Monthly Archives: June 2026

Album Review: Namedroppers – Cool Blue Shoes

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image courtesy of the Namedroppers

Album Review of Namedroppers: Cool Blue Shoes

There’s something about the Namedroppers‘ brand of blues. Despite the band’s ragged, emotional vocals, there’s a lightness that bring joy with the blues. If that’s your style of blues – blues as therapy rather than downtrodden commiseration – then the Name Droppers are a band you oughta know.

I reviewed the band’s last disc, Starshine, and now I’m giving Cool Blue Shoes a spin. As expected, Cool Blue Shoes is a collection of Namedroppers-style potential new favorites. The new album showcases the band’s broad-based talent, delivering a fun collection of new music, Namedroppers styled!

“Killing Floor” opens the record with a rhythm you’ll recognize quickly as the Namedroppers if you’ve heard their previous records. It’s a loose, soulful style of laid-back blues, and there’s just something about the music and vocal style that lets you know it’s gotta be the Namedroppers; it can’t be anyone else. Indeed, all the elements sound familiar, but the band has carved out its own signature sound, something few bands can do. As such – a tune that clearly identifies the band – it’s a great disc opener. “Cool Blue Shoes,” next, still has that hint of a herky-jerky rhythm but leans into its instruments’ repeated patterns just a little heavier.

“Be Alright” is a big-stage performance number, with plenty of background vocals and an uplifting rhythm. The song sports a kind of a blues meets soul meets ’70s rock vibe. You can almost see the greens, browns, oranges, and goldenrods of the ’70s if you close your eyes and listen to the funky guitarwork.

“Keep Pushin'” combines a George Thorogood-esque guitar crunch with some serious ivory-tickling and a fast tempo.

“That’s the Way My Love Is” is a bit of a late ’70s/early ’80s laid-back distorted rocker, the sort that would be reminiscent of the summer of love in a style that’d likely place it a little more than a decade later. It’s a pretty cool number in that it shows the band’s range, falling a little farther than usual on the straight-up rock ‘n roll fringe of the band’s blues style, though still clearly being a Namedroppers tune. “Hard Way,” too, leans old-school rock, with sixties-style vocal harmonies and organ-style keywork setting the stage for a very cool, very bluesy blues-rock guitar solo. It’s followed by a rocked-up, modernly-stylized version of Willie Dixon’s “I Cry For You.”

A fun, energetic, kinda silly “Think Yiddish” – playing on the phrase “think yiddish, dress British” – follows, dropping in a brief “hava nagila,” while also serving as a vehicle for a nifty keyboard solo, all delivered with some typically ragged, cool Bobby T vocals.

The album’s second-to-last song, “Yes I Will,” carries the spirits of ’50s-style rock ‘n roll, with an almost Chuck Berry-ish guitar riff, maybe a little Chubby Checker style in the song’s rhythm and its rockin’ blues.

Then Cool Blue Shoes closes with the slowly swaying, spoken-over-doo-wop “Out of This Blue.”

In all, Cool Blue Shoes is a solid blues record with forays into adjacent styles that showcase the Namedroppers broad range while also providing a fun disc whose variety – all containing the Namedroppers’ cohesive, identifiable sound – make for an interesting listen, an enjoyable follow-up to Starshine.

Looking Ahead

Well, you won’t have to look far ahead to find the Namedroppers’ next album. Let’s Live Together is scheduled for a June 12th release. That’s next week! I, for one, look forward to more music that, I have no doubt, is gonna be a welcome addition to my playlist.

Single Review: Elisa Smith – “Nashville Don’t Forget Me”

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photo by Lena Nugent Photography; photo courtesy of Knyvet

Single Review of Elisa Smith: “Nashville Don’t Forget Me”

Elisa Smith won a 2025 Josie Music Award for Female Country Song of the Year for “Nashville Don’t Forget Me.” And it’s easy to see why. The song is well-written and impeccably instrumented, and Smith’s vocals hit all the right notes, literally and figuratively.

