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Blues Powerhouse Stacy Mitchhart Recruits Gretchen Wilson, Kenny Neal And Charlie Musselwhite For New Album ‘No Rhyme or Reason’

Eric Alper
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Blues Powerhouse Stacy Mitchhart Recruits Gretchen Wilson, Kenny Neal And Charlie Musselwhite For New Album ‘No Rhyme or Reason’


Stacy Mitchhart is gearing up for one of the biggest releases of his career. After more than three decades of electrifying stages with his soulful guitar work and commanding vocals, the blues powerhouse has announced his new album ‘No Rhyme or Reason,’ arriving April 17, led by the new single “Good One Time,” out now.

His 17th album was produced by multiple Grammy winner Tom Hambridge, known for his work with Buddy Guy, George Thorogood, and Susan Tedeschi, and features guest turns from Gretchen Wilson, Kenny Neal, and Charlie Musselwhite. “I wanted to work with an outside producer for the purpose of creating a fresh sound,” Mitchhart explains from his Nashville home. “I also wanted to collaborate with people that I truly admire and write new original music.”

Recorded largely on Nashville’s storied Music Row, the album shows off Mitchhart’s range. The edgy “Bad As You” digs into the human habit of projecting faults onto others, while the swaggering title single “Good One Time” piles on big guitars, organ, and punchy horns beneath a vocal he nailed in just a couple of takes. Louisiana blues stalwart Kenny Neal joins him on “Mean Bad Wrong” for a classic New Orleans flavor, fulfilling a longtime wish to record together.

The album also includes the rollicking duet “Sure Looks Good To Me” with Grammy-winning vocalist Gretchen Wilson. “Gretchen and I have talked about recording a duet since she was a waitress at the Bourbon Street Blues and Boogie Bar in 1996,” Mitchhart recalls. “She used to get up and sit in with us.” Best known for her chart-topping country hits, Wilson brings a gritty, roadhouse energy to the track.

A virtuoso guitarist who weighs melody, storytelling, and groove equally, Mitchhart first made waves in the early 1990s. Raised in Cincinnati, he became a standout on the regional club circuit before relocating to Nashville by 1996, where his fiery sets as the house act at the Bourbon Street Blues and Boogie Bar turned legendary. “My sound is a gumbo of musical styles,” he says. “My philosophy is that the music has to feel good first, and then it has to mean something to me.” It’s a genuinely soulful, wide-open record from one of the blues’ most dynamic live performers.

No Rhyme or Reason Tracklisting:

Good One Time

Bad As You

Sure Looks Good To Me

Once You Leave

Flip To The Other Side

We Blew It

Long Way Down

No Rhyme Or Reason

Mean Bad Wrong

Never Gonna Get Me Back

She’s Just Right

On My Dying Day

Singer-Songwriter Walter Egan’s Columbia Years Get The Box-Set Treatment On ‘The Album Collection 1977-1980’

Eric Alper
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Singer-Songwriter Walter Egan’s Columbia Years Get The Box-Set Treatment On ‘The Album Collection 1977-1980’

Walter Egan’s most celebrated stretch is getting a proper reissue. Edsel Records has announced ‘Walter Egan – The Album Collection 1977-1980,’ a 4-CD set due June 26 gathering his four Columbia studio albums, ‘Fundamental Roll,’ ‘Hi Fi,’ ‘Not Shy,’ and ‘The Last Stroll,’ together for the first time.

Now into his sixth decade as a working musician, Egan has long been the definition of a songwriter’s songwriter. He’s been a protégé of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks, a songwriter for Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, and a near-bandmate of the Eagles and Jackson Browne. Between 1977 and 1980 he cut these four records with the cream of L.A.’s golden-era players and producers, with ‘Fundamental Roll’ produced in its entirety by Buckingham.

The Fleetwood Mac connection runs deep on these sessions. The collection boasts vocal arrangements by Stevie Nicks, with both Nicks and Buckingham lending backing vocals right around the time ‘Rumours’ sent their own band into the stratosphere.

The era’s highlights include the 1978 US Top 10 hit “Magnet and Steel,” Egan’s enduring calling card, which later turned up in films like ‘Boogie Nights’ and ‘This Is 40.’ “Hot Summer Nights” has been covered by artists in France, Denmark, and Japan, and was sampled by Dr. Dre for Eminem’s 2009 single “We Made You.” It’s a diverse body of work rooted in Egan’s dedication to following his creative instincts.

