Ruthie Foster "The Titanic"

I trust you got through the eclipse over the weekend with no ill effects. I don’t know about you but it made for some spectacular pictures on the tube, ones that stop and make you think about the cosmos. Gotta wonder how the ancients processed all these occasional occurrences. Coming out the other end of one of these, when the sky gets dark, and then things return to normal, had to be cause for celebration and song. Just add music. There is something so cathartic about it, blues and gospel, especially. And there is no finer purveyor than Ruthie Foster, who has quietly, yet powerfully, captivated Austin and who is now impacting well beyond that. These last few years have been about coming into one’s own for Ruthie. Learning, exploring, growing, and keeping on. And what a fine place she is in. Her new album Let It Burn, was recorded in New Orleans and features some of its best and brightest lending a hand.

Ruthie’s trajectory has been an odyssey; from a start in an East Texas church choir, to a tour of duty with the U.S. Navy Band, to chasing the dream in New York City, and then a hiatus as she returned to Texas to care for her ailing mother. Ruthie resumed her music career in Austin, and she has been racking up the accolades since, at the Austin Music Awards, Best Folk Artist in 2004-05 and Best Female Vocalist in 2007-08; Ruthie was nominated for a GRAMMY®, Best Contemporary Blues Album for her last studio release - 2009’s The Truth According to Ruthie Foster; and then she won Blues Music Association awards for both Best Traditional and Best Contemporary Female Blues Artist in back-to-back years.

Here is Ruthie Foster with percussionist Samantha Banks and bassist Tanya Richardson performing a vocal rich version of "The Titanic," the original of which can be found on her new album Let It Burn. This was filmed during the Spring Music Fog Marathon at Threadgill’s in Austin this past March.

- Jessie Scott

The Brothers Comatose "The Scout"

Just when you think all the good band names have already been taken, along comes The Brothers Comatose, an exceptional string outfit from San Francisco. Their second full-length CD, Respect The Van, comes out today and it provides a showcase for the quintet’s prodigious talents. Brothers Alex and Ben Morrison, vocals, banjo and guitar; Gio Benedetti, vocals and bass; Philip Brezina, fiddle; Ryan Avellone, mandolin, are rocking the room at places like the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, The Strawberry Festival, and High Sierra Music Festival. By the way, the comatose assignation comes from the trance that Alex enters when he plays banjo.

The Brothers Comatose simmer a stew that combines old and new for soul satisfaction. A quick note about what separates old school bluegrass from this music - it's the rock and roll structure to the composition. You gotta see these guys on their ambitious summer touring adventure, Respect The Van indeed! Speaking of ‘seeing’ them, there is a series of strip poker-esque photos, as the band did a countdown to this week’s album release. A layer of clothing was removed by each member for each photo, culminating here. Here is one of the songs from the new album, “The Scout,” which of course, features the van. I wonder if it has a name...

- Jessie Scott

Connor Christian & Southern Gothic "Sheets Down"

Did’ya see Mick Jagger on Saturday Night Live? He did a great job hosting, and made an especially joyful noise when he performed “The Last Time” with Arcade Fire. He also did performances with the Foo Fighters and Jeff Beck. I guess it takes three bands to replace the rest of the Stones (LOL). Lately, I have been picking tracks for my new radio show at KDRP and I have to tell you that there is plenty of early Rolling Stones in the mix. There is something so eternal about how they translated the great American blues and R&B traditions, and then brought it back to the shores of the U.S. The roots music movement owes those Brits a huge debt of gratitude.

Connor Christian & Southern Gothic’s music lives at the intersection of Southern music: Roots Rock, Americana and Country. CCSG's latest release, New Hometown (Part 1), an eight song set, is actually two EPs that were recorded at the same time. New Hometown strips down what the band did on the 2009 release 90 Proof Lullabies. Back in January none other than Billboard, the venerable music biz trade magazine, cited CC&SG as a “Best Bets 2012.” We had them come to our lair, the Music Fog Marathon at Threadgill’s during SXSW® music week, and I was most impressed with their honest, passionate, and impeccable delivery. Here is a taste, “Sheets Down.”

- Jessie Scott