Asylum Street Spankers "Didn't It Rain"

The stage at Threadgill's was filled to capacity. There were so many folks on stage that their were two rows of them! The Asylum Street Spankers brought Broadway to us. The word TROUPE comes to mind, yes, and Vaudeville. There are old and loved concepts. They have been at it a long time themselves, with roots that stretch back to 1994 when Christina Marrs met Wammo at a mind expanding party in Llano, Texas. Within a year they conquered Austin, playing three SRO weekly residencies. In 1997 the band began venturing out into the wider world. Since then, Christina and Wammo have pushed their ever-evolving troupe from the early American music forms to new works for the stage and sociopolitical commentary. They are audacious, irrereverant, bubbling over with talent, and hallelujah - there is a brand new album, God's Favorite Band, their ninth.

We dedicate "Didn't It Rain" to the fine folks of Nashville who are rebuilding from the deluge. We direct your attention again to the Red Cross to help if you can.

- Jessie Scott

Morgan O'kane "Hold Your Fire"

There are some folks you just want to succeed. You pray for them, wish them the best, hope they get there. I wanna see Morgan O'kane on the late night telly, on SNL, on Letterman, on Craig, on Kimmel. I want him to get the opening slot for a Bruce Springsteen tour. I want Bruce's audience to see him, heck - I want Bruce to see him, because Bruce would GET Morgan. In my head, I can hear them doing "O Mary Don't You Weep" together. I want O'kane to wow the crowd at Bonnaroo, Wakarusa, Gathering of The Vibes, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, ACL Fest, etc.

Morgan O'kane is the bluegrass/punk banjo player from Charlottesville, VA now living in NYC (wow, what is this, an epidemic???!!!! NEW YORK CITY!) who came to our bus at Folk Alliance in February with Ferd Moyse (Hackensaw Boys) on fiddle and Zeke Healy on dobro. He, at times, is also accompanied by singer/songwriters Domino Kirke, Zack Orion, cellist Ben Sollee, and by "ninja" Phillip Roebuck.

Morgan’s first full length release Nine Lives is coming upon an unsuspecting public at last, and some cool stuff is happening for him. He is presently #4 on the Reverb Nation Folk Chart. He will be touring, which will include an appearance on the Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour with Michael Jonathon at the historic Kentucky Theatre, 214 Main St, Lexington, KY being taped on May 17th. We will keep you posted as more cool stuff unfolds!

- Jessie Scott

Jess Klein "Travelin' Woman"

It's been a life of moving and grooving. From growing up in New York to spending some time as a teenager on the island of Jamaica in the Caribbean, to the music scene in Boston, to a relocation to Texas in 2008, Jess Klein sure gets around. Austin afforded her the opportunity to live among a community of roots artists and she began writing and then testing the songs in front of small groups of fans at local club gigs. In December 2008 she went into the studio to record her seventh studio album, Bound To Love at The Aerie in Austin, TX with producers Mark Addison and Scrappy Jud Newcomb. The label situation is interesting. United For Opportunity describes itself as: "an organization of experienced, independent-thinking music industry activists that have come together to create a new model for a record label/music distribution company. A company founded on the principles of a fair deal, hard work, transparency, and realistic expectations, whose mission is to foster the art of artist development in conjunction with motivated career oriented artists. Harvesting our years of experience operating in the independent music sector as artist managers, lawyers, publishers, booking agents, and producers, we have formed UFO to support independent and disenfranchised artists who desire to maintain control of their music career." Amen! If you are interested in finding out more about their philosophy and operations, click through here.

Jess Klein came to visit us solo at Threadgill's during SXSW in March. There is something powerful, dangerous even, about the way she addresses the mic and the crowd. There are a few shows in the Northeast this week, before she makes her way back to Austin. Catch her if you can. "Travelin' Woman."

- Jessie Scott