AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: CASEY ABRAMS/PUT A SPELL ON YOU

Casey Abrams was born in Austin, Texas and eventually made his way to Idyllwild, California. This multi-instrumentalist initially made a name for himself on the 10th season of American Idol – he finished in sixth place – and judging by his 2018 album PUT A SPELL ON YOU, he’s certainly learned a lot during his long and exciting journey. Unlike many other artists who are content to find a niche or genre they feel comfortable in, Abrams mixes and matches genres as he sees fit. This is not a former American Idol contestant that is going to fall in line and churn out a variation on today’s Top 40. Nope. Casey Adams is going to do whatever he damn well pleases!

MICHAEL W. SMITH PERFORMS ON GOOD MORNING AMERICA MARCH 13

Multi-Platinum, three-time Grammy-Award winning artist, best-selling author and acclaimed actor Michael W. Smith will perform live on ABC-TV’s Good Morning America Tuesday, March 13. The appearance was sparked by his two, back-to-back hit albums A MILLION LIGHTS and SURROUNDED out now from Rocketown Records and The Fuel Music.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: LEE DEWYZE/PARANOIA

PARANOIA is the seventh album from singer/songwriter Lee DeWyze, best known as the winner of the ninth season of AMERICAN IDOL. Paranoia is an atmospheric and highly passionate album that blends the warmth of acoustic instrumentation with cold yet emotional electronic textures, creating something that is unique yet still very commercial. PARANOIA is a highly emotional concept album that details the many facets of a romantic Relationship – a subject that all of us can relate to.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: ALBERT CASTIGLIA/UP ALL NIGHT

While he may be classified as a Blues artist, Albert Castiglia will certainly appeal to more than just that genre’s enthusiasts. Fans of Alt-Country, Roots Rock and Americana will most certainly fall under the spell of Castiglia and his 2017 album UP ALL NIGHT, which hits stores on October 6. His name may not be familiar to some but he’s been raising the roof since 1990 when he joined Miami Blues Authority. Discovered six years later by Blues legend Junior Wells, Albert became his sideman until Wells’ death in 1998. Working as a sideman for a variety of other artists, Castiglia didn’t step into the solo spotlight until he released his debut album in 2004.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: JON LANGFORD/FOUR LOST SOULS

Jon Langford is a rarity in the music business. I can’t think of another artist that can be called a pioneer of British Post-Punk (with The Mekons and The Three Johns) AND a beloved Americana singer/songwriter. But don’t misunderstand the man: this is NOT a case of an artist changing musical styles to chase fame and fortune! In fact, one can find traces of the American musical landscape in the early Mekons releases although they are buried amongst the many shadows that the band were prone to throw during their inspiring career. Over the years, Langford traveled many different musical roads, all of which lead to the glory that is FOUR LOST SOULS.

LOS STRAITJACKETS/What’s So Funny… review!

A few years back, it wasn’t a shock to see that British singer/songwriter Nick Lowe would be touring with American instrumental Rock combo Los Straitjackets. Both Nick and the ‘Jackets occupy the same musical universe although they are on opposite ends of the galaxy.

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Tag: Records