What are the things you'd want to do if you had a day to live?" Good questions. Time is so brief, so take chances, do the things that make you happy. No tomorrow is promised, and there is no eternal reward. This is it. "There is no such thing as perfection/Nothing lasts forever." There is a brighter energy to this song. It's followed by "Calm Down." "No need to stress over things you can't control," he sings here. A difficult lesson to put into practice. It's no easy task training our bodies and brains to let go of stress, but this music should help. There is a pleasant, uplifting vibe to this track. The album concludes with "Thinking" (something that people don't do enough of these days). "I can't stop thinking about you/Can't get you out of my mind," L. Shankar sings at the beginning of this one. This track features a good beat and some nice guitar work. "You're the first thing comes to my mind when I wake up in the morning." Is there any better thought to start a day?

CD Track List

1. Answers
2. Lot Of Things
3. Innocent
4. Heaven And Earth
5. Power Within
6. For You
7. To Live
8. Calm Down
9. Thinking

Answers was released on October 17, 2025.

Dad Joke: "Fun Intended" (2026) CD Review

David Reminick is a singer and guitarist known for his work in the band Paper Mice, a Chicago-based group that combines elements of progressive rock and punk in a kind of wild, energetic way. He also has another project, Dad Joke, in which he creates children's music. So the obvious question is, Would he bring the same sensibilities to this project? The answer is yes, as is clear right from the beginning of the debut album, Fun Intended. This is no ordinary children's album. There is some excitement to it, and certainly there is fun. And as for the typical "dad joke," while there is humor to these tracks, none of it will elicit groans, not from children or from adults. So you don't have to worry. The album features all original material. David Reminick plays guitar, bass, keyboards, piano, organ, synthsizer and baritone saxophone. He is joined by Amanda DeBoer Bartlett on vocals, and by John Carroll (of Paper Mice) on drums, percussion and flute. 

The album opens with "We've Got The Squiggles." As I mentioned, right from the first track, it is clear that David Reminick is bringing some of the same excitement of Paper Mice to this project. "We're practically jumping right out of our shoes/We've got the squiggles, and everyone's invited/We're going to pretend to be rabbits and kangaroos." It has a kind of progressive pop vibe, if that makes sense. "We're doing all sorts of ridiculous things." That's perfect for a children's album, a sort of invitation to be silly and to let that energy out. And at one point, David sings, "We're just getting going." Indeed. That's followed by "This Is A Duck." This one had me laughing early on. At the beginning, he repeats, with some urgency, "This is a duck/This is a duck." But what caught me even more off guard and made me laugh is that he follows that line with this: "This is also a duck/This is also a duck." When you hear it, I think you'll laugh too. And then we get a heavy metal thing happening on "This is a chicken/This is a chicken." A variation on the old children's game, and it is totally delicious. Fans of Primus are going to love it, I think.

"I'm not afraid of getting stung by bees," David sings at the beginning of "I Hope Nobody Drops A Big Rubber Horse On My Head," which was written by David Reminick and Daniela Reminick-Alma. This, by the way, was the song I was most excited about when I first glanced at the track list on the CD case, just because it is absurd. But first, back to bees for a moment. I've been stung by bees four times. Each time I would get over the fear, another bee would attack me without cause or provocation. So, now, as an adult, I am afraid of getting stung by bees. Little flying needles. But I also hope nobody drops a big rubber horse on my head. That's the song's narrator's single (and singular) fear, a nice way of putting fear into some context for kids, making a joke out of it. "I'm super worried about a big rubber horse on my head." Well, we all have worries these days. "I know it doesn't make a lot of sense," he admits. This song has a very silly ending. Then "Wakey Wake Up" begins with a rooster crowing, and then establishes a very cool bass line. "You'd better wakey wakey wake up," David sings, and I need to somehow get my alarm clock to play that line instead of tormenting me with that annoying beeping sound. This one suddenly dips into some dark, surprisingly aggressive metal. Yeah, I think that would wake me too. And soon we are back into that cool, funky, jazzy realm. This song is a lot of fun, and in the second half, we slip into a realm from the past, like the Chipmunks are performing at a prom. Brant Hewelt provides vocal work on this one. That's followed by another fun number, "I Heard A Bird," with a deliciously playful and funky attitude. The musical version of bird-watching, this song is a delight. And just before the end, the pace increases.

