Van Morrison keeps singing, and other new music

Van Morrison will release his first album of new music in four years about a month from now.

Called "Keep Me Singing," it's his 36th studio album. It has 12 original songs plus a cover of "Share Your Love With Me," an early-60s song by Alfred Braggs and Deadric Malone that's been recorded by numerous artists over the years.

The first track to be released from "Keep Me Singing" is "Too Late," and we've added it to our New Music bin.

Michael Kiwanuka's second album, Love and Hate, is an elaborate and varied work by an artist pushing well beyond the acoustic blues/folk of his debut.

We're captivated by the title track, a seven-minute epic that evokes a sense of struggle with both "Love and Hate."

Various aspects of this album have drawn comparisons to Pink Floyd, Isaac Hayes, Dr. John, Bill Withers and others. We'd add Marvin Gaye to that list. The influences are broad; the result is unique.

Also added to our New Music bin this week:

• "We Don't Know," the latest tune to spin out from The Strumbellas' most recent release, Hope.
• "Running Out Of Time" by Amos Lee, from his newly-issued Spirit album.

We're trying out a lot of other new music, which you might hear pop up now and then in our mix, and we plan to add a big batch of fresh material to our New Music rotation next week, so stay tuned!

Van Morrison keeps singing, and other new music

Van Morrison will release his first album of new music in four years about a month from now.

Called "Keep Me Singing," it's his 36th studio album. It has 12 original songs plus a cover of "Share Your Love With Me," an early-60s song by Alfred Braggs and Deadric Malone that's been recorded by numerous artists over the years.

The first track to be released from "Keep Me Singing" is "Too Late," and we've added it to our New Music bin.

Michael Kiwanuka's second album, Love and Hate, is an elaborate and varied work by an artist pushing well beyond the acoustic blues/folk of his debut.

We're captivated by the title track, a seven-minute epic that evokes a sense of struggle with both "Love and Hate."

Various aspects of this album have drawn comparisons to Pink Floyd, Isaac Hayes, Dr. John, Bill Withers and others. We'd add Marvin Gaye to that list. The influences are broad; the result is unique.

Also added to our New Music bin this week:

• "We Don't Know," the latest tune to spin out from The Strumbellas' most recent release, Hope.
• "Running Out Of Time" by Amos Lee, from his newly-issued Spirit album.

We're trying out a lot of other new music, which you might hear pop up now and then in our mix, and we plan to add a big batch of fresh material to our New Music rotation next week, so stay tuned!

New bands & veterans, we add their new sounds

The artist-promotion site Noisetrade.com has led us to another find: An Austin-based band called Tahoma. Lead singer Brandon Aguilar and vocalist/percussionist Sarah Oermann formerly worked as a duo but have now formed a five-piece band and just released Hide Away. Our favorite track is the title song, so we've added that to our New Music rotation, but we'll also be spinning the official "single" from the album, "Emerald Ring."

Along with discovering new artists we always enjoy adding new works by veterans. 

Grateful Dead vet Bob Weir has a new solo album in the works, called Blue Mountain. 

The first song to spin out of it is "Only A River." It's co-written by Josh Ritter and makes references to the traditional folk song "Shenandoah."

Also brewing a new album: Dawes. We're not sure what to make of the foreboding title, We're All Gonna Die. 

The first single, "When the Tequila Runs Out," describes a party gone way too far -- reminding us that "it's hard to leave when you can't find the door."

We're constantly adding new music - and filling in gaps in our collection of classic rock, singer-songwriter and related genres of music. We welcome your suggestions too! Comment on this page or get in touch on Facebook, Twitter or email. And please keep listening!

New bands & veterans, we add their new sounds

The artist-promotion site Noisetrade.com has led us to another find: An Austin-based band called Tahoma. Lead singer Brandon Aguilar and vocalist/percussionist Sarah Oermann formerly worked as a duo but have now formed a five-piece band and just released Hide Away. Our favorite track is the title song, so we've added that to our New Music rotation, but we'll also be spinning the official "single" from the album, "Emerald Ring."

Along with discovering new artists we always enjoy adding new works by veterans. 

Grateful Dead vet Bob Weir has a new solo album in the works, called Blue Mountain. 

The first song to spin out of it is "Only A River." It's co-written by Josh Ritter and makes references to the traditional folk song "Shenandoah."

Also brewing a new album: Dawes. We're not sure what to make of the foreboding title, We're All Gonna Die. 

The first single, "When the Tequila Runs Out," describes a party gone way too far -- reminding us that "it's hard to leave when you can't find the door."

We're constantly adding new music - and filling in gaps in our collection of classic rock, singer-songwriter and related genres of music. We welcome your suggestions too! Comment on this page or get in touch on Facebook, Twitter or email. And please keep listening!

Carsie and the So Ferocious Girls

If you're a Birch Street Radio regular you know Carsie Blanton and you've been hearing tracks from her new album, So Ferocious, in our Marvelous Mix. But you really need to check out the videos, too. This latest, for the title track, packs a punch!