As the song begins, the opening guitar twang lets you know this is gonna be some true-blue country music. Then Smith’s voice, that sweetly strong voice kicks in. It’s an old-fashioned, crisp, old-school country voice. When I caught Elisa at the 2025 New England Americana Festival, I thought this song was a ’70s throwback, and indeed it came off that way as a live acoustic duo performance. However, this fully instrumented arrangement, while maintaining the classic, timeless country vibe, also has a richness and fullness that’d allow it to stand toe-to-toe with modern recordings of this same sub-style of country.

image courtesy of Knyvet

Neatly, the song builds, as instrumentation and vocals build to power, expressing the song’s lyrical sentiment, “Nashville, don’t forget me.” (Oh, it’s a lot deeper than that, but I’m not giving away any more lyrical content.) And, of course, the energy level pulls back and fades away at the end; message delivered.

One of the neat things you’ll discover, as you explore Smith’s playlist a little deeper, is that she’s as good at hitting some more energetic and sassier songs, as well. So beyond this kickass softer-touch song, she’s got the chops to pull off the song variety necessary for a fun full-length album or concert event.

Looking Forward

You can catch Elisa Smith live on Saturday at the New England Americana Festival at the Bellforge Arts Center in Medfield, MA – the pre-event schedule suggests she’s scheduled to go on at 2:00, so get out early to this all-day, 1:00-8:00 concert at a cool outdoor venue. For more upcoming performances, check out the “Live” page of Smith’s website.

Album Review: The Peppermint Kicks – Pop Rocks in My Chewing Gum

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photo courtesy of the Peppermint Kicks via Knyvet

Album Review of The Peppermint Kicks: Pop Rocks in My Chewing Gum (Rum Bar Records)

The Peppermint Kicks are Boston duo Sal Baglio (The Amplifier Heads, The Stompers) and Dan Kopko (The Shang Hi Los, Watts), who according to the credits both seem to play the same instruments – so I guess it varies by song – though only Kopko is listed as playing bass. They’re also accompanied by a trio of top drummers, varying by song: Kevin Rapillo, Chris Anzalone, and Napoleon Hashimoto.

The Peppermint Kicks’ Pop Rocks in My Chewing Gum is modern pop-rock with its roots firmly in the early days of rock and roll, carrying a ’50s/’60s Dick Clark’s American Bandstand vibe throughout the record, though to be fair, the same stylistic elements were popular in pop-rock music as late as the ’80s, so the Peppermint Kicks’ musical style is actually pretty timeless. The result of the band’s latest recording session, Pop Rocks in My Chewing Gum, is a fun, imaginative, rockin’ romp centered around this type of timeless rock ‘n roll. The biggest modernization is some of the wildly raucous guitarwork, so yeah, this isn’t throwback music, but it is throwback-inspired. Smash Mouth did the same sort of things on a few songs of their Astro Lounge album, though not exactly the same way. (They’re different bands, after all.) But Smash Mouth’s “Diggin’ Your Scene” and, to a little lesser extent, “Who’s There” and “Radio,” carry the same sort of throwback vibe you’ll find on this record. As for a comparable band with a longer run as a major act, this is the sort of sound you’ll hear from Cheap Trick from time to time, too. The Peppermint Kicks also seem to infuse a punk rock energy into these songs, certainly moreso than any of the comparison bands I’ve mentioned.

image courtesy of Knyvet

The first track, and the first single from the album, so I’ve been listening to it the longest, “Radio Wam Bam Boom” is probably my favorite song on the album. Not by much, mind you. But the quick-starting throwback energy, the old-school city callouts, and the brief radio DJ interjections all combine to make for a fun romp (there’s that word again!) that makes it an ideal first single, concert-opener, or otherwise first exposure to the Peppermint Kicks.

“Too Sweet (Oh Yeah)” follows as an equally fun number – sometimes this is my favorite on the album! – with a little slower tempo and a sound and lyrical tempo that recalls The Archies’ “Sugar, Sugar,” though the Peppermint Kicks are much faster-tempoed and harder-rockin’, so consider that a stylistic comparison, not a “sounds-like” one (because I’m not puttin’ an Archies song on my personal playlist, but this one’s absolutely getting added). Still, you get similar feels. Listen, too, for the album title in the lyrics, as “Too Sweet (Oh Yeah)” is where that line resides.

