Category: Entertainment News

John Inghram balances vintage style with modern meaning on debut album

His debut album, John Inghram will be out May 13, 2022. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Within the first few seconds of its first song, John Inghram’s debut self-titled album gives off an unmistakable vintage vibe—swirling guitar arpeggios giving way to thumping drums and deep, perfectly-timed bass—but once he starts singing, the bigger picture quickly comes into focus. This is not just folk-rock nostalgia, but a well-crafted take on connecting modern experiences with old-school sounds, allowing listeners to feel in a more circular than linear fashion. Fans can check out “Palisades” now at this link and pre-order or pre-save John Inghram ahead of its May 13 release right here.  (John Inghram, 2022)

Glide Magazine premiered John Inghram album-opener “Palisades,” writing, “Backed by soulful organ and jagged guitar, Inghram brings together Americana, folk-rock, and a kind of laid back 70s rock sound to make for a song that feels reflective yet forward-thinking.” Like most people hearing Inghram’s brand of Appalachia-drenched songcraft, Glide went on to note just how well he delivers great lyrics via feel-good instrumentation. “With its lyrics that speak to living in the moment and embracing the present, Inghram proves once again to have a penchant for crafting smart tunes that resonate in a universal way and then complementing them with big guitar solos and an inviting, full-band sound.”

“My whole career has been about serving other people, and other people’s music,” Inghram explains, “And that is beautiful. But there was some piece that I felt was missing as a creative. I needed to serve my own original music with the creation of this album.” For Inghram, the past is a complicated topic. “Like a lot of my fellow musicians, I spent much of my 20s strung out, partying, and generally just made a lot of poor life choices,” he says. “A big part of making this album has been deciding that it’s not too late. All I’ve got is the now and I’m going for it.” With a breadth of musical knowledge and experience, Inghram finds his own unique musical mantra on this debut record. While it is always tempting to dwell on the past, or dream about the future, he challenges listeners to move into an existential, yet completely joyful mindset with him. “Now that I have a beautiful family, and life is better than I ever thought it could be,” he says, “I just want to make use of this moment and make sure I give everything I have to offer.”

Recorded at two different studios between 2020 and 2021, Bud Carroll and Justin Francis engineered John Inghram while Francis mixed and mastered it. It features Carroll and Adam Meisterhans on guitars, Randy Gilkey and Micah Hulscher on keys, and Sam Wiseman on drums. 

For nearly two decades, bassist, composer, and producer John Inghram has been making a name for himself as one of the most sought-after musicians in the Appalachian region, Mid-Atlantic, and beyond. John tours and performs regularly with Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. (2011 Winner of “America’s Got Talent”), jazz pianist Bob Thompson (Mountain Stage), bluegrass mandolinist Johnny Staats, and jam-band Fletcher’s Grove. In addition to these, John performs regularly on NPR’s Mountain Stage Radio Show and serves as the show’s assistant producer. He has also toured with and/or backed up musical luminaries such as Chuck Prophet, Vince Herman (Leftover Salmon), Joshua Hedley, Catherine Russell (Steely Dan, Bowie), Roosevelt Collier, Larry Coryell, Branford Marsalis, Janis Ian, Kathy Mattea, Kris Myers (Umphrey’s Mcgee), Patrick Sweany, Christian Lopez, and many more.

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Railroad Earth turns the page on new album All For The Song

The ten song, Anders Osborne-produced LP is available now. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Easing into their third decade as a band, jam-scene pioneers Railroad Earth have been hard at work keeping their bluegrass soul and rock and roll spirit alive and well. On April 22, the next chapter of RRE unfolded with the release of their new album All For The Song; a ten-song collection filled with tales of biblical road-trip rainstorms, Louisiana getaways, and losing their brother too soon. Since the completion of All For The Song, Railroad Earth has trickled out singles like “The Great Divide,” “It’s So Good,” and “Runnin’ Wild,” to the delight of fans and critics alike, slowly giving tastes of what the band refers to as their “destination” album produced in New Orleans by the Big Easy’s favorite guitar-slinging Swede, Anders Osborne. (Railroad Earth, 2022)

In 2018, Railroad Earth—Todd Sheaffer [lead vocals, acoustic guitar], Tim Carbone [violins, electric guitar, vocals], John Skehan [mandolin, bouzouki, piano, vocals], Carey Harmon [drums, percussion, vocals], and Andrew Altman [upright & electric bass]—bid farewell to founding member and lifelong friend Andy Goessling who passed away from cancer. His shadow loomed over the process as the guys retreated to New Orleans for the first time to record.