The set comes in deluxe 7-inch packaging with a 12-page illustrated book, plus sleeve notes from music writer Jason Draper drawn from a new interview with Egan reflecting on his career. A special signed edition, limited to 1,000 copies, will also be available.

Five-Time Grammy Winner Mary Chapin Carpenter Joins Forces With The Mountain Goats For A Two-Song Covers EP

Eric Alper
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Five-Time Grammy Winner Mary Chapin Carpenter Joins Forces With The Mountain Goats For A Two-Song Covers EP

Two beloved acts have come together for a small but heartfelt release. Five-time Grammy winner Mary Chapin Carpenter has unveiled a two-song collaboration with John Darnielle’s acclaimed indie folk band The Mountain Goats, out now via Cadmean Dawn. The EP pairs two cherished covers: “Put the Message in the Box” by World Party and “Migrations” by Christine Fellows. Both tracks are available digitally now, with a limited-edition 7″ vinyl, pressed in Tar and Clear variants, up for pre-order.

The collaboration grew out of a long friendship. “John Darnielle and I have been friends for many years now, he’s been a dedicated correspondent and ally in all topics connected to song writing, recording, touring and the balancing act that a life involving these pursuits requires,” said Carpenter. “To have collaborated on these two favorite songs with John and the Mountain Goats has been a joy and a gift, joining our voices, singing these words from other favorite artists, and feeling the music deeply.”

Darnielle was just as enthusiastic. “I’ve looked up to Mary Chapin Carpenter for half my life. Getting to know her over the past few years has been such a pure pleasure, so when she asked about doing a split single where we pick songs to cover and help each other out on the effort, what could we say but ‘hell yes’?” he said. “Mary Chapin picked a World Party song I’ve always loved and I picked out a Christine Fellows song I can barely sing without crying. But I did it! Matt arranged it!”

The release was produced and engineered by Matt Douglas at his studio in Raleigh, North Carolina, mixed and mastered by Chris Boerner, with Carpenter’s vocals recorded at Bias Studios in Springfield, Virginia, by engineer Bob Dawson. The 7″ runs an exclusive 500 copies of each color.

The EP follows Carpenter’s 2025 album ‘Personal History,’ which drew acclaim from Americana Highways, Music Row, UNCUT, and more, with The Arts Desk naming it the year’s best and calling Carpenter “a rare treasure.” She toured the record alongside fellow Grammy winner Brandy Clark, with stops at New York’s Town Hall, Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, and the Newport Folk Festival. This summer, she joins American Tunes: Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing alongside Rhiannon Giddens, Mavis Staples, and Hurray for the Riff Raff, a run of outdoor shows beginning June 26 in Seattle.

EP Tracklist:

Side A: Put the Message in the Box (Karl Wallinger)

Side B: Migrations (Christine Fellows)

Mary Chapin Carpenter Live:

June 26 – Seattle, WA @ Venue TBA

June 27 – Bend, OR @ Hayden Homes Amphitheater

July 30 – Bentonville, AR @ The Momentary

August 1 – Asheville, NC @ Hellbender by The Orange Peel

August 2 – Pelham, TN @ The Caverns Outdoor Amphitheater

Appalachian Country Songwriter Brit Taylor Drives Home With New Album ‘Land of the Forgotten’

Eric Alper
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Appalachian Country Songwriter Brit Taylor Drives Home With New Album ‘Land of the Forgotten’

Brit Taylor is going back to her roots. The Eastern Kentucky songwriter has released her new album ‘Land of the Forgotten,’ and for her, it’s deeply personal. “This album feels like driving home to me,” Taylor says, and that sense of home carries real weight coming from the same Appalachian corner that produced Loretta Lynn, Keith Whitley, The Judds, and Tyler Childers.

Taylor’s songs are built from colorful memories of back home, delivered by a rich, layered voice that’s playful and cheeky as often as it’s cutting and commanding. The 11-song LP collects tightly written, hook-driven songs that frequently center on the working class, produced by the person who knows her musical strengths best, her husband, Adam Chaffins.