“Number One Record” has a little more distortion in the main guitar lick, and it carries more modern alt-rock influences than I’ve led you to expect from my overarching overview of this record’s sound. “Number One Record” could’ve blended into pop-rock radio rather seamlessly in the ’90s or ’00s. Again, as is the case throughout the album, this song has a timeless sound, but those are the decades I feel it would have been less conspicuous on radio playlists.

“Little Doll (Picola Pupa)” infuses the Peppermint Kicks’ sound with the most punk rock energy in this collection of songs, with a rougher, edgier vocals and more ragged guitars than on any of the previous tracks.

“Shangri La” slows things down and gives me the strongest semi-balladic Cheap Trick vibes on the record. “Lollipop Girl,” next, reminds me of what you’d get in this musical style if you had someone from ELO as a cowriter. (Jeff Lynne wasn’t involved in this project, was he?) “Out of the Trashcan and Into Your Heart,” next, returns to a more pure throwback style, replete with “oo-oo”-ing, though with some inspired lyrics.

Next, the Peppermint Kicks take on retro animation with a pair of ’60s cartoon-themed numbers – the boomingly campy “Gigantor” and the equally throwback (but no, not quite as campy) “Speed Racer.”

“We Did It All For Rock and Roll” is the penultimate track – or the final song, depending on how you look at it. This tune is the one that recalls the Beatles more than any other on the record, swaying along pleasantly, sung tunefully, and with a feeling of big, wide-open rock ‘n roll spaces.

And what did I mean about “depending on how you look at it”? Well, the album’s final track is “Tout Fait,” which is really just a 44 second-long tinny fadeout of “We Did It All For Rock and Roll.” So, you know, another track but not really another song.

Beginning to end, Pop Rocks in My Chewing Gum is a fun listen with a nostalgic-feeling, pop-friendly rock ‘n roll style. If that’s your vibe, this is your kind of album. And if that isn’t your vibe, I have just one question for you: Are you allergic to fun? If not, perhaps reconsider.

EP Review: Axminster – Mad As Hatters

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photo courtesy of Axminster

EP Review of Axminster: Mad As Hatters

Veteran melodic hard rockers Axminster continue to churn out kickass rock ‘n roll with the band’s latest 4-song EP Mad As Hatters. You’ve previously read my reviews of Tightrope and Bada Boom! Well, the band continues in the same ’80s-style melodic hard rock you’ll hear on SiriusXM’s Hair Nation channel… but, you know, new song in that vein.

Axminster is Benny Fiorentino (lead guitar), Steve Sera (lead vocals, guitar), Danny Callan (bass), and Xanon Xicay (drums). I was a huge supporter of Steve Sera’s Wildside back when I got my start as a music journalist in Boston, and his vocals are those of a timeless classic rock leadman. Meanwhile, Fiorentino’s lead guitar chops are among the best in the business, providing an inspired, original sound to each song on this EP (and the band’s past collections, too). Combined with the band’s solid, versatile rhythm section, Axminster has delivered in Mad As Hatters a foursome of new, top-notch classic melodic rock tunes.

image courtesy of Axminster

“World Gone Crazy” utilizes some sidewinder axwork and a steady, thumping rhythm as its baseline soundbed, while the supporting music adjusts to Sera’s vocal stylings during the bridges, and Fiorentino delivers some nifty shredding, including some almost chainsaw-like revs during the song’s guitar solo.

“Rat Race” relies on both a guitar shred and a secondary guitar line to provide dual threat variety for the listener during the guitar-driven sections, while the song itself is a breakneck race to the end. Guitar rock fans, again, will dig a late song solo where you can almost feel the guitar soaring overhead (an image that’ll almost certainly pop into the heads of anyone who watched MTV back in the ’80s).

“Down to the Wire” kicks off with a funky blues-based hard rock rhythm and features stop-starts – guitar rock with great vocals and a herky-jerky rhythm not unlike what you might expect from an early Extreme song – resulting in a churning, high-energy number you might expect from a band who could share a bill with Living Colour.