Another first, they recorded with Anders Osborne behind the board as producer. It might have been the gumbo, but the guys seamlessly absorbed the homegrown flavors of the Big Easy by osmosis, incorporating horns, blues harmonica, and the producer’s own perspective and guitar playing. “His enthusiasm is contagious,” exclaims Carey. “There are five producers in this band, so a strong-willed voice from the outside is usually pretty essential. Anders was the voice.” Todd agrees, “He brought a pure and striving soul, unforgettable laugh, rich palette of emotion, a great stash of guitars and amps, philosophical driftings, freedom, unguarded honesty, warmth, and love.”

All For The Song track list:
The Great Divide
Blues Highway
It’s So Good
Showers of Rain
Come And Go Moon
Runnin’ Wild
My Favorite Spot
Slippin’ Away
Driftin’ – The Bardo – Driftin’
All For The Song

Catch Railroad Earth on tour:
May 20 – Kansas City, MO – Bluegrass in the Bottoms
May 26 – Jersey City, NJ – White Eagle Hall
May 27-28 – Cumberland, MD – DelFest
May 29 – Thornville, OH – Dark Star Jubilee
June 23 – Eau Claire, WI – Blue Ox Music Festival
June 30-July 3 – Quincy, CA – High Sierra Music Festival
July 8 – Jay, VT – Jeezum Crow Festival
July 21-24 – North Plains, OR – Northwest String Summit
July 29 – Johnstown, PA – Flood City Music Festival
July 31 – Floyd, VA – FloydFest

Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center presents ‘Interview With a Mexican!’

‘Interview With a Mexican!’ is scheduled for May 6 and 7 at the Guadalupe Theater. Photo: Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, used with permission.

The Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center proudly presents ‘Interview With A Mexican!,’ scheduled for Friday and Saturday, May 6 and 7, 2022 at the historic Guadalupe Theater, 1301 Guadalupe St., San Antonio. The performance begins at 8p.m. with general admission tickets for $12. ‘Interview With A Mexican!’ is a touring production by Denver-based Su Teatro Cultural & Performing Arts Center.  (Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, 2022)

‘Interview With A Mexican!’ is an original play by Su Teatro Executive Artistic Director and resident playwright Anthony J. Garcia. It was inspired by Gustavo Arellano’s column ‘Ask a Mexican’ using satire, humor, and political incorrectness to examine stereotypes, anti-immigration politics, and misconceptions outsiders hold about Mexican culture.

“We at Su Teatro are so excited to bring this explosive and humorous play to the Westside of San Antonio,” said Garcia. “The last time we performed at the Teatro Guadalupe was in the early 1990s,” he added. “Su Teatro’s work and contribution to theater is widely recognized,” said Guadalupe Theater Manager Jorge Piña. “I am very honored Su Teatro is returning to the Guadalupe stage.” 

The production is made possible with support from the City of San Antonio Department of Arts & Culture and the National Performance Network.

Su Teatro is one of the oldest Chicano theater companies in the United States and is currently celebrating their 50th anniversary. The company has established a national reputation for home-grown productions that speak to the history and experience of Chicanos. Garcia has created over forty original plays and adaptations. Su Teatro develops work focused on demystifying the Chicano identity and celebrating the experiences, history, language, and culture of Chicanos, Mexicanos, and Latinos throughout the Americas. They have performed throughout the country along with more than thirty theatrical seasons at their own cultural and performing arts center in Denver.

New comic book release: ‘The Adventure of Reese Rabbit’ by Hunter Reese

‘The Adventure of Reese Rabbit’ features a fun-loving, energized, life-size bunny named Reese Rabbit. Photo: Hunter Reese, used with permission.

