Bentley’s Bandstand: September 2025
The Autumn Defense, HERE AND NOWHERE. Credentials can sometimes paint the person, and John Stirratt and Patrick Sansone are two to help prove it. Stirratt played in a handful of bands in the Deep South growing up, and at one point walked into the open bass position in Uncle Tupelo. But that’s just the start. Once you get in a band, the trick is to rise to the occasion and keep the gig through the next few permutations. Which is exactly what this man did, right into the midst of Wilco when it formed. Stirratt became an all-time player of various string instruments, including bass guitar, and also songwriter of the most moving modern songs he wrote on occasion. And Patrick Sansone has been a MVP in any number of bands, including Wilco, and makes the perfect member to share the Autumn Defense’s excursions. Right into the creation of The Autumn Defense. which is where we find the musicians now. Stirratt and Sansone’s songs have a sly way of tiptoeing into greatness. And, truly, they also have the perfect voices for slyly ominous songs like “I’ll Take You Out of Your Mind,” “Winter Shore,” “Ravens of the Wood” and “Ever Flowing Light,” to name just a few from this new album. The true value of a collection made by members of an already-successful band is how they hold up to those of the mothership. And in The Autumn Defense’s case, there is land of equality. The originals are written by John Stirratt and producer Patrick Sansone. Ther true beauty of The Autumn Defense really resides in the teamwork of all the members, never grabbing all the glory but instead sharing what is absolutely one of America’s finest groups now. There is an eternal glow to the songs, clearly formed in the middle of America and never more than they try to be. It’s easy to swing for the fences when the real excitement is in the infield. HERE AND NOWHERE is one of the total joys of music made in 2025 by those who have been exploring what rock music can really be now and in the future. Now and soon.
David Byrne, WHO IS THE SKY? There is something intriguing and, yes, wondrous, about David Byrne’s songs. Back to the three-piece Talking Heads through all the big band excursions, and then the music travels of David Byrnes through various cultures, there is something so exciting it feels like an endless gift. And now, with WHO IS THE SKY?, listeners are right back in the front row of something like nothing else. It’s like the man has a secret way of approaching whatever he’s doing and finds a sleight of hand to bring listeners in. One of the qualities is that everything sounds somewhat understandable, even when life has turned upside down. There is something soothing about knowing that even when life starts to feel confusing, there is also a sense that we’re all going to be alright as long as we keep walking upright. The leader of our regime isn’t trying to trick us. Rather, it’s like David Byrne has a big of a map but is counting on his listeners to take the trip with him. His voice couldn’t be more soothing, even if it sometimes comes from another world, and the lyrics don’t need to be translated. Instead, the rule is to stay free and know that the sonic spaceship we’re all on has a captain. A great one. No matter what. WHO IS THE SKY? feels like a breakthrough. As if just because America has gotten off the leash, there’s no reason to panic. Like a strong LSD journey, let the understanding that’s needed come when it does. And if it doesn’t that’s okay too. There is always tomorrow. And if David Byrne has ever stood for something, it’s tomorrow. That’s the big friend. And trusting that whatever and whenever it arrives, we’ll be right there with it. We might ever find out exactly who the sky is, as the album title asks. It’s like the great esoteric San Francisco rocker–and world famous ceramicist–once wrote: “Maybe not knowing keeps both of us going.” But forward movements often teach: wherever we’re going it’s better to enjoy the ride than flip a wig worrying. David Byrne knows.
Beau Jennings, LIVE AT THE DEPOT. The real killing floor is how good a live album an artist can create. It may look easy on tape getting on stage and letting it all roll, but the great releases have to have a good dose of magic from their time tearing up a stage. Because nothing is worse than a dull live delivery. And that’s where Beau Jennings turns to a touch of magic to bring it all home. Recorded at a local stomping joint in Tulsa at his home state of Oklahoma, on LIVE AT THE DEPOT Jennings and band found all the way home on this disc. He and his outfit have found a way to deliver the strength to make sure their sound kicks his audience up a notch, without letting things get messy. Instead this is a pure picture of what makes this band sound so right on. It’s not the noise generated with their playing. Instead, it’s the sheer beauty of rock & roll being able to show their sensitivity as well as their velocity, which really does need to start within their players’ hearts. This is a total score. Nothing gets out of hand. Instead things go hand-in-hand from the very start in a way that makes it clear this outfit is going for forever. And that’s the true beauty of live albums: there isn’t room for electric trickanations. Not only do the vocals need to go straight into the hearts, there also needs to be a subtle restraint to all that’s heard. Otherside, the sound itself becomes chief and everything else gets lost in space. And that’s a bad situation to be in. Naturally, Beau Jennings would never let that happen. This is something that saw the bullseye all the way from the bandstand into the very wall across the room. And he and the band aimed their instruments and hit the bullseye. Every single song.
