All tagged Aaron Lee Tasjan

Review - Mya Byrne: Rhinestone Tomboy

Rhinestone Tomboy, Mya Byrne’s delightfully titled new album, is pure shimmering starlight from start to finish, a head-nodding, foot-tapping, thigh-slapping feast of Americana. 

The buffet ranges from sunny ‘70s California pop rock to snarling Neil Young guitar noise, from Arlo Guthrie storytelling folk to revved-up Johnny Cash boom-chicka-boom country and “You’ve Got a Friend” style gentle kindness. 

The album comes out April 28, the first from the new Nashville sister label to Kill Rock Stars. 

Pairing the music with lyrics authentically, relentlessly human, Byrne has crafted an album you want to play while cruising down the road with the sunroof open and your arm hanging out the window. And credit to producer Aaron Lee Tasjan: The album sounds great. 

Aaron Lee Tasjan: Tasjan! Tasjan! Tasjan!

A friend on social media recently shared an Aaron Lee Tasjan video from a few years ago. I cautioned her that his new record was going to be VERY different. Her response was “I'm excited! He's always changin’ it up!” ALT has done just that with his new release Tasjan! Tasjan! Tasjan! on New West Records. Never one to accept categorization, for his fourth solo album Tasjan has put together a collection of shimmering power pop that will most likely confuse those with only limited familiarity of his more Americana-flavored work but should delight fans who have followed his career more closely.

His record label was concerned that his music was going in too many different directions, so Tasjan began writing new songs and recording them in secret. Even though he says the label didn’t see him as a producer, Tasjan was intent on producing the record himself and says he feels grateful to his label for “motivating him to prove them and himself wrong.” He recorded the tracks at Make Sound Good studio in Nashville and shares production credits with Gregory Lattimer who also co-produced Tasjan’s 2018 release Karma For Cheap.