Amanda DeBoer Bartlett shares lead vocal duties on "Because We're Friends," a sweet number celebrating friendship. "And it's easy to see you bring out the best of me/Because we're friends/Because you're somone I can trust/Because we're friends/There's nothing that we can't discuss." And thematically, it makes complete sense for that song to be followed by "I'm Glad To Be With You Right Now." "Of all the things that I could do/There is nothing that is better/Than spending time with you." And when he sings of pretending to be in a spaceship, the music takes on a sort of spacey vibe. This song is about pretending, and the music takes on different qualities, depending on what they're pretending to be. Like when they pretend to be dinosaurs, there is the stomping of their giant feet. That's my favorite section, by the way. And keeping with the dinosaur theme, that song is followed by "What Did The Dinosaurs Say?" "I think Tyrannosauruses said 'Quack, quack, quack.'" I do love the image of these terrifying creatures going "Quack," and I think there should be a new edit of Jurassic Park to incorporate that very thing. "I don't know what to think/Because they're all extinct." If you like They Might Be Giants, you'll dig this. This song made me laugh several times.

Then we're treated to "It's Almost Halloween (But I Never Got A Costume)." Hurrah, a wonderful Halloween song! As you are likely aware, Halloween is the best holiday of the year, a time of chocolate and frights. But the horror of all horrors is not having a costume. "So I'll do the best with what I've got," he reasons. Yes, this song gives several options to those who might not have a costume. This track is one of my personal favorites. And it contains a Star Trek reference. Amanda DeBoer Bartlett provides some absolutely delightful backing vocal work. Amanda DeBoer Bartless then sings lead on "I'm Deciding To Be Brave." This one has more of a Disney thing happening. It has a nice message, but isn't as much fun as the other songs. Things get sillier again with "You Have To Go Potty Too." "Everybody has to go sometime/And when it's time for you to do it/Stop what you're doing and take care of business." And we know from the song's title just what he is referring to in those opening lines. The album concludes with "I Tried To Use AI...But It Came Out Weird." This is a funny song, with a message I appreciate. In the story of this song, nothing comes out the way he hopes when using AI.  "And I thought of all the ways a human being might have drawn it/I even tried to make one of my own/But it was even worse than I feared," David sings. But the most important lines are these: "I'm understanding why it's important to support creative people/Instead of a machine/I hope we'll work for a future/Where nobody has to compete with computers/And people make music and art/To express something real/To explore and reveal/What we actually feel/In our hearts." And those are the album's final lines, the thought this delightful album leaves us with.

CD Track List

1. We've Got The Squiggles
2. This Is A Duck
3. I Hope Nobody Drops A Big Rubber Horse On My Head
4. Wakey Wake Up
5. I Heard A Bird
6. Because We're Friends
7. I'm Glad To Be With You Right Now
8. What Did The Dinosaurs Say?
9. It's Almost Halloween (But I Never Got A Costume)
10. I'm Deciding To Be Brave
11. You Have To Go Potty Too
12. I Tried To Use AI...But It Came Out Weird

Fun Intended was released on June 12, 2026 on Stritch Records.

Randall Lamb: "A Painting For A Song" (2026) CD Review

Last year singer and songwriter Randall Lamb gave us High Hopes And Low Expectations, the title of which seemed to express precisely what many of us were feeling. Now those hopes have been largely dashed, and even our lowest expectations weren't met by those in positions of power in our country. So where are we now? What do we do? Many of us are turning away from the horror show to focus on those people who are important to us, to the beauty of the world and of living, to enjoy the brief time we have on this incredible little planet. And music plays an important part in that, connecting us to the better parts of humanity and to each other. And perhaps nothing does that better than an honest folk song, just the kind of thing Randall Lamb is so adept at creating and presenting. Randall Lamb's new album, A Painting For A Song, contains all original material. A few of these songs are ones he is revisiting, songs that were included on his 2017 album Songs Of Freedom. Randall Lamb sings lead and plays guitar on these tracks, and is joined by David West on various instruments and backing vocals. David West also produced the album.

