Jonathan Keefe

Album Review: Punch Brothers, The Phosphorescent Blues

February 16, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 2

Punch Brothers The Phosphorescent Blues In reviewing their 2010 album, Antifogmatic, I noted that Punch Brothers were “rapidly evolving into a string-band version of Radiohead.” That assessment comes to full fruition on The Phosphorescent Blues,

Album Review: Zoe Muth, World of Strangers

January 18, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 0

Zoe Muth World of Strangers Few artists can make “weary” sound as engaging as Zoe Muth. Even though she rarely picks up the tempo past a casually swinging shuffle, Muth captivates with her artfully turned

Album Review: Little Big Town, Pain Killer

January 14, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 4

Little Big Town Pain Killer Rather than focusing on their unrivaled vocal skill, Little Big Town and producer Jay Joyce approach Pain Killer like a game of “Chicken”: Listening to the album, it appears that

Album Review: Blake Shelton, Bringing Back the Sunshine

January 13, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 2

Blake Shelton Bringing Back the Sunshine He’s been coasting on his celebrity status and his brand of aw-shucks humor for years, so it’s encouraging that Blake Shelton’s Bringing Back the Sunshine seems less phoned-in than

Album Review: Angaleena Presley, American Middle Class

January 13, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 0

Angaleena Presley American Middle Class Presley’s upbringing in the hollows of Eastern Kentucky provides her with an endless well of believable first-person details that she uses to create the quirky, cockeyed fictions on American Middle

Album Review: Brad Paisley, Moonshine in the Trunk

January 12, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 0

Brad Paisley Moonshine in the Trunk Paisley’s last four albums have established a pattern of something slightly progressive or challenging (American Saturday Night, Wheelhouse) followed by a course-correction back toward baseline (This is Country Music,

Single Review: Little Big Town, “Girl Crush”

January 12, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 21

“Girl Crush” Little Big Town Written by Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, and Liz Rose Beyond their lush four-part harmonies and their incorporation of Fleetwood Mac’s influence into the country idiom, perhaps Little Big Town’s greatest

Single Review: Miranda Lambert, “Little Red Wagon”

January 11, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 25

“Little Red Wagon” Miranda Lambert Written by Audra Mae and Joe Ginsburg The bizarre handling of the singles from Miranda Lambert’s Platinum continues unabated with the arrival of “Little Red Wagon.” After leading off with

Ain’t Nothing Wrong with the Radio? (Or, When Nash ICON Came to Town)

November 23, 2014 Jonathan Keefe 12

I more or less gave up on radio about fifteen years ago, after I purchased my first iPod. Like most right-minded people, I’d rather listen to the music I know I love than resort to

Single Review: Lee Ann Womack, “The Way I’m Livin'”

May 27, 2014 Jonathan Keefe 5

It’s always fascinating to see how a recording artist responds once her days as a consistent hit-maker have passed: While some chase the latest trends in an effort to remain commercially relevant, others embrace their newfound creative freedom and challenge themselves to add something meaningful to both their own artistic legacy and to the country genre itself.