No Depression

No Depression is a quarterly journal dedicated to roots music, also featuring an online platform at nodepression.com. The print edition is around 150 pages long and is free from advertisements, concentrating on in-depth music journalism and thoughtful analysis that connects today's artists to the rich history of American roots music. This unique content is only available in print, contributed by well-known roots music musicians, professional critics, reporters, photographers, illustrators, and fine artists.

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An Oral History of Red Dirt As Told by Those Who Live and Love It

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Alli Patton

It was the mid-1990s when Cody Canada first came to Stillwater, Oklahoma. The then-17-year-old ventured an hour or so north from his native Yukon to the small college town to see country elite Chris LeDoux perform live. What he found there, instead, would kickstart the rest of his life. Opening for the hitmaker was The Great Divide, a local act that was steadily on the rise.
ALBUM REVIEW: Lily Seabird Fills 'Trash Mountain' with Cracks, Folk, Grit, and Grunge

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Maeri Ferguson

“How are we supposed to remember things?” This is the central question of “Trash Mountain (1pm),” one of two title tracks off Lily Seabird’s latest album Trash Mountain. In sum, Seabird’s songwriting is tackling the challenge of touching down when the world feels like a dumpster fire growing ever hotter and bigger, surrounding on all sides.
THROUGH THE LENS: Roots Music Roars Through Austin, Texas During SXSW 2025

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Amos Perrine

Founded in 1987 in Austin, Texas, South by Southwest (SXSW) has become, like its host city, many things to many people. The event has grown to incorporate tech, fashion, design, film, television, exhibitions, comedy, education, gaming and other cultural endeavors as well as music. The schedule of the Music Festival portion of SXSW listed 1,127 official showcase performers, in 90 separate genres, from 54 countries.
Introducing No Depression’s Spring 2025 Journal + Playlist

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

EDITOR’S NOTE: Managing Editor Hilary Saunders’ letter, below, opens our Winter 2024 quarterly journal, featuring the best and most timely stories in roots music today. Buy the Winter 2024 issue in print or digitally here. Music has taken me all over the world. Last year, I went to Kansas City, Juneau, Tulsa, Bentonville, Wichita, Park City, Tønder, Copenhagen, North Adams, Mississauga, Niagara, and St. Louis for music.
ALBUM REVIEW: Daughter of Swords' Alex Sauser-Monnig Uncovers New Sounds on 'Alex'

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Maeri Ferguson

Even as she’s been genre shapeshifting over the years, the core qualities of Alex Sauser-Monnig’s artistry have not just remained intact, but strengthened with each outing. Recording as a member of bands Mountain Man and The A’s (both with Amelia Meath of Sylvan Esso), and her solo moniker Daughter of Swords, Sauser-Monnig has proven herself an intrepid sonic explorer with a soft-spun voice she uses elastically, whether it’s wrapped in spare folksy instrumentals or buoyant pop melodies.
BONUS TRACKS: Michael Hurley Passes Away at 83 and More Roots Music News from Bruce Springsteen and Kelsey Waldon

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

The roots music community was stunned to hear about the passing of “outsider folk” singer-songwriter Michael Hurley yesterday at the age of 83 years old. The news was ostensibly broken by Brooklyn-based venue Union Pool, which posted a photo of musician in front of its red, velvet stage curtain and framed by bulb lights. As his family wrote in a statement:It is with a resounding sadness that the Hurley family announces the recent sudden passing of the inimitable Michael Hurley.
ALBUM REVIEW: With 'Believer,' Sister Ray Blends Pensiveness and Buoyancy

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | John Amen

With their latest set, Believer, Ella Coyes assumes a more aerial view than on their 2022 debut, Communion, frequently putting distance between themself and their subject matter. John Nellen’s production MO complements Coyes’ narrative style and this new, detached perspective, infusing the tracks with buoyancy, while never diluting Coyes’ pensive leanings.
ALBUM REVIEW: Ashleigh Flynn & The Riveters Bring the Light on 'Good Morning, Sunshine'

3 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Henry Carrigan

The title of Portland, Oregon-based Ashleigh Flynn & The Riveters’ second album, Good Morning, Sunshine, is perfect. Like their rocking predecessors in the 1970s band Fanny, Ashleigh Flynn & The Riveters deliver joyous, high-octane performances, and the 11 songs on this collection overflow with ebullience and energy.
No Depression's Best of March 2025 Playlist

3 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

Today might be April Fool’s Day, but last month’s playlist is no joke. March 2025 saw the return of some of roots music’s biggest stars like Jason Isbell and Alison Krauss and Union Station. Additionally, ever-prolific Charley Crockett released his 15th studio album last month and bluegrass stalwarts The Seldom Scene keep reinventing themselves in their fifth decade. Sierra Hull released her first new album in five years and Lucy Dacus released her first solo material in four years.
THROUGH THE LENS: Big Ears Festival 2025 Digs Deep

3 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Amos Perrine

Founded in 2009, the Big Ears Festival lays claim to bringing more diverse music acts to single locale than any other event or gathering. From roots to the avant-garde, the fest brings together performers from around the world to music and other arts aficionados who are also from around the world, all to the heart of Appalachia in Knoxville, Tennessee. The irony is not lost on anyone who has ever participated in Big Ears.