My name is Hunter Reese. I am a young writer who grew up in Southern California loving comic books; my favorites were the ones about superheroes. I am also a big fan of cartoons so I thought I would make some cartoony comics as well. Over the years I have written so many stories and characters and I thought it was time to finally bring them to life. This is the start of many issues of Reese Rabbit comics I plan to write as well as other comic books from multiple genres. “The Adventure of Reese Rabbit” is the first in the series. Read all about the adventures of a fun-loving, energized, life-sized bunny named Reese Rabbit as he travels through his animal-filled world. It is illustrated by Inggit Awalliyah. (Hunter Reese, 2022)

“The Adventure of Reese Rabbit” – This comic book is about an anthropomorphic bunny rabbit named Reese who lives in a carrot-shaped house within a city filled with other anthropomorphic animals. This particular issue focuses on Reese Rabbit and his best friend, Jack Houndsberg, trying to get rid of a rat that has made itself at home in Reese’s house.

Available now through CWS Book Store in paperback form or digital download. 

Sponsored Post

The Lincoln Lawyer television series on Netflix

Manuel Garcia-Rulfo stars in The Lincoln Lawyer on Netflix. Photo: Netflix

Michael Connelly is an American author of detective novels and other crime fiction, notably those featuring LAPD Detective Hieronymus “Harry” Bosch and criminal defense attorney Mickey Haller. J. Michael “Mickey” Haller, Junior first appeared in the novel “The Lincoln Lawyer.” Haller, a Los Angeles-based defense attorney, is the paternal half-brother of Connelly’s best-known character, LAPD Detective Harry Bosch. A film adaptation of “The Lincoln Lawyer” was released in 2011 with Matthew McConaughey as Mickey Haller and now a new series is coming out on Netflix on May 13. (Michael Connelly, 2022)

The Lincoln Lawyer series explores the character’s Latino heritage and will be streaming on Netflix on May 13, 2022. It stars Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller, Neve Campbell as Maggie McPherson, Becki Newton as Lorna, Jazz Raycole as Izzy (Mickey’s driver), Angus Sampson as Cisco, and Christopher Gorham as Mickey’s client. The first season has ten episodes and is based on “The Brass Verdict.”

New movie release: British crime thriller Bluff

Bluff will be available on Amazon Prime beginning April 28, 2022. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Indie Rights, in association with Catharsis Films, is proud to present Bluff from writer-director Sheikh Shahnawaz in his feature directorial debut, starring Gurj Gill, Jason Adam, Nisaro Karim (24 Little Hours), James Jaysen Bryhan (Shadow and Bone) and Joe Egan (Sherlock Holmes) with music by Savfk. BLUFF will be available on Amazon Prime April 28, 2022. (Catharsis Films, 2022).

Detective Sergeant Daniel Miller is suspended from the London Metropolitan Police so that he can be secretly deployed to a small English town on an undercover assignment to uncover Britain’s major suppliers of heroin and crack cocaine. He poses as a heroin addict and manipulates an unsuspecting junkie into working with him so that he can infiltrate the local drug network and work his way up the supply chain. The line between duty and criminality begins to blur as Miller’s investigation becomes increasingly dangerous the closer he gets to finding the source of a drug trafficker. The truth will get you killed.

British-Bangladeshi screenwriter and producer Sheikh Shahnawaz is the director. He has written and directed a host of short films, including Friend Request (2015), Stalker (2016), Duality (2018), The Woods (2018) and Trick (2018) to name but a few. Bluff is the feature directorial debut by Sheikh Shahnawaz.

Michael Shaw’s debut album He Rode On

Michael Shaw’s debut album He Rode On will be out June 3, 2022. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Surrounded by the majestic beauty and rugged wilderness of the Northern Rockies, songwriter Michael Shaw worked as a horseman and wilderness ranger in Western Montana for more than a decade, patrolling the wildest reaches of Glacier National Park with his two horses, Pancho and Snuffy. Without knowing it at the time, that unpredictable natural landscape, and the isolation that goes along with it, shaped his upcoming debut album, He Rode On, bringing an unbridled authenticity to his music and truth in every lyrical reference—from living off the land to cheating death. Wide Open Country premiered the first taste of He Rode On with the hard-driving, honky-tonk lust story of “Cowboy Boots And A Little Country Dress.” (Michael Shaw, 2022)

“Cowboy Boots And A Little Country Dress” came about after Shaw and his cronies ventured to Elko, Nevada, for the “National Cowboy Poet Gathering”—a weekend which included an encounter with Canadian country artist Corb Lund’s guitar player and now-He Rode On producer Grant Siemens, Shaw learning the fine art of yodeling, having the legendary Ramblin’ Jack Elliot sign his guitar, and meeting the song’s muse while swing dancing at a country music concert. “It’s exactly what happened on our second night in Elko,” says Shaw. “In fact, nearly every idea from ‘Cowboy Boots’ is pulled directly from my experience that weekend.” Fans can relive the wild memories via the raucous Jerry Lee Lewis-meets-Dwight Yoakam vibe of “Cowboy Boots And A Little Country Dress” right now at this link. He Rode On is now available to pre-save or pre-order ahead of its June 3 release right here.  