Taylor and Chaffins, along with their longtime collaborator, songwriter Adam Wright, and a few others, wove together a sonic tapestry that highlights Taylor’s singular voice and her love and compassion for where she’s from, balancing the ups and downs of life. “I think it puts a light-hearted spin on some of the tougher things about life,” Taylor says. “Not to make light of difficult times, but to remind us two things can exist at one time, and not to forget to take a look at the bright side too, and to not take it all so seriously.”

The album arrives on the newly formed RidgeTone Records, a label supporting Appalachian talent based in Prestonsburg, Kentucky, distributed through Thirty Tigers. It’s a warm, rooted collection from one of the region’s most compelling new voices.

Country-Pop Hitmaker Hunter Hayes Completes His Trilogy With New Album ‘Evergreen’ And A Title-Track Visualizer

Eric Alper
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Country-Pop Hitmaker Hunter Hayes Completes His Trilogy With New Album ‘Evergreen’ And A Title-Track Visualizer

Hunter Hayes is closing the loop on an ambitious three-album journey. The country-pop hitmaker has released his 10-track album ‘Evergreen,’ along with an official visualizer for the title track, filmed at the lush Cheekwood Estate & Gardens.

The record completes a trilogy that began with ‘Wild Blue’ and ‘Red Sky,’ tracing a journey from optimism through conflict to resolution. Across its 10 tracks, Hayes weaves together pop, country, folk, R&B, and indie rock, with lyrics centered on renewal, self-discovery, compassion, and presence, the foundation for a healthy relationship with himself, the world, and others.

He has a clear vision for what he wanted it to feel like. “I wanted to make an imaginative album, not a reaction to the world around me, but rather a dream of the world I want to create,” Hayes shares. “I want the music to feel like free therapy. Something that makes you feel better, more understood, more alive.” He describes the album as “a letter from your future self,” an emotional reset and a statement of manifestation, guided by his motto, “Be good to yourself and the world around you.”

Recorded with co-producer Alex Flagstad, ‘Evergreen’ captures the full scope of Hayes’ creativity with songs that are as emotionally rich as they are musically daring. The high points run deep, from “Until She Comes Along,” a bluesy number that blossoms into a fun rock tune showcasing his growth as a songwriter, to the cinematic “Around the Sun,” an affirmation that whatever you’re going through, you’ll come out the other side. There’s also the playfully vulnerable “Every Piece,” the infectious “Wait,” and the atmospheric, scene-setting title track. It’s Hayes at his most fully expressive chapter yet.

Charlotte Sands Goes Bold And Self-Assured On Her New Album ‘Satellite’

Eric Alper
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Charlotte Sands Goes Bold And Self-Assured On Her New Album ‘Satellite’

Charlotte Sands just unveiled her new album, ‘Satellite,’ a bold, emotionally charged 10-track record that captures her at her most expansive and self-assured. The album gathers fan-favorite singles “Afterlife,” “neckdeep,” “HUSH,” “back to you,” and “one eye open,” and pairs them with a slate of previously unreleased songs.

Known for her genre-blurring sound, fearless vulnerability, and electric live presence, Sands pushes her vision further than ever here. The album sets soaring melodies against razor-sharp lyricism and punchy, high-impact production, landing somewhere both intimate and anthemic.

Sands opened up about where the record came from. “‘Satellite’ was born from a search for meaning, identity, and self-worth. It’s a collection of moments from the last two years of my life—the highs and the lows, the joy and the grief. It’s about drifting, discovering, questioning your purpose, and learning to trust the quiet pull that brings you back to yourself,” she shares.

Since her 2018 debut, Sands has charted in the U.S. Top 40 for more than 15 weeks, won Best Breakthrough Album at the Heavy Music Awards, and amassed over 300 million global streams, all as a fully independent artist. Relentless touring fueled her rise, with stages shared alongside My Chemical Romance, 5 Seconds of Summer, and YUNGBLUD. In 2024, she launched a successful global headline tour behind her album ‘can we start over?.’ The new record sharpens everything that’s made her a force, and it stands as her most confident statement yet.

The LA-based artist has built a striking identity around her bright blue hair and captivating energy, cementing her place as an alt-pop it girl. Behind the bold aesthetic sits a fiercely hands-on creative who designs all her own merch, builds her signature makeup looks, and creative directs every visual. Looking ahead, Sands brings her live show to European audiences in 2026 as a support act on Simple Plan’s tour, a major milestone in her international rise.

