BEEHIVE CANDY

You may have noticed, January 2008 has arrived. Well although it can be a lean month for new music, I have two bands that I reckon can be pretty big this year, mind you - the competition will be tough. Just look at some of the established acts with new albums lined up, and these are just the ones I am looking forward to right now! In no particular order... Emmylou Harris, Marianne Faithful, Franz Ferdinand, CSS, Madness, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, The Black Crowes, Billy Bragg, Guillemots, Martha Wainwright, Drive By Truckers, REM, David Byrne, Moby, PJ Harvey, Primal Scream, Supergrass, Counting Crows and The Pogues. Musically that's quite a taster for the year to come. However if you want a recommendation right now, then if you have not yet enjoyed No Fixed Abode , can I be the first to share this superb band with you. Their roots may be in folk (predominately modern), however as I listen I hear so many inspirations (The Waterboys, Bruce Springsteen, Fairport Convention and ...

Whiskeytown only released three albums, and yet they are often cited as one of the key elements in the development of the alternative country rock scene or 'Americana' during the 1990's. Ryan Adams and Caitlin Cary were the only two members of Whiskeytown to see the whole adventure through, indeed Ryan Adams had a reputation of being difficult to work with during the bands history, and therefore the overall turnover of members was quite high. Formed in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1994, the bands first album was released in 1996. Describing this era the entry in Wikipedia states: Faithless Street , released on Mood Food Records in 1996, established the band as one of the genre's leaders, thanks to glowing reviews in publications such as No Depression, and helped the band score a major-label record deal with the Geffen Records imprint Outpost. Faithless was re-released on the imprint in 1998 with nearly a dozen bonus tracks from the era, some of which are new, and othe...