Ryan Shupe of Ryan Shupe and the RubberBand had to have surgery after his appedix started acting up on Friday. He's doing fine and will be back with the band as soon as possible. The bad part was, he had to be admitted to the hospital on the same day the band was going to do their first in-store appearance in support of their new CD. According to his PR people, the band went ahead with the appearance after all. Instead of Ryan singing, fans were allowed to come onstage and show off their own talents. Well played, guys!

Their new album, Last Man Standing, was released on May 27th so check it out.

I love checking out new artists on MySpace. There are so many talented people that are now being given a new outlet to get their music out to the people and promote themselves. One of these people is Minnie Murphy. She is signed to the same label as The Road Hammers and is currently working on an album she has said will be called The Adventures of Minnie Murphy.

The thing that strikes me about Minnie right off is her voice. It’s like a cross between Julie Roberts and Christina Aguilera with a little Dolly thrown in the mix. When I was listening to the tracks, there were three that stood out.

"Tennesses Tango"-  This is probably one of the most unique songs on her profile. It's got, obviously, a tango sound to it with very jazzy vocals that are just fun.

"Unstoppable"- This is a fun, up-tempo track that according to a MySpace post came about when she was having a bit of a rough time career-wise and needed to remind herself it's gonna be alright. She sings the tune with confidence and a pure country twang. Definitely one of those rousing anthem songs.

"Mississippi River"- This is, by far, my favorite song on her profile. It's a haunting tune with a bluesy sound that Minnie fills with emotional vocals that inspired that Aguilera comparison I made. According to her MySpace blog, it was written as a tribue to the late Jeff Buckley.

If you wanna check these (and some other tunes) out for yourself, check out her MySpace page. You'll also be able to keep up with all the latest news.