CVCHE Drop Their Gloriously Weird Debut ‘Get Fluffy’ From A Cabin Full Of Vintage Synths

Eric Alper
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CVCHE Drop Their Gloriously Weird Debut ‘Get Fluffy’ From A Cabin Full Of Vintage Synths

Experimental Rural Canadian Techno supergroup CVCHE just dropped their debut album, ‘Get Fluffy,’ out now. The record pulls together a year’s worth of the band’s unapologetically weird and hypnotic cuts, capturing both where CVCHE started and where they’re aiming next. It’s a snapshot of a project built on instinct, isolation, and a pile of vintage synths in the woods.

The band described how it all came together. “We made this album with no intention of making an album or sticking to any style. We just know each other well and wanted to make music together, and with a pile of vintage synths in the woods… Isolation helps. No one cares about what you’re doing except the trees, the synths, and maybe the wine. Everything slows down. You stop worrying about ‘making a track’ and just follow whatever texture or mood shows up. The place pushed the music where it wanted to go,” they share.

‘Get Fluffy’ arrives with new single “CVCHE or the Highway,” a tongue-in-cheek closer that leans fully into the project’s playful menace. “It’s the last piece of the puzzle and the only track fans haven’t heard yet. ‘CVCHE or the Highway’ is the moment that kind of sums up what the album is doing. The energy we had on that day, the weirdness, the humor… It’s not a hard ultimatum. It’s more like, ‘this is where we’re going. If you’re down, put your socks on and let’s go,'” they say.

CVCHE recorded the collection over the course of a year while moonlighting in some of the biggest rock bands in the world. The supergroup channels the talents of Jimmy Shaw (Metric, Broken Social Scene), Liam O’Neil (Kings of Leon), Dave Hodge (Broken Social Scene, Leisure Cruise), and conceptual artist Jon Morris (Windmill Factory, NOWHERE.io) into a 10-track project they’ve been unveiling piece by piece. The result is a hypnotic, genuinely playful ride that rewards listeners willing to follow it into the strange.

The album features recent single “18 Days Later,” written during a mysterious 18-day disappearance and self-imposed blackout, plus fan favorite “The Star,” which came together during a late-night jam session with Chris Seligman of Canadian indie-rock band Stars. Other cuts include “Welcome To CVCHE,” “Eyes of Darkness – A Novel by Dean Koontz,” “Thumper,” and “Private Volcano.”

Willa Ford Returns After Two Decades With ‘amanda,’ A Bold And Healing Pop Rebirth

Eric Alper
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Willa Ford Returns After Two Decades With ‘amanda,’ A Bold And Healing Pop Rebirth

Willa Ford just released her long-awaited sophomore album, ‘amanda,’ out now, and it’s her first full-length in more than 20 years. The pop artist follows up her 2001 debut ‘Willa Was Here’ with a deeply personal body of work, and she’s paired the release with a new music video for the track “Disassociate.”

The album takes its title from Ford’s birth name, and it stands as a rebirth and a reclaiming of a dream nearly lost. After joining a longtime friend for informal songwriting sessions in 2023, the Northern California-based artist reconnected with a musical passion she’d kept dormant for years, the same talent that fueled her Top 40 breakout “I Wanna Be Bad.” As she dug deeper, Ford suffered her first bout with PNES, a type of seizure later traced to unresolved trauma tied to her past in music. Working through that trauma while learning to cope with her condition, she poured everything back into the music and arrived at the catharsis of ‘amanda.’

“Disassociate” stands among the album’s most revealing moments, offering an unflinching look at Ford’s experience with PNES (psychogenic nonepileptic seizures). “Through working with neuroscientists and neuro-psychs we learned that my brain had blocked out certain traumatic events, and that those events were interconnected with music—so it makes sense that I wanted to stay away from music for so many years,” she says. Driven by pulse-pounding rhythms and bright synth, the track captures the raw sensation of her seizures alongside a fierce determination to keep moving. “The more I learn about what happened to me, the better my chances are of no longer having the seizures,” she explains.

Other highlights run wide. “Love4Life” is a euphoric ode to her husband, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Ryan Nece. “Burn Burn” turns her inner monologue into a soaring anthem of self-salvation. “Carousel” showcases the full depth of Ford’s sonic imagination, drawing on her love for the symphonic pop of Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys. The record glows with the kind of honesty that turns personal struggle into something genuinely moving.