Axminster ends Mad As Hatters with the wild “Ya Monkey.” another solid classic hard rock number with throwback guitar licks, a heavy rhythm, and some tempo variance that provides texture to the verses, which, lead to the payoff in the chorus of “I’m livin’ in your twilight (sometimes combat) zone. Got ya monkey on my back, and my back’s gonna break.”

If you dig ’80s-style classic hard rock, replete with guitar shredding and insistent, high-energy vocals, this EP will bring you back in time with a four-pack of original, new, soon-to-be-favorites. So keep discovering new music in the style you love, and check out Axminster’s Mad As Hatters.

EP Review: Kier Byrnes & the Kettle Burners – Moonshine & Other Spirits

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photo by Matt Morin; photo courtesy of Knyvet

Album Review of Kier Byrnes & the Kettle Burners: Moonshine & Other Spirits

Boston-area Americana standouts Kier Byrnes & the Kettle Burners are back at it! Or, rather, at it again. Or continuing to be at it, I suppose, because they’re tireless and simply don’t stop performing, coming up with new songs, and frequently recording them. In any case, Moonshine & Other Spirits, the band’s current EP – the latest proof they continue to be “at it” – dropped this spring. No surprises here. As expected, it’s a damn fine record. Blog readers might remember my review of Before the Fall last year. Well, I skipped over reviewing last summer’s exceptional EP release, Dances by Firelight, with that disc’s first song, the energetic “A Little Bit More,” being my personal favorite from that EP. And I didn’t exactly skip it; rather, before I got around to that review, Moonshine & Other Spirits was released, so I dropped it into Dances by Firelight‘s spot in my review queue. Yeah, yeah, I know. Enough yapping. Get to the review, right? OK, I will.

cover designed by Megan Kelly; image courtesy of Knyvet

Moonshine & Other Spirits starts off with “My Baby’s Happy,” an accordion-driven half-speed-polka-tempoed (is that a thing?) song that advances steadily and relentless, with guest vocalist Elisa Smith duetting with Kettle Burner Dan DiBacco, including some cool late-song vocal riffing that adds one of the few elements atypical of a Kier Byrnes & the Kettle Burners tune, since this band throws the kitchen sink into so many of its songs. Also listen for a nifty guitar solo and a very-on-brand raucous ending.

The vibe of second song “Impossible” is set by its anguished vocal wails, while the tempo that’s a little frantic, often much moreso than its tempo might suggest, is exactly what you’d expect – and enjoy so much – about a Kettle Burners tune, while guest fiddlers David Delaney (Whiskey Boys) and Valerie Rachel (Wayward Vine) add texture to the song. “Impossible,” like almost every song of the band’s I’ve ever heard, is perfectly suited to be performed while dancing around an enormous bonfire in the middle of the woods.

“Goin’ Down in Style,” next, is a raucous road-style number, a little rough around the edges, with the music and the tempo seeming to roll downhill increasingly out of control toward the end of the song. Then, “Whitehouse Road” is a steady, bouncing, straight-forward Americana rocker. And the fifth and final song on the EP, “Make Me Wanna Dance (Moonshine Shuffle),” mixes ’50s rockin’ vibe, the sort where you might see sockhoppers trying to make the “Make Me Wanna Dance” moonshine shuffle the newest dance craze. But nah, the tempo’s probably a little too frantic for the ’50s, unless you’re in the alternate universe where Kier Byrnes & the Kettle Burners live, in which case it’s probably just the next Dick Clark-driven dance fad – “make me wanna dance, wo-oah”.

Anyway, if you’re a longtime Kier Byrnes & the Kettle Burners fan, you’re probably already enjoying this EP; if not, it’s a good place to start. And you know where else is a good place to start? Yes, the “Calendar” page of the band’s website. But also the New England Americana Festival at the Bellforge Arts Center in Medfield, MA on Saturday, June 6th, for a full-day (1-8 pm) outdoor concert featuring the region’s best Americana and Americana-adjacent bands, headlined by Kier Byrnes & the Kettle Burners.