Monthly Archives: June 2024

Rounding Up the Recent Cars, Summer 2024 Edition

It’s time again for a roundup of recent rides. My neighbors—those who haven’t been wised up already—probably suspect something shady is going on in my driveway, given all the comings and goings. But people up to no good drive a Volvo plug-in hybrid or a Toyota RAV4 Woodland edition? Here are some thoughts on the new test cars.

2024 Volvo XC60 Recharge eAWD Ultimate Dark. Station wagons used to be an affordable form of transportation, but as they’ve morphed into upscale SUVs they’ve also gone up in price. Volvo, once one of the world’s biggest station wagon purveyors, now sells safety-conscious off-roaders like this one for $74,690. For that, the owner gets a big, powerful plug-in hybrid that gets 28 mpg combined in gas mode, and 63 MPGe as a PHEV. The XC60 is all the wagon most owners will need, though the XC90 is also available. Combined, the two-liter turbocharged four and electric motor produce a whopping 455 horsepower and 523 pound-feet of torque. There is 32 miles of electric range. This was a top-of-the-range model, and it met every need. Not a performance car, exactly, but there’s no substitute for a lot of horsepower. The PHEV format is perfect for Volvos, which tend to be weighty because of all their safety equipment—and the test car had the full complement. Drive it mostly in electric mode and there’s very little weight penalty.

2024 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid Woodland Edition. For $37,470, the buyer of this special edition gets a very, very practical and well-equipped vehicle that can deliver 37 miles per gallon combined and transport the family and their dog, with room left over for the luggage. Really, it’s hard to see why families need to spend more and buy something bigger and more powerful. The engine is a 2.5-liter four, putting out 219 horsepower. That’s considered anemic these days, but why are we in such a hurry? The Woodland is a weather package that adds heated front seats and steering wheel, as well as rain-sensing wipers. It’s easy to live with one of these, and the hybrid version is the one to get. You’ll save $2,500 on fuel over five years, compared to the average new car.

2024 Genesis G90 AWD 3.5T E-Supercharger. This is one of the few vehicles, redesigned for 2023, that justifies a price point above $100,000. The bottom line on the test car was $101,400. The electric supercharged, twin-turbo 3.5-liter V-6 produces a hefty 409 horsepower, and is connected to an eight-speed automatic. To shave a bit off the price, you can opt for the 375-horsepower version without the supercharger. The car bristles with high-tech features, including rear-wheel steering to aid cornering, air suspension, and smart hands-free trunk with auto open. The audio system is from Bang & Olufsen. The car not only uses premium materials, it blends them in an overall presentation that far exceeds the competition. It’s quiet as a church in operation, too. As I’ve noted, most consumers don’t really need anything above the level of a Toyota Corolla or a Honda CR-V, but if your needs include wanting to feel like a million dollars, the Genesis G90 has you covered.

2024 Toyota Sienna Hybrid XSE AWD. The hybrid minivan has been a long time coming, with the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid having the field to itself (at least in the U.S.; Japanese consumers have enjoyed a variety of choices.) The Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey are power pair in the minivan category. The 2.5-liter four and electric motor deliver a combined 245 horsepower in this upscale Sienna, which is a lot of van for $52,745. No one buys minivans for stoplight competitions, and this one accelerates in a leisurely watch-the-world-go-by fashion. It’s actually relaxing.

The Sienna is actually hybrid-only at this point. Honda’s Odyssey is going hybrid for 2025 with a system that delivers 204 horsepower and 247 pound-feet of torque. The horsepower figure is lower than the standard Odyssey, but the torque figures are about the same (262 pound-feet in that version).

Vans aren’t known for their fuel economy, but with Toyota’s celebrated hybrid drive this Sienna delivers 35 mpg combined (36 if you forget about the AWD you might not need). If you want to use your Sienna as a hauler (as in my brother’s antique book business), be advised that the second row isn’t removable. But dual power sliding doors make loading very easy.

2024 Acura TLX Type S. For 2024, the TLX lineup was revised with this performance variant at the top. Acura has concentrated more on luxury than sport, but this all-wheel-drive Type S boasts a turbocharged, 24-valve three-liter V-6 that produces 355 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque. That’s attached to a 10-speed automatic. Brembo does the front brakes, and the Type S adds an exclusive Sport+ driving mode. Torque vectoring can send 70 percent of the power to the rear axle, and all of it to the outside rear wheel. It was genuinely fun to drive, though Acura will have to lure consumers away from their BMWs and Audis. The price of the TLX starts at $45,000.

Genesis GV70 3.5T AWD Sport Prestige. The average price of cars sold to Americans keeps creeping up. In June it was $47,433, according to Cox Automotive. Given that, the $68,870 for this Genesis doesn’t seem so bad, but it’s still a considerable piece of change. It buys a compact luxury SUV that’s about as far from a 1963 Jeep Wagoneer as could be imagined. Luxury SUV was once an oxymoron. Under the hood of this one is a 3.5-liter twin turbo V-6 similar to that in the GV90, but it’s an option in the 70. The engine, coupled to an eight-speed automatic, produces 371 horsepower and 391 pound-feet of torque in this iteration. The Genesis sedan are more to my taste, but this type of SUV has its advantages, not least ease of entry and exit for some of our more senior citizens. As for off-roading, few will take advantage. It’s hard to imagine scratching and dirtying this pretty car.

