Aug 21, 2017

He started as a mandolin player. In Philadelphia. Tell me that wasn’t devastating for a 13-year-old kid! Thanks, Dad! But there’s no sign it left a lasting scar on the musical inclinations of Josh Flagg, who just released his debut album, Devastate Me. It’s got a modern, power pop sound that should easily catch on...

Dec 6, 2016

Johnny G. Lyon has a voice that was built to sing rock ‘n’ roll.

And the rumors are true: I once spent a night with Johnny G.

Oh, it was innocent enough – I was there early one evening in April 2008 when the band loaded in its equipment at the old Big Apple Bistro on Central Avenue in St. Petersburg. And I stayed...

Nov 29, 2016

The first time Swedish country music singer and guitarist Hicks was my guest on Mr. Media, I remember being surprised how “country” he really sounded. I thought, going into the interview, that I would have to make allowances for a Scandinavian trying to sound like a genuine Tennessee backwoodsman – you know,...

Sep 7, 2016

Thinking of asking singer-songwriter Josh Alan Friedman how 60 is treating him?

Not sure that’s such a good idea – even if he did title his first new album in 15 years, Sixty, Goddammit.

Hard to believe the former New Yorker – he’s been a somewhat unlikely Texas transplant for years – hasn’t produced a new...

Nov 5, 2014

Honestly, when I heard today’s guest leads a band named “Zeta Wave,” I was really hoping I’d like her music because I already liked her name,

ALIYA HASHEMI podcast excerpt: "There's something amazing about taking something that comes from your head and turning it into this big final song."

Was she a fan of...