He Rode On leads with “Bad Honky Tonker,” a sly anthem described by Shaw as “the bastard love child of Keith Richards and Dwight Yoakam.” “Outlaw’s Refuge” follows, written when Shaw was living along tribal wilderness on the Flathead Indian Reservation, making homemade wine, hunting, and fishing, and harvesting the fat of the land. Carrying on that independent streak, the song “Billy” is inspired by his long-time friendship with a wilderness muleskinner who leads his life in an inimitable fashion. Through his time living in rural places all across Western Montana, including an off-the-grid cabin without running water or electricity, to his stint as a National Parks Service Backcountry Ranger, to seven winters as the lone caretaker of an isolated horse ranch on the Blackfoot River—and all of the rambunctious extracurriculars in between—Shaw’s captivating songwriting can be directly traced to his own experiences in the West. Yet his stories are universal, whether he is delivering a rowdy barroom anthem or a meditative song about the loss of a loved one. With a swagger in his vocal and a sharp eye for detail, Shaw brings authenticity to He Rode On, as everything he references on the album is rooted in truth.

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New album release: Barton Stanley David’s Crest

Barton Stanley David’s new album Crest will be out April 22 via Kenshire Records. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

After nearly a decade of recording and performing in New York City, fifth-generation Texan Barton Stanley David decided it was time to return home. However, a fresh romance developed around the same time that left him torn between his grand return to the Lone Star State and Marketa, a Czech immigrant living in the Bronx who stole his heart. Eventually, love won out, with the pair now married and living in Dallas, but the road back to Texas inspired the first track on BSD’s upcoming album Crest, set for release on April 22, 2022. “Cicada” instantly conveys a sense of longing in a lush expanse of acoustic guitar, anthemic drums, and expressive vocals, landing somewhere between Americana and 90s alternative. “The city’s made of promises,” he sings on the album’s visceral opener. “But I’m too old to wait.” Central Track premiered “Cicada,” writing, “With a spacious and clean sound, Barton and his studio players sound confident and bright here. It’s great folky pop that gets right to the point.” Fans can hear “Cicada” and watch the video here. (Barton Stanley David, 2022)

Upon his return to Texas, with live music lost to the pandemic, Barton Stanley David formed Kenshire Records with executive producer Shane Stein and began recording remotely with Grammy-winning engineer Dave Schiffman (Tom Petty, Adele, The Killers) mixing from Los Angeles. Studio sessions finally began in January of 2021 with Jeff Saenz at Modern Electric in Dallas. However, tragedy struck six months into recording when Saenz lost both arms following a freak accident with a downed power line in his front yard. Remarkably, Jeff Saenz has since returned to producing at Modern Electric, which he owns, and his story has been featured in Rolling Stone and The Dallas Morning News.

With Saenz still hospitalized and the Dallas community rallying around the widely beloved producer, Barton eventually turned to Scarlett Deering, a young engineer and violinist (The Eagles) managing the late Charley Pride’s studio to complete the album. Other notable contributors to Crest include legendary mastering engineer Howie Weinberg (Nirvana, Jeff Buckley) and additional mixers Matt Pence (Jason Isbell, Elle King) and Roman Klun (Sarah MacLachlan). Drummer Matt Young (White Denim) turns in a break-out performance, along with bassist Chris Anderson (Martin Sexton), pianist Ben Fisher, and David playing many of the instruments himself.

Thematically, Crest is a heavy but hopeful ride: the soaring alt-rock conviction of “All Ways,” chamber pop showstopper “Evelyn,” reincarnation themed closer “And The Crowd Goes Wild Again,” even ‘90s-tinged break-up ballad “If I Didn’t Tell You First” rings with a certain triumph. Still, at the album’s heart, there is a bracing. “Collectively, I think there is a feeling that we are at the crest of a societal and spiritual wave that is about to break,” the Texas songwriter says. “We paddled out on a sea of circumstance that brought us here,” he sings on the title track, “And a storm is coming clear.”

