Reviews

Willie Nile Lights Up the Darkness With “A Great Yellow Light”

July 3, 2025 by Michela Arlia

Willie Nile at City Winery NYC © photo by B.L.Howard

The Great Yellow Light, the latest album from rocker Willie Nile, is a defiant and bright collection that blends driving rock with heartfelt lyricism. The New Yorker once called Nile “one of the most brilliant singer-songwriters of the past 30 years,” and this record proves exactly why that praise still holds. With his core band locked in from years of... read article

Planet Brooklyn Festival courtesy of Planet Brookyln Festival

Planet Brooklyn Enters the Borough’s Festival Orbit

July 3, 2025 by David K. Moseder

Brooklyn, the music festival capital of New York, is getting another jewel in its crown this summer. Planet Brooklyn, set for August 23-24, will feature... read article

The Lena Horne Bandshell Stage at Celebrate Brooklyn ! photo coutrtesy of BRIC Arts Media

Where Brooklyn Meets the World: BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! 2025 Unites Global Sounds

June 2, 2025 by Michela Arlia

This summer, Brooklyn’s cultural heartbeat returns with the 47th season of BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! — a free, open-air performing arts festival transforming the Lena Horne... read article

Jalopy Gala '25 Display / photo by David K. Moseder

Jalopy Embarks On Its 20th Year With A Grand Gala

April 25, 2025 by David K. Moseder

On Thursday, April 10, 2025, well over one hundred devotees and supporters of Brooklyn’s folk and Americana music scene gathered at St. Ann’s Church in... read article

Diana Ross Ross performing in 2022 photo by Raph _PH

Brooklyn Beats of 2025: What to Expect in the New Year

December 27, 2024 by Michela Arlia

Brooklyn’s iconic live music venues are gearing up for an exciting 2025, featuring legendary artists, rising stars, and immersive music experiences across genres. Kings Theatre... read article

Rhiannon Giddens photo by Ebru Yildiz

BAM’s Next Wave Festival Moves Forward

November 11, 2024 by B.L. Howard

Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Next Wave Festival gives both well-known visionaries and trailblazing rebels an opportunity to unleash their groundbreaking creativity to the world. In... read article

David Amram and Willie Nelson at Farm Aid Concert in NYC photo by Ebet Roberts

BROOKLYN FOLK FEST SET FOR NOV. 8-10

November 1, 2024 by David K. Moseder

The annual Brooklyn Folk Festival is set for Nov. 8-10 at St. Ann’s Church on Montague Street in Brooklyn Heights. Presented by the Jalopy Theater,... read article

Hats Cleaned Album Cover American Nomads Hats Cleaned Album Cover

Hats Off to “Hats Cleaned,” New Album from American Nomads

October 29, 2024 by David K. Moseder

Brooklyn roots-rock band American Nomads introduced their newest full-length release, Hats Cleaned, at a release party on Saturday, October 19. Held at The Firehouse, their... read article

Garland Jeffreys At Steve Van Zandt's 500th Underground Garage Event / © photo by B.L.Howard

“The King Of In Between” Documentary

October 8, 2024 by David K. Moseder

The “rockumentary” film ,Garland Jeffreys: The King of In Between , is currently on the festival circuit, including international screenings in Tokyo and London, with more... read article

Brooklyn Americana Festival 2024/ photo by Noémie Trusty

Arriving at the 2024 Brooklyn Americana Music Festival photo by Noémie Trusty / courtesy of BAMF

10th Americana Fest Rates a “10”

September 25, 2024 by David K. Moseder

The 10th Brooklyn Americana Music Festival (BAMF), which ran Sept. 12 through 16, scored a “10” with us at Brooklyn Roads and with the enthusiastic... read article

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Artists on our Radar

Brayden Baird Is Asking the Big Questions – And Making You Laugh Through the Pain

Brayden Baird -photo courtesy of Mix-Tape Media

After decades of producing and releasing music under various aliases, Brooklyn’s own Brayden Baird is stepping into the spotlight with his most raw and refined work yet. Backed by the Once in a Lifetime Band, Baird’s upcoming LP Lord, why do you do these things to me? is a heartfelt and even satirical exploration of grief, identity, and faith that refuses to follow conventional sounds before its time. Across the ten-track album, Baird weaves catchy humor with emotional vulnerability, building a soundscape that feels intimate and extravagant all at once. His lyrics are clever without being cynical and full of sincerity; this delicate balance places him alongside emerging alt-folk figures like Cameron Winter and Nate Amos. The album kicks off with its title track, a sharp, stomping folk-rock number that wrestles with clever anecdotes and the chaos of unanswered prayers. From there, the songs unravel like chapters in a personal essay. The blending of stories of loss, family, addiction, and self-discovery comes about in just about every track. “Light in the Tunnel” turns a daily subway ride into an anthem of personal awakening. At the same time, “When Will the Sun Rise Again?” delivers a haunting, piano-led meditation on mourning and artistic authenticity. Other tracks showcase Baird’s gift for finding light in unlikely places. “Blue for the Body” is a lively reflection on coping mechanisms based on Gatorade flavors, which Baird says “is intended as a fun jam that people can sing and play along to and make light of the weight of addictions.”. “Pelican” draws on childhood lore amid his father’s mythical stories that untangle complex family bonds. With the accompanying music video for this track, Baird draws on whimsical elements of his father’s storytelling, saying, “In life, it is so easy to hate somebody based on the things they’ve done and so hard to forgive. After all, we are just working with the things we’ve got.” One of the album’s most affecting moments, which comes halfway through “It Kills Me to See You Sick,” channels rage and helplessness into a hushed piano ballad that’s both deeply personal and widely relatable, with Baird recounting the pain and sadness behind the song’s creation as his mom was diagnosed with Cancer as other family members were simultaneously hospitalized. On the last track of the album, “When You Were Castrated,” Baird confronts mortality and estrangement with brutal honesty about his father’s passing, delivering a final note that is at once heartbreaking and cathartic. Baird’s musical world is one of contradictions: funny and tragic, sarcastic and sincere, spiritual and grounded. With Lord, why do you do these things to me?* he’s created an album that doesn’t just tell stories but invites listeners to sit with them, question them, and sing along anyway. Catch Brayden Baird and the Once in a Lifetime Band at their album release show at The Rabbit Hole in Brooklyn on June 26 and stream the whole record on June 20.

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