Back in July, when we caught up with Centro-matic frontman Will Johnson to talk about his band's latest release, the excellent Candidate Waltz, much of our conversation centered around the small ... Continue reading "Centro-matic and South San Gabriel To Donate Record Sales To Bastrop Wildfire Relief Efforts" >
This is a collection of things that I am simply posting as they are frickin' good and I think more people need to join in on the fun. These artists aren't related in any way (as far as I know), but I tend to put them in the same boat or for you mix-tapers, they would make good artists for the same playlist. Some of this is new, some isn't but its some good 'alt-country'/singer songwriter/troubadour type stuff. I said it was good right? Theodore has a new EP "Blood Signs" that kinda came in under [...]

i know ive talked about centro-matic quite a bit over the years, but there are some bands, centro-matic being one of them, that i want to expose more and more people to. i was planning on doing an introduction to em, like i have done previously with the pickin on series and richmond fontaine - there are more on the way btw. as luck would have it, i happened to be on twitter last night when whoever runs their twitter acct shared a 24 track sampler, which also includes south san gabriel work. centro-matic came [...]
Denton, TX's Centro-matic/South San Gabriel quietly release, and tour, their records in relative obscurity. As a longtime fan I've noticed diminished returns in not the quality of their work, but in the attendance of their shows and general reception to their output. A shame, too, as Will Johnson and Co. continue to impress for those [...]

got wind of this yesterday, via twitter, but have yet to purchase it. this ep takes 7 songs from the dual hawks sessions, that of course didnt make it to print, and im wondering if the cover of lionel richie's "all night long" was ever considered for inclusion on dual hawks? that would have been slightly humorous. you can stream right down there or buy it via the centro-matic site - six bucks for the mp3 and 7 bucks for the wav files. the choice is yours. Centro-matic + South [...]
Will Johnson and his band Centro-Matic are back with a new EP, full of material recorded during the Dual Hawks album sessions (Dual Hawks was a double album from Johnson vehicles Centro-matic and South San Gabriel). It's called the Eyas EP, and is seven songs long (6 previously unreleased), including a cover version of Lionel [...]

Kirill Golovchenko - Feld der Wunder And so it's the end of the Great Songs of 2008 list at last. I've rounded to an even 140 songs because, for some reason, an even multiple of ten seemed important. That's a lot of notable albums in one year. So many that I've been incredibly, and hopefully not inextricably, distracted from the moments [...]

As I sit sleepily at my desk and contemplate the possible subject matter of another edition of Song of the Week, there are two things very much on my mind. The first: day camp is unbelievably exhausting. The second: what delicious tuneage do I want to close my eyelids to and use to help sail me into the dreamland I so cherish visiting every night? That's right folks - we're talking sleep music. There is music for every occasion. There are party tunes, walking/jogging/working out tunes, [...]

Everything great about American underground rock music: next to every challenging element is a melodic hook, housed in a unique formula that sounds both reassuringly familiar and wonderfully unique.
I've finally come to accept the inevitable tardiness of my yearly list of musical faves, and really, it's only tardy when compared to everyone else's list. Y'see, I listen to way too much music in the waning months of the year, using extra-long workdays and holiday travels to catch up on discs I haven't spent enough time with. A couple of the albums below didn't even hit my ears until last

My previous post on Will Johnson brought back the whole Dual Hawks release from last year and the fact that I really like Will's work with South San Gabriel. I liked the South San Gabriel disc better than the Centro-Matic disc from Dual Hawks - but one might assume this for the down tempo folk types. I think I might have moved past the " dual " CD a bit too quickly....okay, I did move past too quickly. Will, I apologize. So I just have to put a track up to ensure I will listen to [...]
My 2009 Musical New Years resolution is to really dive into the collective works of Will Johnson . In addition to releasing solo material, Johnson is the driving force behind the bands Centro-Matic and South San Gabriel . While Centro-Matic tends to be rock/alt country, South San Gabriel is mostly folk, country, or slow rock. Johnson put out a highly rated double album this year under both band names called Dual Hawks . I am embarrassed to admit that I never got around to listening to this album. Centro-Matic's 2006 [...]
Editor's Note: Over the next 10 days, I'll be presenting my favorite local records of the year, counting down from No. 10 to No. 1, one album a day. Keep checking back to see how the list pans out, an... Continue reading "The Best Albums In Dallas Music, 2008: Centro-Matic/South San Gabriel's Dual Hawks Eyes No. 7" >
Ah, the joys of year-end lists: Reading up on your own personal favorite records of the year, seeing where they rank on others' lists, finding out what others' thoughts on those discs are...Well, OK, ... Continue reading "More Dual Hawks Love (Kinda). And This Time, From Overseas!" >
More proof that Centro-matic/South San Gabriel's Dual Hawks is, truly, among the year's best releases (as has already been implied elsewhere): The influential I Am Fuel, You Are Friends blog has incl... Continue reading "Dual Hawks Eyes Another Year-End List" >
It ain't Rolling Stone or Spin. Hell, it's not Bona Fide Darling or Subservient Experiment either. But, either way, sure, I'll mention it: The blog It's Hard To Find A Friend has named Centro-matic a... Continue reading "Centro-matic/South San Gabriel Enters The Year-End List Game" >

It's not often that Montpelier gets a cool show in town. So, this Friday's show at The Lamb Abbey is a bit of a treat. Chris Brokaw , Will Johnson and Kris Gruen will all be performing sets starting around 8:30. For those unfamiliar with the trio, here's a rundown of the artists. Chris Brokaw is the former frontman for both Come and Codeine back in the 1990's. He now plays in The New Year, has a solo career and recently played with [...]

Centro-matic - "Rat Patrol" Centro-matic and South San Gabriel are currently on tour supporting their latest effort, a Split 2xCD called Dual Hawks which came out in June of this year. They are playing the Mercury Lounge tonight, but tomorrow night ( November 18 ) they'll be at The Bell House and I've got a pair of tickets to give away to a lucky reader who can tell me the name of a Will Johnson [...]
I wrote the cover story this week in the RFT. It's centered around Magnolia Summer and the Undertow Collective, and how the principles are utilizing technological advances and industry smarts to fashi... Continue reading "The Undertow Collective: MP3s and Videos from Centro-matic, David Bazan, Theodore, Glossary, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin" >