I wondered if they were going to check for country credentials. Certainly all the performers had been vetted.
There's still discussion of "What is country?" As if some people at the Grand Old Opry were unsure.
Country is huge and my recent visit to the Opry showed why. A best-in-class performance was delivered.
The arrangements were tight, the…
Nashville's 5Spot is in the Five Points neighborhood, and I wanted sounds off the beaten path. I got them, courtesy of Asheville N.C.
C Shreve the Professor is an old school rapper who delivers the narcotic over a tape backup. He's got skills. Rappers today rap about how hard it is to be an MC, and…
I'm always astounded at how certain rock stars took so many substances and still remember many details of their life and times. We took no substances and can't remember that much.
One of our better shows was just south of Dupont Circle in DC in 1988 or 1989, with Bob Hair, Chuck Bon Jovi and myself.…
The copyright on the F word has been transferred. Liz Phair no longer has it. Colleen Green (above) does.
She started the show on 1/30/26 in Silver Spring, Maryland, saying "What the F." Then proceeded on to songs called "F*** Around" and "I am F***ing Awesome."
Green's pop sounds like it comes from Phair songbook -- accessible,…
Pop music today is about relationships. We try to be normal.
Like The Cure, XTC or Red Lorry Yellow Lorry. But more fun.
We wound up with the only song to name check Billy White Shoes Johnson.
Presave for next week.
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/thriftbakery/remote-access
I never thought I would hear the Til Tuesday 1980s hit “Voices Carry” performed live, but this week I got the next best thing.
My long-time friend Dave came down from Jersey to the Birchmere on 12/2/25 for the Aimee Mann and Ted Leo Christmas show, a variety program.
Mann spoofed her own song, creating new lyrics…
11/29/25
I received an email from Phoebe of the "post shoegaze" group Ratstallion from Denver. She had some complimentary things to say about T.B. and let us know of her group's new release.
"Sisyphus Happy" is 19 minutes -- 7 songs -- of 'gaze. I wish it was longer. The themes are pain, truth, perception and attachment.
Shoegaze…
An older crowd, many of them my age, came to the Atlantis in D.C. on November 11 for Jenn Wasner's homecoming. She's from Baltimore and I'm highly partial to Wasner's last band, Wye Oak. I consider them to be the John Coltrane or Miles Davis of indie rock. So I was curious to hear Flock…
Lookout is a Maryland fivesome with songs about white youth reality feelings. They were not ponderous but uptempo, conjuring up Britpop of prior decades. If you like The Delgados, The Sundays or the Go-Betweens, Lookout is for you.
Singer Kate features a mezzo soprano with some of the gravelly bottom of a Janis Joplin. Guitarist Jack…
TB connects through the internet for a live performance on Bewaretheradio.com at 5 pm eastern USA prevailing time.
The livestream player is on their home page and their mobile app is even better: https://bewaretheradio.com/
BTR is an internet radio station in Blackpool, England, that is part of the mighty Pacifica network. This segment will be recorded…
Daughter: Did you know this would be so gay, millenial and female-headlined? Dad: yes. The festival was my choice and my daughter Olivia came with me. We saw four acts.
GFlip is the kid in school who is your instant friend and can learn any instrument. She sang and played guitar, drums and sax. Her infectious…
My wife and I saw Black Violin mix classical and hip-hop last week. It was way dope.
Kev Marcus plays violin and Wil Baptiste plays viola and sings, sometimes plucking the strings. They are the core of the group. They play a mix of tunes, starting with the Bach they learned as kids and moving to…
Our other band, Loco Domingo, released a song for all the tough people out there.
"Where's My Posse" starts as a quiet storm love jam and then takes dance music to an entirely new direction.
I have seen the future of rock, and it is Natalie Lu.
She’s 21 and left college to play in big rooms with a shoegaze sound topped with her pop voice.
She filled the 9:30 in D.C. on August 22 and the crowd swooned and gushed over her.
Shoegaze music is not about anything besides the feelings…
I started the lyrics to our upcoming single, "Tall Enough to Ride," while driving in the Virginia countrywide and put some acoustic guitar chords to it.
Bob Hair and Tater Totts changed the chords into something fresh, a song with an easygoing funky feel with a memorable melody because of the clavinet and guitar riffs.
TB sometimes…