A Painting For A Song opens with its title track, which is one of the songs that Randall Lamb earlier included on Songs Of Freedom. "The artist Arturo Tello gave me a painting for a song/It was a generous gift," Randall sings at the beginning. The painting on the CD cover, in case you're wondering, is by Arturo Tello, a landscape painter. "A Painting For A Song" is a gentle number that has a good, positive vibe, helped by the work on mandolin. The song, like the painting, is capable of taking us away from the troubles, the strife, the distractions. "It's of a place I've often been/There in the frame it takes me back again/And I'm again among the oaks." That's followed by "So Many Different Shades Of Blue," where a bluesy kind of country vibe is established at the start. Randall Lamb has a talent for speaking right to us, seemingly about our own states. By opening up, he seems to be opening us up too. "But I'm not who I was before/I think about it/Now and then/Like writing a letter/That you never send." This song was also included on Songs Of Freedom, and it features a wonderful vocal performance. "Some things are false/Some things are true/So many different shades of blue." These lines also stand out to me: "Some have their heads in the clouds/Some have their heads in the past/So much to know/And only so much time."

In "Santa Ynez Valley Song," Randall Lamb tells us the story of the land, connecting us to it, like a storyteller of years gone by. "This land was sacred for thousands of years/Now it seems like the whole thing's for sale." Yes. Money is the answer to everything these days. If you wonder why some action is taken, if you wonder how someone could do something so terrible, the answer is always money. "Then the Mexicans came/Then the prospectors came/Everybody came after that/Wave after wave after wave after wave/Until we got what we got." There is a certain sadness, certainly, but I also find humor in the line "Everybody came after that." There is something light about that line, and we need that lightness, I think. Elements like that are part of what make this song special. Then in "Memories, That's All," Randall sings, "Memories flow endlessly/Like living in a waking dream/They hang like pictures on the wall/But there's just memories, that's all." For this song, there is a weariness to his voice which seems apt. A voice of experience. This track has a lot of excellent lines. The one that especially stands out to me is this: "Please don't ask me nothing that I can't deny."

Then check out these lines from "Drive Out In The Desert": "She sent me to the store for the racing forms/She made her bets on the telephone/Looking for a little mercy/Hoping for a run of luck/She never got much of either/But she never did give up." Those lines are America to me. The hope that's expressed, but also the reality of the situation, that for many it just doesn't work out. And this line is also America: "Well, the road was free and open, and a big sky overhead." This music reminds me of things I love about this land, a love that is colored with both hope and melancholy. "Drive Out In The Desert" is followed by "The President Doesn't Have A Dog." When folks were listing all the horrible attributes of the rapist currently inhabiting the White House (and there are so many), they'd end with something like, "And he doesn't even have a dog." It was a somewhat humorous way to end a list of terrible qualities, but there was a point to it. The bigot has no friends. He has no one who loves him unconditionally, meaning no one who loves him. Not even a dog. And Randall Lamb includes the line, "At least he'd have a friend if he had a dog." This song is delivered as a sort of spoken word. "Big old house like that, guy ought to have a dog/Every president has had a dog/Everyone but this president has had a dog." I bet if someone told that incontinent old racist that Hitler had a dog, he'd go get one. This song contains some nice work on guitar.

"Songs Of Freedom" was the title track to Randall Lamb's 2017 album, one of my favorite songs from that disc. And it's great to hear it again here. It's interesting that different lines stand out this time around, such as "Freedom from, and freedom to/And every color, not just red, white and blue" and "You got rights, no matter what your wealth or size." That's followed by "Can The Rich Get To Heaven." "The meek shall inherit the earth, that's how I heard the story/While the powerful lock us up, or lock us out/Are we going to hell, or are we bound for glory?" The song includes nods to "Amazing Grace," both on guitar and in the lyrics, and biblical references to make its point. "I'm thinking Heaven is just another gated community." And these lines made me laugh: "It doesn't seem to matter which god you believe in/They all say you're going to live forever once you're dead." Yup, they want us to accept our lot here, with a promise of something better to come. And of course there is no way to contact them when those promises are left unfulfilled, no way to sue them for not holding up the latter end of the bargain. This song features some good stuff on banjo.

