By J. Brown

With banjos blazing and foot-stomping galore, the English quartet Mumford & Sons are back with their highly anticipated second album Babel. Their gritty and triumphant take on folk rock has seen unparalleled success around the world in the past few years, which has consequently built high expectations for their follow up to the commercial success of Sigh No More. After all, it’s pretty hard to top a musical journey that has included playing at the Grammys with Bob Dylan and performing for President Barack Obama at the White House.  Read more...

By J. Brown

While January may be the technical start of each new year, those of us who can’t shake thinking of life in terms of school reserve September as the real start of the year, even if we’ve left behind textbooks and classes years ago. As the hot summer months turn colder with the arrival of autumn, September is when the expectation of change hangs in the air (or here in Southern California, we have to be satisfied with blistering heat turning to a medium heat as we enter fall). So if we think of September as a fresh start, music lovers have a lot to look forward to because autumn is set to bring an array of exciting new releases. Here is a rundown of albums, in no particular order, that you can look forward to:  Read more...

Mumford & Sons have just announced the details of their forthcoming second album, Babel. The album will be released through Glassnote Records and made available in the US on September 25^th, 2012.  Read more...

Denver band The Lumineers are set to be the featured artists on VH1’s You Oughta Know this coming July and August. VH1 has tapped The Lumineers as You Oughta Know artists alongside Rebecca Ferguson for two months, rather than the typical one artist for one month each.  Read more...

By J. Brown

It’s not every artist that can hit all the right notes when covering an eclectic mix of musical genres, but singer/songwriter Alynda Lee Segarra from Hurray for the Riff Raff is far from ordinary, and that’s especially evident when you hear her amazing voice. Segarra is the principal writer behind this band and their latest album, Look Out Mama, still stays true to their southern-folk origins. Yet it also manages to touch on a wide range of musical styles like soul, psychedelic, Americana, country, rockabily swing, blues, and 60’s surf.  Read more...

By J. Brown

In 2011 Paste Magazine named The Lumineers one of the best new bands of the year and at the time the band listed as its goals the following: “Make music that makes you smile, cry and stomp your foot simultaneously. Make music for years with these dear friends of mine. Be proud of our music. Play Letterman and Europe.” Based on listening to this band’s self-titled debut album, which is out April 3^rd from Dualtone Records, the Lumineers are well on their way to fulfilling these goals, as this band’s first full-length album is a fantastic continuation of the roots revival that has taken a hold of music fans thanks to heartfelt melodies and soul-stirring songs.  Read more...

The Denver, Colorado based band, The Lumineers, are proud to announce the release of their self-titled debut album, out on April 3rd via Dualtone. The band’s style of emotive, powerful folk-rock has garnered comparisons to Edward Sharpe and Mumford and Sons, and is in line with Dualtone’s history of supporting talented folk acts. The album was produced and mixed by Ryan Hadlock (Foo Fighters, Ra Ra Riot, Metric) at Bear Creek Studios, with additional mixing by Kevin Augunas (The Black Keys, Cold War Kids, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros) at Fairfax Recordings, and follows the band’s eponymous self-recorded EP that was released earlier in 2011.  Read more...

By J. Brown

Rather than focus on one particular band or artist, this particular article will highlight some of the latest (or upcoming) releases that have managed to grab my attention recently.  Read more...

Project Rhythm Seed is pleased to announce that we are headed for Bumbershoot Music and Arts Festival in downtown Seattle. While music festivals have proliferated in the past decade, the 41-year-old Bumbershoot remains unique in its approach, stressing discovery and variety in its music programming as well as a broad spectrum of comedy, theater, visual arts, dance and film offerings. This year’s festival takes place over three days, September 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th.  Read more...

By J. Brown

Kyla la Grange, Marcus Foster, Ben Lovett, Matthew & the Atlas, Ryan O’Reilly, Sarah Blasko, Beans on Toast, Mt. Desolation, Pete Roe, Damien Rice, The Staves, Lissie, Angus & Julia Stone, Alan Pownall: This list of artists might sound like the makings of a top-notch music festival, but actually these are just some of the musicians who appear on Communion’s newest release, a compilation album entitled The Flowerpot Sessions.  Read more...

By J. Brown

As a masterful storyteller, it’s no surprise that singer/songwriter Joe Purdy is as prolific as he is talented. In July of 2010, Purdy released 4^th of July, which I reviewed at the time for Project Rhythm Seed (read that article here), and a couple of months after his summer release Purdy released another album entitled This American that was available for free during December. By the sounds of it, Purdy shows no signs of stopping with 12 albums under his belt, which is bound to be welcome news for his devoted fans, many of which were at the Troubadour recently to take in his Los Angeles show for the first leg of the This American tour.  Read more...

NeedToBreathe is excited to join Taylor Swift, as main support on her upcoming “Speak Now” tour beginning May 27th in Omaha, NE. Hand-picked by Taylor, the 19-week tour will see the 4-piece rock band playing songs from their current album The Outsiders, which debuted at #20 on the Billboard Top 200, along with introducing songs from their upcoming late summer release on Atlantic Records. The band is currently hard at work finishing up the new album in their Charleston, SC studio.  Read more...

By Myles Crawley
Photos by Alana Crawley

A few weeks ago we published an article on the announcement of the Railroad Revival Tour, starring Mumford & Sons, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros and Old Crow Medicine Show. The basic premise of this tour consists of three bands traveling on a train of 15 vintage rail cars, customized for rock star comfort, that include the ability for the bands to eat, sleep, play and record together while traveling down some of America’s finest rail routes. In fact, during Mumford & Sons set, Marcus Mumford told the audience that all three bands had been up until the wee hours of the morning, jamming, singing and writing. Sounds like a lot of fun to me!  Read more...

This April, Mumford & Sons, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, and Old Crow Medicine Show will embark on a tour unlike any in recent memory.  Traveling exclusively in vintage railcars, the three bands will journey across the American Southwest over the course of a week. The aptly titled Railroad Revival Tour will feature the three bands playing concerts at six unique outdoor locations along the route, beginning April 21^st in Oakland, California.  Read more...