Robbin Kapsalis. THE BLUES IS IN THE HOUSE. Sometimes there is nothing needed more than a low-down blues album. Not stretching the parameters too far; just making sure all the corners are covered and every musician on the date knows that sometimes the best sounds come from these controlled with guts and gravy. Robin Kapsalis was born and raised in Chicago and absorbed all the ups and downs of the Windy City’s blues world. Kapslis took to it right away, and has never looked back. When she moved to Atlanta there was more to learn that can only be taught in the South. Luckily she was there with open eyes and found some things that can only be seen and heard there. When they band went into the studio in France–yes France–everyone was ready. They cut it down and dirty, with just enough jump to capture modern listeners. Producer Giles Robinson found Europeans who were turned up to twelve on their human current and went for the sound of blues as Americans created it. And just to give props to one of the modern great guitarists, the Joe Louis Walker on the title track, at the end of these sessions everyone involved they had gotten an accomplishment done. Blues like this doesn’t fall off trees these days, no matter where it’s recorded, and Ms. Kapsalis knew exactly what she’d done: traveled around the world to show just how worldwide the blues lives. Blues don’t die. .
Mud Morganfield, DEEP MUD. It can’t be that easy being Muddy Waters’ son, especially if you’re a blues singer. It takes high talent to take on the comparisons with one of the absolute heroes of the blues. It’s MUDDY WATERS for goodness sake. But if you really want to sing and perform, you have to take the chance no matter what. And the good news is that Mud Morganfield has the talent to do it. Of course, there’s no chance, not really, that he’ll get judged as an equal to the Big Daddy, but if you’re gonna sing you may as well go for it. On DEEP MUD, there is a high amount of talent on the man’s part, and the musicians he works with can surely play the blues. It might be unlikely the son will ever overtake the father, but he deserves a chance to take a shot at his own career. And starting with a good sign, the band’s drummer has an all-time nickname: “Pooky Styx” that gets things started with a smile. And that rushes right into a swing blues titled “Bring Me My Whiskey,” so you know the leader’s got his priorities on straight. As DEEP MUD gets down in the gutter rolling around in the blues, his voice becomes something of his own strength, and the players by his side stay real. Add to that the fact that most of the album’s songs were written by Mud Morganfield, with the exception of his father’s classic “Country Boy.” And the new version of the Muddy Waters classic gets down in the alley quick, and stays there. And with the harp of Studebacker John, it could be right out of 1955 Chicago, blowing the notes that take the blues right into the street. DEEP MUD indeed. Blues or lose.
Kendra Morris, NEXT. This incredibly-talented singer-songwriter sounds like someone who comes along every decade or two. Her voice itself is something all its own, not really hung up on sounding like anyone else. And Morris’ songs also come straight out of the unforgettable patch. They don’t fit into any one style. And for someone from Lodi, California—yes the “stuck in Lodi” of John Fogerty’s hit–it is without doubt this is someone who is beyond explanation. There is a shivering center of Kendra Morris, framed by hitting high notes without effort and telling stories that have a touch of otherworldliness. There is beauty and pain bumped right up together, and sung like someone just landing from another planet. There’s a good chance that the English language isn’t quite creative enough to actually describe what is heard on these tracks of true beauty. The sound travels in circles, and in ways that haven’t been heard before. It’s the kind of wide open album of sounds that is an all-the-way true joy of something that is like a real gift of the sound of tomorrow. There is even a game board printed on the inside album, and no doubt the winner is most likely to be given a ride on a small rocketship to wherever Ms. Morris’ next live show is. The headline of this artist is be ready for anything, and make sure to listen until the lights come on bright and everything is offered. Nothing less would suffice. Happiness is here.
Grant Lee Phillips, IN THE HOUR OF DUST. This is a singer-songwriter who for his entire career has been able to sound exactly like himself, and no one else, since his start. The way his voice can stay super tender, but also absolutely strong, is like a bit of a magician. Grant Lee Phillips, the man at the wheel of the Grant Lee Buffalo group for a couple of decades, had a vision that came from somewhere deep inside. With a partial Native American background, it made his semi-mystical sound logical. There was something in Phillips’ that let him draw listeners into a bit of a magical joy. Whether the man was shooting for positivity or turning around a get a little spooky on him and the band’s sound was always a given. This wasn’t someone that was afraid of anything. Up or down, the music always found a contagious way of getting into the souls of those who truly paid attention. Starting on Slash Records, Grant Lee Buffalo had enough mystery in their makeup to always draw in listeners who were looking for a power not quite explainable. There was always something else in their approach. And when Phillips took off on his own solo runk, the songs opened up even more. Now, IN THE HOUR OF DUST has opened the front and back doors completely. And even if this is a style that can never be easily explained, that’s most likely exactly the point. To know everything is more like an offer to have finished a book. Which is not what the true mystics seek. And make no mistake, in his own way Phillips has an extra serving of the beyond in his music. And always has.
