Country music – Page 2 – Stylus Magazine

August 22, 2012

Hillbilly Highway – Corb Lund pours ’em kinda strong on new release

by Sheldon Birnie

photo: Alexandra Valenti

Alberta’s honky-tonk hero Corb Lund released his sixth solo album last week, Cabin Fever, and the beauty of a disc has already topped the charts here in Canada, in “overall sales,” “digital overall sales,” and “country sales.” I’ve had the disc on repeat for most of the past week, only taking it out to spin the new Propagandhi barn-burner, and there’s good reason it’s dominating sales this week. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Corb Lund pours ’em kinda strong on new release”

April 18, 2012

Hillbilly Highway – Fishing Headwaters with Del Barber

by Sheldon Birnie

photo: Mark Maryanovich

“If you want to chart a course, you’re not free to leave your history,” explains Winnipeg based singer-songwriter Del Barber over a beer at the King’s Head last week. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Fishing Headwaters with Del Barber”

March 21, 2012

Hillbilly Highway – Take heed of the Grifter’s Hymnal

by Sheldon Birnie

Ray Wylie Hubbard is a goddamn beauty, bottom line. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Take heed of the Grifter’s Hymnal”

March 14, 2012

Hillbilly Highway – Checking in to New Country Rehab

by Sheldon Birnie

If you missed New Country Rehab at last year’s Winnipeg Folk Fest, now’s your chance to make up for that grievous error in judgment or scheduling on your part when NCR hit the Park Theatre on March 15. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Checking in to New Country Rehab”

February 29, 2012

Hillbilly Highway – Fun night with Dierks

by Sheldon Birnie

Last Thursday I went to see the Dierks Bentley show at the Burt. Boy, was it something else. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Fun night with Dierks”

February 15, 2012

Hillbilly Highway – Workingman’s Blues

by Sheldon Birnie

Well, friends, it’s no secret that life on the Hillbilly Highway can be a hard hustle, at best. Satisfying, sure, but this ain’t no cake walk. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Workingman’s Blues”

January 25, 2012

Hillbilly Highway – The Roadside Church of Yoakam

by Sheldon Birnie

Guitars. Cadillacs. Hillbilly Music. Four short words, and Dwight Yoakam lays out the prerogative of every would-be country crooner since the days of Hank Williams. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – The Roadside Church of Yoakam”

January 11, 2012

Hillbilly Highway – Party on, Garth

by Sheldon Birnie

It’s a shitty day in Winnipeg, and all I wanna do is listen to Garth. I know there’s some good shows coming up, some local talent to profile, but I only wanna write about Garth. There’s a whole world to explore on the Highway today, but all signs point to Garth. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Party on, Garth”

November 30, 2011

Hillbilly Highway – Let’R Buck with the Poor Choices tonight

by Sheldon Birnie

If you’re looking for a good time on a Wednesday night in Winnipeg, book your ass down to the Standard Tavern on Sherbrook. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Let’R Buck with the Poor Choices tonight”

November 23, 2011

Hillbilly Highway – Dave Lang is a Beauty

by Sheldon Birnie

There is a guy in Regina named Dave Lang, and he is a fucking beauty. I’ve never met this man, nor seen him to confirm that he is, indeed, a real human. But I was digging through the Mountain of Broken Dreams the other day, here in the Stylus office, and I came across an album by Dave titled Live and in Quonset. Most of what I find in the Mountain goes straight to one of two places: the garbage or the recycling bin. But not this nugget. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Dave Lang is a Beauty”