I love the guitar work at the beginning of "I Wonder If I'm Ever Going To See You Again," which works to set the tone. "Sometimes my feelings feel like laundry blowing in the wind/They've been out there, now it's time to fold 'em up and bring 'em in." Sometimes a person I haven't seen in a long time pops in my head, and I wonder if I'll ever see her or him again. It's strange to think that some folks are now completely out of our lives, that they've played their part in our dramas and made their exits. But who knows? "Yeah, I guess we're all full of surprises/I think about you now and then." That's followed by "I Like How I Feel." It's wonderful to hear this one again. I first heard it covered by Fur Dixon & Steve Werner many years ago. This is the perfect time to revisit this excellent song. Here is a taste of the lyrics: "When I'm with you, I like the way that I feel/Well, I've been over the hill/I've been around the bend/The places we go, you never come back again/Like dust in the wind, we can all blow away/Out of the blue, you got nothing to say/So you love who you love/And you do what you do/I like how I feel when I'm with you." This rendition features some wonderful work on steel guitar.

"Colors To Pain" surprisingly had me laughing out loud at its second line. Here are the opening lines: "Have you ever been face down on a bar room floor/Life has many angles to explore/Or found yourself crying in the rain/There are many different colors to pain." This is a really good country song, featuring some delightful work on piano. "Now I'm trying to be grateful for what I've got/And take a certain comfort in what I am and what I'm not." Those are lines that I think many folks can especially relate to these days. Regarding joy, he sings, "You just hope that you can find some to get you through the pain." And that's the song's final line. That's followed by "Anniversary Song," a pretty song with a touching vocal performance. "Standing poised, but steady as a stone/But stones can shake and the earth will quake/You're the truest love I've ever known."

"Just Fins And Chrome" is another song that was included on Songs Of Freedom. "It's all lasted longer than I might think it would," Randall Lamb sings here. Ah, sometimes we can feel that way about our own bodies, eh? It's okay to show our age, isn't it? As long as it means some great experiences. "The paint job is faded/But who wouldn't be/After the places that it's taken me." I love the humor of the line, "At least it's not rusting out in the yard." Then there is a great somber vibe to "Fire On The Mountain" (an original song, not a cover of the Grateful Dead song or the Marshall Tucker Band song). It's a song about a fire burning through a town, something folks in California know quite a bit about. "Run for your life/Grabs your kid and your wife/It looks like hell to me." The album concludes with "There's An Oilslick In My Coffee," which was co-written by Robert A. Isaacson. It has a fun, playful folk vibe. "Well, I got troubles on my mind, more than most people have ever seen/There's an oil slick in my coffee just floating on the cream."

CD Track List

1. A Painting For A Song
2. So Many Different Shades Of Blue
3. Santa Ynez Valley Song
4. Memories, That's All
5. Drive Out In The Desert
6. The President Doesn't Have A Dog
7. Songs Of Freedom
8. Can The Rich Get To Heaven
9. I Wonder If I'm Ever Going To See You Again
10. I Like How I Feel
11. Colors To Pain
12. Anniversary Song
13. Just Fins And Chrome
14. Fire On The Mountain
15. There's An Oilslick In My Coffee

A Painting For A Song was released on June 5, 2026.

Ghalia Volt: "Burn The House Down" (2026) CD Review

I was turned onto the music of Ghalia Volt back when she was leading the band Ghalia & Mama's Boys, delivering a kind of delicious raw and sexy blues music. She became a one woman band during the pandemic, releasing an album titled One Woman Band in 2021. Shout Sister Shout! followed in 2023, and now she has a new album out, Burn The House Down. For this one, she has a band backing her, a band made up of JD Simo on guitar and slide guitar (JD Simo also produced, engineered and mixed the album), Brian Allen on bass, and Chris Powell on drums. Ghalia Volt is on vocals, guitar and slide guitar. The album features all original material.

