Bluegrass has always been embraced by the Jam community, thanks to Jerry Garcia’s abiding love of old-time music and the unique flavor he brought to his own translations. Native Virginian Larry Keel plays a similar role in the current Jam/Bluegrass scene as a flatpicking acoustic guitarist.    

The Del McCoury Band is one of the most celebrated Bluegrass acts to date, but to say they are just a Bluegrass band would be doing them a disservice.  

It was a wintry night three years ago at the Northside Tavern when Passion Pit turned the joint into a Synth Pop sauna; wild-eyed reviews of the show heightened expectations for the Massachusetts sextet’s return.   

Unlike the similarly named bands She & Him and The Dutchess and the Duke, the current version of He's My Brother, She's My Sister is not a duo featuring one member from each gender. Instead, it’s a five-piece led by founders/siblings Rachel and Rob Kolar, who initially ran the project as an acoustic twofer.   

News of the Oct. 10 death of Skandal (government name: Marcus Mitchell, aka Skan, Skandizzle and Skandal Da Ruckus Man) after a protracted battle with leukemia pinged through the ether like a metal ball in a pinball game.   

 “We’re The Afghan Whigs from Cincinnati, O-hi-o,” frontman Greg Dulli relayed to a raucous crowd early in his band’s Aug. 4 show at The Metro in Chicago, one of many sold-out stops on the Whigs’ current reunion tour.   

Dayton’s music scene is similar to Cincinnati’s in that they’ve both given rise to a great number of bands that represent the incredible musical diversity within the respective band communities.The Werks are one of Dayton’s more recent success stories; the Jamadelic quartet officially formed five years ago.   

The Sea and Cake has never been too dedicated to any one concept. Fundamentally, the Chicago four-piece could cozily fit into your average Indie Rock festival, but the group’s not really interested in sticking to an aesthetic palatable for just that one subculture.   

There are a million things to love about Twenty One Pilots. I’ll give you three. First and foremost, they’re from Columbus, Ohio, which practically makes them one of our own hometown heroes  

Pianist Alejandro Ziegler was only 12 years old when a cerebral hemorrhage ended the brilliant career of fellow Argentine Astor Piazzolla, the originator of Neuve Tango and one of the world’s most revered musical giants.