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New movie release: Reed’s Point

Reed’s Point is now available on digital and DVD. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Reed’s Point is a psychological-thriller/creature-feature that tells of Sarah and Alex, two survivors of an RV crash near the New Jersey Pine Barrens. On the anniversary of the accident, Sarah and Alex drive to Reed’s Point to investigate the crash site. Things quickly go downhill as they find themselves stuck in the woods unsure of who they can trust and questioning if monsters really do exist. Written by Tricia Aurand, Suzanne DeLaurentiis and Sandy Lo, and directed by Dale Fabrigar (D-Railed), Reed’s Point stars Sasha Anne, Julia Kelly, Evan Adams, Madison Ekstrand, Anthony Jensen, Joseph Almani, Lanett Tachel, and veteran actor Joe Estevez (Soultaker, No Code of Conduct). (Uncork’d Entertainment, 2022)

Reed’s Point
Genre: Horror/Fantasy
Run time: 1hr 17 min
Release date: April 12, 2022
Available on digital and DVD.
Amazon, Google Play, YouTube, Vudu, 

Izaak Opatz’s new single Wild-Eyed George Bailey Heebie Jeebies

Izaak Opatz has a real It’s a Wonderful Life moment on new single ‘Wild-Eyed George Bailey Heebie Jeebies’ from upcoming album Extra Medium, due out April 29. 2022. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Songwriter Izaak Opatz has a thing for words. More specifically, fitting them together in couplets and verses of wry humor, thoughtful simile, and close observation—a therapeutic process of narrating his own life that, almost as a byproduct, turns out savory nuggets of literate, confessional pop, processing life’s tough stuff into downright enjoyable musical moments. Extra Medium, Opatz’s upcoming release—out April 29 via Mama Bird Recording Co.—splits time between his native Montana, up the East Coast, and in faraway Los Angeles. (Izaak Opatz, 2022)

Montana and LA become the main characters of more than a few tunes on Extra Medium, including the freshly debuted “Wild-Eyed George Bailey Heebie Jeebies,” which was written after Opatz was suddenly dumped in Montana by a lady friend who, a couple months later in LA, refused to acknowledge their previous relationship. “She’d visited me in LA when we were dating, and the contrast in feeling between the two visits almost gave me the sense that I had gone crazy, and maybe our relationship never existed, similar to George Bailey’s experience of having never been born in It’s a Wonderful Life,” remembers Opatz. “We went for a walk in Glendale’s Forest Lawn cemetery, where a number of celebrities are buried, and only after finishing the song did I find out that James Stewart, who played George Bailey, was actually buried there!” Opatz released the tremendous, perfectly-disjointed music video for “Wild-Eyed George Bailey Heebie Jeebies,” directed by Aaron Curry. Fans can hear “Wild-Eyed George Bailey Heebie Jeebies” now at this link and pre-order or pre-save Extra Medium ahead of its April 29 release right here. 

Extra Medium features Opatz’s bandmates and collaborators, Malachi DeLorenzo and Dylan Rodrigue, who he met in Los Angeles while working alongside Jonny Fritz at the infamous Dad Country Leather. DeLorenzo, Rodrigue, and Opatz worked together on taking the album’s songs from demo form to the quirkily-arranged, ever-evolving final track list of Extra Medium. Utilizing varying instrumentation, creative engineering, and blends of non-traditional hooks with classic song forms, the trio creates a living, breathing work, at once familiar—borderline nostalgic—and wholly unique. Fans of country and Americana will be just as likely to enjoy Extra Medium as those who lean more indie rock or experimental, perpetuating Opatz’s hard-to-describe but easy-to-listen-to style, one that Opatz and his band have dubbed dirtwave. From the feel changes and horn stabs in the previously-released single “Chinook Wind,” to the tension of the unison melody line that opens “Wild-Eyed George Bailey Heebie Jeebies,” Opatz provides never ending excitement for adventurous listeners, windows-down fun timers, and jaded industry vets alike. If Izaak Opatz’s life outside of music was noy interesting and free-wheeling enough, a step inside of his sonic world is sure to enrapture fans and fans-to-be upon first listen.

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