Album Review: Lone Wolf - The Devil and I

Bella Union seems to have a thing for moody tenors, although each has his own distinct sound. Lone Wolf’s debut, The Devil and I, separates him from label mates John Grant and Lawrence Arabia with classically-inspired instrumentation and literary lyrics.

The arrangements throughout The Devil and I are quite effective at creating a sense of grandeur by pushing louder tracks like “This is War” to their brink and adding extra weight to quieter tracks like “We Could Use Your Blood.” The mix of strings, horns, and sparingly-used percussion beneath the vocals and lead guitar give the music depth and variety.

Tift Merritt receives warm welcome at NC Museum of Art

It was a hot, muggy night to be outside for a concert at the North Carolina Museum of Art on Saturday night, but as the sun went down, the temperature dropped and Tift Merrit celebrated the release of her new album See You on the Moon.

Merritt and her band played every song from the new album, starting things off with "The Things That Everybody Does." The set was peppered with some hits from past albums including "Broken," "Stray Paper" and "Ain't Looking Too Closely."

The packed crowd spread about on the lawn of the museum ate up every moment, screaming professions of love and other kind words between songs. Merritt stated that "This is basically my favorite night of the whole year," later stating that it's hard to move on with the tour and go to places like Pittsburgh.

Melissa Etheridge adds new summer tour dates, coming to Durham

Having just released a new album titled Fearless Love in April, singer songwriter Melissa Etheridge has announced new summer tour dates that will keep her on the road until September. She'll make a stop in the Triangle at the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC) on Monday, July 26.

Tickets for the show go on sale to the public on Friday, June 11 at 10 a.m. for $37 to $102 here.

Check out the music video for the title track from Etheridge's new album Fearless Love below along with her complete tour schedule.

Album Review: Teenage Fanclub - Shadows

In their twentieth year as a band, Scottish quartet Teenage Fanclub are back with their first album in five years, Shadows.

The album feels like a classic right out the gate, with jangly guitars, sweeping strings and infectious melodies. "Baby Lee" is pure pop goodness, with shimmering guitars that are reminiscent of classic of times past.

"Into the City" is a high point of the album that builds into a wall of beautiful sound at the end with swirling, reverb soaked guitars and big, multi-tracked vocals. The acoustic driven anthem "When I Still Have Thee" and the lovely swayer "Live With the Seasons" comes in the second half of the album, for a nice little change of pace and a pair of fantastic guitar solos.

Win tickets to Lonnie Walker and Mount Moriah at Duke Gardens

Next week's Music in the Gardens show is a special double bill featuring Lonnie Walker and Mount Moriah.

To win a pair of tickets to the show on Wednesday, June 9, email us at triangle_music [at] hotmail [dot] com by 4pm on Monday, June 7, with "Duke Gardens tickets" in the subject line. We'll randomly select one reader to win. If you don't win, tickets can be purchased here for $10 or $5 for Duke employees and students. Children 12 and under are free.

Take note! Because of next week's double bill, the show will start a half hour earlier than usual at 6:30 p.m.

Click through for a complete list of Music in the Gardens dates and ticket prices.