Fresh off a Gloriana concert at the county fair last night, local pop music fan Jeffery Schmidt is excited to dive headlong into the world of country music. "I've always dismissed country because I thought it was all corny backwoods stuff, with the fiddles and banjos and songs about beer and dogs. But all of Gloriana's show was really upbeat and peppy. Even though the one guy was strumming a banjo on some songs, I don't think he even had it plugged in. It was almost like seeing Selena … [Read more...]

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has posted an urgent bulletin to its website warning of a fast-spreading new viral infection and offering treatment tips for those already exposed. Typically contracted while swimming in mudholes located off of old dirt roads, fooling around in contaminated truck beds after long days of drinking beer lakeside, or bumping fists with skeezy up-and-coming country-rock singers, the Brantley Gilbert Virus could affect as many 100,000 people … [Read more...]

Congratulations to Opry legend Little Jimmy Dickens, who was recently recognized by environmental nonprofit Conservation America for his groundbreaking efforts in the field of humor recycling. Dickens, who first joined the Opry in 1948, has been poking fun at his own short stature and advancing age longer than many of the Opry's recent additions have been alive. "It's an honor to be here. In fact, it's an honor to be anywhere," said Dickens after shuffling onstage at the Conservation America … [Read more...]

A new band out of New Braunfels, Texas, is proud of their home state and they are not ashamed to let the world know. The DeWayne Tillis Band's debut digital single "Texas in My Veins" is an anthem to the Lone Star State that lets us all in on what's going down in the little-known, rarely mentioned home of such things as "Shiner," "Ray Wylie" and "bluebonnets." The song, a catchy assimilation of country and rock that sounds vaguely like Steve Earle fronting Lynyrd Skynyrd, is a mash note to … [Read more...]

In a press conference held outside its Rhode Island headquarters on Monday, multinational toymaker Hasbro announced a recall of recent "American Idol" winner Scotty McCreery, which it characterized as a "failed animatronic experiment" released into the world too early in its development cycle. "We would like to apologize to our fans and stockholders for our error in judgment in pushing Project SCMC17, known colloquially and to viewers of FOX's 'American Idol' as Scotty McCreery, out to market … [Read more...]