The album gets off to a delicious start with "No Ice Please," a song thumping with great, raw, powerful blues. You might think of it as back porch blues, provided that porch is attached to a sort of waystation for joyful and playful demons.And yeah, I want the drink, the full drink, and its full effects, so don't fill that glass with water, frozen or otherwise. "Don't water it down, don't you water it down/No ice please, no ice." Of course, when I glanced at this track list, in these twisted days, the first thing that popped into my mind was the evil organization known as ICE. No ICE, please. I love how polite she is here, "No ice please," which works in delightful contrast to the wonderfully mean edge of the music. It is energetic opening to the album. Then "Mine" establishes a good groove right away, a groove that comes out of a cool, dark place, and soon we are immersed in that place, even before recognizing it as home, as our current state. "Millions of hands you'll never shake/Billions of souls you'll never meet/Under trillions of stars you'll not once name/Yet you think you own/A portion of the sky/You're already planning on taxing/The next generation for air to breathe." Ghalia's vocal approach here is different from the first track, and somehow even more captivating and enticing. She draws us closer with every syllable she utters, casting a spell over us, her willing victims. This is a fantastic song, featuring some intriguing, haunting guitar work. Ah, who owns us at this point?

"Let me take you for a ride," Ghalia sings at the beginning of "Ride." Ah, like we have any choice in the matter. She has us, and she knows it. This song, which she wrote with Jeremy Joyce, has a great groove, one to get you dancing. It's a song that is more in the pop realm, but a kind of bewitching pop of a slightly altered reality, a great dance song playing in a club of eternal night. No need to worry about tomorrow, the dawn ain't coming. This track features some delicious stuff on bass. "You're the lucky devil/Flying like an angel." Then Ghalia takes us back into more solid blues territory with "Where Do We Go," evident from that guitar work at the beginning. Ghalia Volt immediately captivates us with her voice, and it's a moment before we realize she is asking a question, "Where, where do we go/When we're dead and gone/When we're dead and gone/When we're dead and gone?" She's already put us in mind of an eternal night anyway, so this question seems natural. She then asks if we'll ever meet again. I think when we're dead and gone, we're dead and gone, and there is no meeting ever again after that. But Ghalia seems to have access to the darkness, and maybe with her special eyes she catches glimpses of something beyond this realm. Or maybe it is that she's able to mesmerize those legendary forces, coax from them the power to determine her destination. "It don't matter where we're goin' then/When we're dead and gone."

"Wrong Horse" has a hopping energy. in part because of its beat. "You've been betting on the wrong/Horse way too long." Oh yes, probably, so I stopped betting altogether. I love the way the guitar takes on its own fiery force, that section ending up feeling like the heart of the piece. "Wild spirits are hard to tame/A free soul can't be claimed." The spirit of this vocalist, of this band, would be damn near impossible to tame. This track has some unexpected whistling at the very end. Then "Lucifer's Grip" takes hold of us in its opening moments and shakes us about. Once we've succumbed, submitted, the grip relaxes, but only somewhat. "Yes, I saw it coming/Saw it coming, yes I did/Saw it coming, yes I did," Ghalia sings early in this one. I doubt nothing she tells us. Almost halfway through, there is a moment that feels like a darker version of a cool moment from Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love." The raw and exciting testimony of this song almost has me believing the devil is real, as Ghalia's voice sometimes seems to be coming from the other side, like she is on the edge of two worlds, existing in two places simultaneously.

"Wreckin' & Rollin'" is a fun one, one to get you dancing. It seems this song can get the whole world swaying to its rhythm. "Rollin' in like a tornado/Spinnin' and spinnin' nice and slow." And I love it when the guitar takes off in the second half, leading the way out of the storm. That's followed by "Burn The House Down," the album's title track, which eases in, opening on a scene of a sort of destruction. "You tore down the hallway frames/Tossed our pictures of memory lane/Gave furniture to donation/All carried out by an army of salvation." Wow, just rearranging the name of the organization that way gives it a whole different vibe, a different sense. Ghalia Volt is a creative force not just in her vocal prowess, but in the way she constructs a song. "Piece by piece, you wiped out the past/So you might as well burn the house down." This song features an especially exciting and strong vocal performace.

