Rock 'n' Roll Grad School

You only need to hear the music of Leanne Binder to fall in love with her voice. With her new EP, Leanne is making a splash. I Got Something to Say is available right now wherever you get your music. For more information, you can check out her website , or you can follow her on Facebook .

Guitar legend Steve Cropper passed away yesterday at age 84. In tribute, we listen back to our 2021 interview with him, promoting his most recent solo album.

Ben Arnold's new record,  XI came about by the best of situations... it just happened. What started as a plan to record a few songs turned into a full album.  XI is available right now wherever you get records. For more information, check out Ben's website and you can follow him on Facebook .

Gregory McLoughlin has made a career of sharing his music. Whether it's on his regular Monday night YouTube show, or a clubs and venues around New Jersey and New York, Gregory is always sharing. And now his self-titled full length album is coming out December 12th to share with the rest of the world. For more information, check out his website .

Seth Neblett's book  Mothership Connected is a fascinating, first-hand look inside the mothership that was Parliament Funkadelic. (As well as the side projects The Parlets, The Brides of Funkenstein and many more.) Seth tells the stories of the women who were part of this one-of-a-kind group and allows them to explain their role. It's a fascinating read and easily one of the best music b...

1990's rock was an exciting time. Nevermind (no pun intended) Nirvana, what about Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr, The Meat Puppets, Primus and Smashing Pumpkins? In his new book, Greg Prato gets the full story of the era from the folks who lived it. Alternative for the Masses by Greg Prato is available right now wherever you get your books.

Nikita Lev is a singer/songrwriter who has a unique voice and style that's developing with each song and EP. Her newest EP,  Suspend is available now. For more information, check out her website.

Maia Sharp is a talented singer-songwriter who just released Tomboy , her 10th album. The record is a lovely study of identity and understanding oneself. Tomboy is available now. For more information, you can check out her website or follow her on Facebook.

The power thrash/metal band Them has a new record out that continues the story they started 5 albums ago. Where do things go from here? For more information, you can follow the band on Facebook.

We always enjoy talking with John McCutcheon about his music and his work in helping preserve the music from the past. His new album,  A Long Journey Home looks back at the 1927 Mountain City Fiddlers Convention and, looks at how music (and society) has changed 100 years ago. It's a fascinating album and a fascinating conversation. For more information, check out John's website.

With Taylor Swift's The Life of a Showgirl  out, we thought it a good time to explore what has come before with two experts- Kase Wickman and Moira McAvoy, co-authors (with Joanna Weiss), authors of Taylor Swift: Album by Album , available from Motorbooks wherever you get your books on October 10th.

Two great voices have teamed up for a fun new cover. Steelheart's Mili & Jeff from Tesla have combined their forces to tackle the classic "I Just Want to Make Love to You." We try our best to pin these two down and talk about positivity and the joy of music.  "I Just Want to Make Love to You" is available to stream everywhere, Friday, October 3rd. For more information,...

Wayne Gerard has spent a lifetime following his musical sensibilities and that has led him to playing as a member of Don Was' Pan Detroit Ensemble, a fascinating mixture of jazz and rock. Their debut album, Groove in the Face of Adversity is available October 10th. For more information and for tour dates, check out Don's website . (You can also follow Wayne on Instagram .)

Frank Hannon is best known as the guitarist and co-founder of the band Tesla. But he's also a solo artist and his newest record, Reflections is available right now. We talk to Frank about writing, guitar and we get a little concert too!  For more information or to order your copy of the record, check out Frank's website .

It's hard to easily sum up the work of writer, performer, entrepreneur Lanz Pierce. (And we should note, that is an incomplete list.) Her latest single, "Get It," is out now, with an EP to follow. For more information you can find her on Instagram.

Sweet Savage is one of those bands that fly under the radar of metal fans, and it's really surprising they haven't blown up. From their early days in 1978 with Vivian Campbell to today, Ray Haller has steered the ship around the world, with Metallica name dropping them as an influence. Sweet Savage's newest record  BANG is available September 12th wherever you get your music. For mo...

Martin Gordon has a fascinating musical mind. His most recent work,  His Mother was a Woman, features a collaboration with a leader of the free world. The record is unique, fascinating and, most importantly, really fun to listen to. To get your own copy of the record, or to purchase any of Martin's records, check out his website .

To hear David Ackles is to be enchanted by his voice and his music. And, for some reason, he never reached a large audience. Now, a new book by Mark Brend, Down River: In Search of David Ackles, tells his whole story. The book is available wherever you get your books on August 22nd.

Shane Henry and Maggie McClure, the couple better known as The Imaginaries, have a beautiful musical conversation on their new record, Fever . You've heard their music on a ton of TV shows and films, but the new album focuses on the music, which makes all the sense in the world. For more information, or to pre-order you copy of Fever , check out their website . 

It's hard to describe the music of James Hood. And that's a good thing. His work is transporting and powerful and makes you question the basic of idea of music- what is it? Where is it in nature? How deeply felt are the tones and sounds? Heidi sat down with James to talk about his most recent work, "Quantum Mind Carnival." For more information, check out James' website .

There's knowing The Beatles, and then there's knowing how George likes his hair done. Leslie Cavendish is one of the few people in the world who can lay claim to the latter. And in his book, "The Cutting Edge," he details his work and friendship with the Fab Four. From The Magical Mystery Tour to the final performance on the top of Apple Records, Leslie was there.  "The Cu...

Who doesn't like a good rock and pop record? Well, the family (take that, Partridges) that makes up Secret Monkey Weekend do, and their new record,  Lemon Drop Hammer proves it and then some. For more information, check out their website .

Satori Shakoor has had a fascinating life. From singing in Parliament, to being one of the Brides of Funkenstein, to her life as a mother and everything that has come after, Satori tells it all in her new concert film, "Confessions of a Menopausal Femme Fatale." It's a story only she can tell and she tells it wonderfully. You can stream the film on Amazon, AppleTV and Google Play. F...

Lemoyne Alexander created an incredibly successful career in hip hop, but he left it behind to follow his muse, who led him to rock. And with his newest singled, "Insecurity," Alexander's openness and honest lyrics are connecting with listeners world-wide. For more information, you can follow Lemoyne on Instagram .

Let's just take a minute to appreciate and savor the fact that Fishbone are still around and still doing what they do best. And if the band itself isn't a treasure, they've got a new record out this week. Stockholm Syndrome is classic Fishbone with a modern sound. Yes, it's that good. For tour dates and to get a copy of the record, check out the band's website .