Ford reflected on the journey. “When I first started writing these songs, I didn’t know what I was writing for. But if I hadn’t unlocked certain things through my music, I don’t know if the seizures would have started—and it’s because of the seizures that so much has finally come to light. It feels remarkable to get to this place after all these years, and to be putting out a record that’s been incredibly healing for me,” she says.

John Mayer Spins His Favorite Grateful Dead Cuts Every Sunday On His SiriusXM Listening Party

Eric Alper
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John Mayer Spins His Favorite Grateful Dead Cuts Every Sunday On His SiriusXM Listening Party

John Mayer hosts a weekly SiriusXM series, “Grateful Dead Listening Party,” where he spins his favorite Grateful Dead tracks every Sunday night and shares why each one means so much to him. The two-hour show airs on SiriusXM’s Life with John Mayer (ch. 14) on Sunday nights at 9:00 pm ET, with rebroadcasts on the Grateful Dead Channel (ch. 23) throughout the week. Episodes also land on the SiriusXM app after they premiere.

Mayer laid out the story behind the show in his announcement post. “In the days after we lost Bobby Weir, I tried listening to Grateful Dead music as a way to be soothed. I found it harder than I’d thought. I felt as if I was listening alone, like the mainframe that connects all who listen at any given time had gone offline. (It turns out that a presence like Bobby’s makes for an immeasurable absence.) After talking with friends who felt the same, I knew I wanted to start Grateful Dead Listening Party. Every Sunday night at 9pm Eastern/6pm Pacific on SiriusXM’s @lifewithjohnmayer channel, I’ll be playing two hours of my favorite @gratefuldead and @deadandcompany recordings, talking a little about each one. It’s a way for those who have felt lost to ‘meet up’ and listen to the music together. It’s not live, but I’ll be tuning in. Sometimes the least you can do is also the most you can do… we shall find a way forward,” he wrote.

The series lives on SiriusXM’s Life with John Mayer channel, a 24/7 music experience he hand-selects himself. The channel pulls from his classics, collaborations, and never-before-heard material, blended with the songs he loves, and rounds it out with exclusive shows like “How’s Life with John Mayer” and “New Music Friday-Tuesday.” The new listening party gives Dead fans a warm, communal place to gather around the music together.

Godsmack Crank Up The 25th Anniversary Of ‘Awake’ With Five Bonus Tracks And Smoky-Green Vinyl

Eric Alper
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Godsmack Crank Up The 25th Anniversary Of ‘Awake’ With Five Bonus Tracks And Smoky-Green Vinyl

Godsmack just dropped the 25th anniversary deluxe edition of ‘Awake,’ out now as a digital deluxe and on deluxe 2LP smoky-green color vinyl and CD via Republic/UMe. The commemorative release comes with a holographic lithograph of the cover art and five bonus tracks, including “Why,” which landed on the ‘Any Given Sunday’ soundtrack, plus a Black Sabbath cover of “Sweet Leaf.”

The reissue marks a quarter century since one of the band’s defining records. Following their multi-platinum self-titled debut in 1998, Godsmack came back in 2000 with an album that surpassed every expectation. It delivered a run of fan favorites like “Bad Magick,” “Awake,” and “Greed,” and locked in the band’s standing as one of the era’s defining hard rock acts. The title track earned Godsmack their first Billboard No. 1, while “Vampires” brought the band their first Grammy nomination. This deluxe edition celebrates an album that still hits home with fans around the world.

Godsmack are also deep into their massive GODSMACK – THE RISE OF ROCK WORLD TOUR 2026, a sprawling North American run with special guests Stone Temple Pilots and Dorothy. Promoted by Live Nation, the trek brings the band’s high-octane live show to amphitheaters across the country, with stops in Austin, Chicago, Denver, Phoenix, California, and Toronto, Canada, before it wraps September 26 at Ford Idaho Center Amphitheater in Nampa, ID.

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That Eric Alper

Eric Alper is a 6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week and has overseen the publicity campaigns for over 183 JUNO Award-nominated albums (and 16 in 2025), 45 Grammy-nominated albums, including 47 JUNO Award, 58 Canadian Folk Music Award, 126 Maple Blues Award-winning albums and is also truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.

Contact me: eric@thatericalper.com

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