"River Song" kind of creeps in. And Ghalia, when she comes in, keeps her voice low at first. Even her humming is mesmerizing, haunting. Interestingly, later in the song she sings, "Forgive me, babe, for what you've been through/You said I put a spell on you/But call it a curse, you call it a curse." Oh man, she knows precisely the effect she's had on us, though I doubt anyone would call it a curse. There is another interesting moment when the music relaxes a bit, opens, breathes. And then the pounding of the drum returns, while we are treated to some cool guitar work, and Ghalia's next vocal section is even more compelling. There is a psychedelic element here, which is wonderful. This is one of my personal favorite tracks. It's followed by "Let Yo' Hair Down," which has a great, heavy rhythm, and yet provides a chance to shake loose. It's like the blues and rock were played through a dance club's system, affected by it, with certain lines repeated. The album then concludes with "Black And White," which has a sweeter, acoustic sound. "I got your back, babe, I got your back," Ghalia sings here. We all need to hear someone say that to us.

CD Track List

1. No Ice Please
2. Mine
3. Ride
4. Where Do We Go
5. Wrong Horse
6. Lucifer's Grip
7. Wreckin' & Rollin'
8. Burn The House Down
9. River Song
10. Let Yo' Hair Down
11. Black And White

Burn The House Down was released on May 15, 2026 on Ruf Records.

Maura Dunst: "Violin Songs" (2026) CD Review

Maura Dunst is a member of The Foxgloves, playing fiddle and mandolin in that group. She released her first solo album, This Won't End Well, in 2022, and followed that with the EP Oh Sister in 2024. Her new release, an EP titled Violin Songs, is a little different. This one is a true solo effort, with Maura Dunst singing and playing violin without any other accompaniment. She also did the arrangements. And though the title is Violin Songs, these aren't songs we generally associate with violin (though we may very well start to do so now). The songs are covers by artists like R.E.M., Sheryl Crow, and Bruce Springsteen. The EP was recorded, mixed and mastered by Steve Kaul at Wild Sound Recording Studio in Minneapolis.

Maura Dunst opens the EP with Sheryl Crow's "Strong Enough." Though the only instrument is violin, she does several violin parts, including using the instrument for a little percussion. It's always interesting to me how certain lines will strike me differently and stand out depending on what is going on in the world. And this time these lines stand out: "Nothing's true, and nothing's right/So let me be alone tonight/Because you can't change the way I am." This is a good rendition, featuring an excellent vocal performance that grows in power as the track progresses. That's followed by "Dancing In The Dark." This song was everywhere in 1984, the first single from Bruce Springsteen's Born In The U.S.A. album. This was back in the days when hit songs deserved to be hits (something that ended only two years later). Listening to Maura Dunst's rendition, it's clear why this song had (and continues to have) such great appeal. "I ain't nothing but tired/Man, I'm just tired and bored with myself/Hey there, baby, I could use just a little help." The song contains lyrics that still speak to us, maybe more now than then, actually. "Stay on the streets of this town/And they'll be carving you up all right/They say you gotta stay hungry/Well hey, baby, I'm just about starving tonight." And I love the pause she adds before those lines, giving emphasis both to those lines and to the previous line, "Come on, baby, the laugh's on me."

There are several different songs titled "Work Song" (when you have a chance, check out the one by The Evangenitals). The one Maura Dunst covers here is that by Hozier, and, yes, she does add clapping. She delivers a beautiful, soulful rendition, tapping into those same timeless elements that Hozier did on the original. "When my time comes around/Lay me gently in the cold dark earth." She follows that with "The Eye," a pretty folk song by Brandi Carlile, included on her 2015 album The Firewatcher's Daughter. Here Maura is picking the violin. I love her approach to this song, this track featuring a gorgeous vocal performance. "I wrapped your love around me like a chain/But I never was afraid that it would die/You can dance in a hurricane/But only if you're standing in the eye." She wraps up the EP with R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts" from that great Automatic For The People album. This is a song that has brought me to tears on more than one occasion, and Maura Dunst's version has the same effect on me. "When you're sure you've had enough/Of this life, hang on." And with the multiple violin parts, we do not feel alone. They're able to hold us up. And certainly we need that in these difficult times. "No, you're not alone."

CD Track List

1. Strong Enough
2. Dancing In The Dark
3. Work Song
4. The Eye
5. Everybody Hurts

Violin Songs is scheduled to be released on July 24, 2026.