Some songs begin with a destination in mind. Lior Golan’s “Midnight Train,” our top pick from the EP "MIDNIGHT TRAINS," begins with the need to leave. From its first thunderous drums and blues-soaked guitars, it carries the unmistakable momentum of something already in motion, while Golan’s gritty, weathered vocals give that journey a human pulse. “Ain’t slowing down / Ain’t turning back” sounds less like a rock ’n’ roll catchphrase than a line drawn in the dust. Behind the s

Some artists spend their careers trying to outrun the past. Steve Montgomery seems perfectly happy to take the past, plug it into an amplifier, and turn it up. With "Living The Dream Right Now", he makes a compelling case for the enduring power of guitar music, connecting the unfussy spirit of classic rock with the hooks of power pop and the rougher edges of indie rock. It is a record that feels refreshingly unconcerned with whatever happens to be fashionable, because Montgom

Back in April 2022, we tipped our hats to Rich Chambers as a kind of modern-day cowboy, an artist unafraid to blend introspective...