Sound choices

McKinley Dixon For My Mama and Anyone Who Look Like Her Spacebomb Records As one of the year’s most important releases, McKinley Dixon’s Spacebomb Records debut rounds out a trilogy of albums that were five years in the making. The Richmond-based artist’s first two albums, Who Taught You to Hate Yourself? (2016) and The Importance […]

Hometown influences guide new releases

Butcher Brown Encore, Concord Jazz Richmond collective Butcher Brown made its major label debut last year on Concord with the release of #KINGBUTCH, an expansive full-length album that showcased the group’s unique fusion of jazz, hip-hop, and soul. Now, the quintet of DJ Harrison, drummer Corey Fonville, bassist Andrew Randazzo, trumpeter/saxophonist/MC Marcus “Tennishu” Tenney, and […]

Three debut albums

John-Robert Healthy Baby Boy Pt. 1 Nice Life Recording Company/Warner Records John-Robert’s musical ascent is the stuff of dreams. Hailing from Edinburg, Virginia—a small town north of Harrisonburg—he was tapped to play Something in the Water, Pharrell’s inaugural Virginia Beach festival, before super-producer Ricky Reed offered him the opportunity of a lifetime: Come to L.A. […]

Quarantine creativity begins to show

David Wax Museum Euphoric Ouroboric, Mark of the Leopard As David Wax Museum, the husband/wife duo of David Wax and Suz Slezak have churned out studio albums brimming with their unique blend of Mexo-Americana whimsy for 14 years. In 2019, their debut label release, Line of Light, garnered the Charlottesville pair a performance on “CBS […]

Reflecting the past and staring down the future

Matthew E. White & Lonnie Holley Broken Mirror, A Selfie Reflection Spacebomb/Jagjaguwar For his latest solo effort, the mastermind behind Richmond’s Spacebomb Records has teamed up with 70-year-old Alabama singer Lonnie Holley. Before pursuing music, Holley was known for his work as a visual artist, crafting sculptures and environments from found objects. When Matthew E. […]

Listening from home

COVID-19 has taken an unfathomable amount of lives, and its reverberations have disrupted our most cherished industries—the music business included. The onset of the pandemic brought studio sessions, live performances, and large-scale concerts to a screeching halt, rendering musicians, promoters, and venue and tour crews without reliable income. But time off the road also afforded […]

Sound Choices: Honoring family and following jazz

Angela Garcia Cha Cha Palace (Spacebomb Records) Angelica Garcia has that “it” factor. Listen across a series of loops, echoes, and howls, and her performances stop you dead in your tracks. They make you feel something. There are times when a solid live performance doesn’t translate in the studio, but that’s not the case on […]