Music
Filling the gap between Medeski, Martin and Wood
Bassist Chris Wood was taking some midday chill time in Athens, Ga., when we caught up to him last weekend, cooling his heels before his gig that night with The Wood Brothers band, his six-year project with his brother, guitarist and singer Oliver. The Wood Brothers ...
Rusty Anderson firmly grounded for latest album
Rusty Anderson has been an unsung hero of popular alternative music in the last 20 years. He’s been Paul McCartney’s right hand man and lead guitarist since 2001. He’s worked with Willie Nelson, Elton John and Regina Spektor. He even contributed the now-famous guitar...
Manna from pop heaven
When Tom McFarland is touring in the States, he likes to “dip back into the American classics,” listening to Simon & Garfunkel when he’s...
Symphony in a dream
Everyone loves a circus. Even at the symphony — in the temple of high culture...
Something old, something new
If there’s one thing composer Steven Hackman wants you to know about his growing collection of “mash-up” compositions — where he joins celebrated master works from classical artists like Brahms seamlessly with works from contemporary pop culture gods like Radiohead...
An unexpected path
Until high school, composer Gustav Hoyer had never played an instrument, so he’d certainly never considered a career as a musician.
But a class in...
Greensky Bluegrass: All grown up
Maturity is a term some musicians prefer not to see associated with themselves or their bands. After all, music is considered a young person’s...
A live experiment
Plenty of musicians say the live show is where their music really comes alive and songs can take on a new life, evolving into something different — and often better — than the versions fans are accustomed to hearing on a record...
The language of the people
In 1990, a lawyer named Craig Ferguson found himself in a hotel room in Chicago dreaming of a new phase of his life, one...
The final stage
He was a whirlwind on stage. A larger-than-life mandolin dervish enticing huge audiences to join him on a wild ride, and a songwriter who...
Partying: a determination to maintain the belief that life is good
If you had access to MTV in the early 2000s, you likely witnessed the era of high-energy, raucous young men who lived by a...