Piper & the Hard Times, GOOD COMPANY. Talking about turning up the heat. Piper & the Hard Times are a Nashville-based crew that knows full well how to hit the boogie button and get the party states. The Hard Times are a seasoned soul brigade with a badass blues base, fronted by Al “Piper” Green who have been making their name on the East Coast for several years. They can stir up a scene with the gumbo of soul, blues, jazz and rock, without ever looking back. Green himself is a star who was pushing straight into stardom when he got hit hard with cancer and had to set aside his life on the stage while he recovers. And that’s what is happening right now. Bandleaders Steve “The Conductor” Egan and drummer Dave “Sexy Boy” Colella are driving the train now while they wait for “Piper” Green to fully recover, which all involved are planning on happening. Green’s soul-stirring vocals are absolutely necessary for the group’s live shows, and as they move toward the day that happens, the band’s spirits are solidly burning behind the new album. This is a band that built their strength stage-by-stage, and have no idea of stopping. This is what the essence of music lives for: people who come together and stay together. Luckily the band finished GOOD COMPANY to share it with the world, as they wait for the day that Al “Piper” Green is on the drums and sharing his deeply moving voice is smack dab in the middle. People get ready.
Roomful of Blues, STEPPIN’ OUT. This is a band which is basically in their own category. There is something so strong and classy of their horn-driven songs that it’s like no one else can be compared to them. They came out of the East Coast groove of rhythm & blues, and a generation ago, and while most of the group’s slots have moved around personnel-wise, no matter who got called into duty was a true player. They swung and they stung, and never lost an inch of greatness. The big news now is the group has a female grabbing the lead vocal slot, and a true wonder she is. D.D. Baston is guaranteed to hit the monkey nerve every time. She can keep up with a red-hot lead guitarist with all the strut of a hoochie coochie dancer, and also hit all the right notes to make a grown man cry. And, of course, the band’s punch is heavyweight, with a knockout of saxophone finesse that is rarely equalled and never bettered by current groups.. Roomful of Blues has worked tirelessly and earned every inch of their mos’ ‘scoucis post. Turn it up again and hear a great new singer and the time-tested trajectory of one of America’s finest aggregations. Roomful of Blues, at the edge of history for unbeatable rhythm & blues, helped lead the way all these 50-plus years, knowing exactly where the truth of rhythm & blues lives. And they have done their very best all this time to deliver the music like it needs to be heard. They have run their magic road to the best of their ability, which means recording music for the ages. And are still up in the clouds doing their best to keep the sounds floating. No foolin’ around.
Soul Salvation, THE SOUL OF JOHN BLACK: Featuring John Arthur Bigham. Soul music comes in many shapes and sizes. It is best to let each artist be who they are, and listen to their work not based on the past or the future. Now is all. John Arthur Bigham is a musician who can play everything. Literally. And play with true sweetness, strength and depth like very few can accomplish. Bigham takes any past period and writes and takes any instrument, turning it into a sound that helped form the absolute most knocked-out American music of any period. It’s easy to think of this man in his home studio, starting with a verse, a bridge or just a chord pattern, and then turning it into a song for the ages. He never goes over the limit into the show-off zone. Instead, he holds what he creates close to his chest, no flashing anything for sheer effects, and instead hits the bullseye where soul music lives. The greatest side is that there’s just enough modernity in the play that this is by no means an oldies rush. Instead, it’s got a feel to it that today is right on the edge of each song, and there is no turning back where soul music is going. American music is based on yesterday, today and tomorrow. Right on time.
Song of the Month
Big Thief, “How Could I Have Known”
Here is a band who has climbed to the top without turning on the sirens and dropping the confetti. Instead, Big Thief did it their way: day by day and song by song. Until one day everyone opened their eyes and ears and found a band above almost all the others. This album ends with the song “How Could I Have Known,” which is such a natural track for the history books that not everyone will notice it right away. But it will get there, being a short treatise on how life really works when the heart is open and the soul is true. And, really, what else is there. The song doesn’t overdo it either, which is the secret of its strength. This is beauty on the natch. Right on time.
Book of the Month
Buzz Me In: Inside the Record Plant Studios
Martin Porter & David Goggin
It’s time to turn down the lights and put on the seatbelts, because the sonic shenanigans of the various Record Plant Studios are tales for the ages. During the 1970s, these beacons of sound grew from New York City to Los Angeles and then Sausalito. There were no requests too extravagant to request if you were in one of the sacred bands that used the studios’ offerings. And, believe all the tales, these rooms were where some of the greatest music was made then, and also included some of the most legendary misbehavior by everyone from John Lennon to Sly Stone. And, of course by the wildest of anyone, Phil Spector, who had to be the one to out-fry them all. Guns were drawn! This highly detailed biography of almost everything that went on within those walls feels like some kind of unequaled listing of how to go over the limits, and still make it work for all those involved. When hit records are in the wind, and that means the biggest hit records in history, the stakes are so high that there is no “no” big enough to be heeded. In some ways, this wild book sounds like the wacko humans have taken over the spaceship and have no intent on landing until they’re good and ready. To some extent, the massive drug consumption and pistol play starts to feel skeezy, but then again, it’s like they say: “Baby that is rock & roll.” But those with an appetite for semi-psycho behavior and music making of the highest form, it’s all here. Until it’s not.
Enjoy a previous column here: Bentley’s Bandstand: August 2025
Bentley’s Bandstand: September 2025