Rain and Sunshiny Music at Green River 2024

The 2024 Green River Festival in Greenfield, Massachusetts is in its 37th year and appears to have been canceled only once, in 2020, because of COVID. It survived this year, but torrential rains and thunderstorms made it a near thing—proceedings were suspended several times, as fairgoers huddled in the buildings that dot the Franklin County Fairgrounds (known as “the new location”).

But the rain let up, the thunder stopped, schedules were rearranged, and most acts actually played (some in the standing-room-only Roundhouse). Tommy Prine, son of John, played exactly one song, “Precious,” before he got his cord pulled. He appeared later, though. The earlier Greenfield Community College site was charming, and perfect for the hot air balloons that dominated the festivals that began in 1986, but it was somewhat lacking in available shelter.

The Wonder Women of Country, from left, Leigh, Willis, Carper. (Jim Motavalli photo)

I was afraid that one of the main events I’d come to see, The Wonder Women of Country—Brennen Leigh, Melissa Carper and Kelly Willis—were going to get cancelled on me. But the festival restarted just in time for their set. All three are amazing singer-songwriters, and Leigh (lead guitar) and Carper (who plays bass) have been teaming up to pen songs lately. “No effects, please,” Leigh (resplendent in a flowered hat a la Minnie Pearl) told the sound crew, and indeed there weren’t any—just the women and their unadorned songs. The first of the collaborations by Leigh/Carper was the whimsical “I Wanna Fly Ya to Hawaii-ay,” on video here:

Another of their songs, which seemed to be called “Won’t be Worried Long,” was based on an old Carter Family/Kingston Trio number, “(It Takes a) Worried Man.” That’s called the Folk Process, and it’s perfectly legal. The audience definitely sat up and paid attention to their other new song, “Pray, Pray, Pray the Gay Away.” The kicker, of course, is that it doesn’t work, and the next morning you still wake up gay (and very happily so at the end of the song). (Leigh has an incredible LGBTQ-themed song in “Billy and Beau” on her stellar roots album Prairie Love Letter.)

The Wonder Women backstage: Brennen, Willis, Carper. (Jim Motavalli photo)

Willis was celebrating the 25th anniversary of her fourth album, What I Deserve—which went to #30 on the Billboard country charts. She offered a spirited version of the title song, co-written with the Jayhawks’ Gary Louris. Carper’s dry vocals highlight droll songs (“I Ain’t Getting’ Lucky Tonight”) that always have some swing to them—they’re not jazz, but jazz is in there. All the songs were enlivened by the other women’s harmonies and Leigh’s pitch-perfect guitar solos. Hear them on a new eponymous six-song EP.

Here’s one more video from the Wonder Women, Leigh’s truck-drivin’ song, “Carole with an E.”

Bonny Light Horseman was the only group I saw on the main stage. If you’re not familiar, this is the group that includes Anais Mitchell, author of the Broadway miracle Hadestown. But BLH is a group, not a star turn, and it has its own unique approach—celebrating and building on traditional American and UK songs. (The group’s namesake song was included on their first album and performed at Green River; it dates to the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century. Said horseman is lost in battle, with the loss lamented by his beloved.)

Bonny Light Horseman has recently issued a stellar double album called Keep Me on Your Mind/Set You Free. They did several songs from the album of mostly originals, including “When I Was Younger,” which manages to combine the feel of a trad folk song with raucous rock and roll guitar from industry vet Josh Kaufman. Taking the lead probably more than half the time was multi-instrumentalist Eric D. Johnson, late of the Fruit Bats and Shins. This is why they call it a supergroup. Both Mitchell and Johnson are fine lead singers.

Bonny Light Horseman loves the traditional. (Jim Motavalli photo)

I wondered if the audience realized that when the group performs standards like “Down by the Sally Garden” or “Bonny Light Horseman” they’re actually hearing an ancient tune that has survived many vicissitudes. It might be useful to tell them.

Willi Carlisle (above) is in the Woody Guthrie/Pete Seeger folk tradition. He sings about injustice and wants you to sing along. If his reach exceeded his grasp here and there (as in “Two-Headed Lamb”), it didn’t take away from his being a heartfelt, giving-it-all performer.

And then there was S.G. Goodman (below). Her album Teethmarks is delightfully varied, from big sweeping ballads to rockers. She has an incredibly good band, with a lead guitarist, pedal steel player, bass and drums. They can turn on a dime.

Goodman led off with three hard rockers that somewhat strained the singer’s voice and made it hard to distinguish the songs. But she slowed down in the second half, showcasing that strong voice on the K.D. Lang-like “I Never Want to Leave This World.” And she closed with the tough rocker, “Work Until I Die,” seen in part on a warts-and-all video:

Goodman is a farmer’s daughter from western Kentucky. Her American Gothic family gives her material, which can be heard on early recordings under the Savage Radley moniker that have just been re-released. She tells funny stories with a strong Kentucky accent. I bet her Substack is fun.

Mdou Moctar is a Touareg electric guitarist from Niger (below). If you’ve heard Tinariwen, the group of Malian nomads that brought the music to global attention, you know (and hopefully love) the desert blues genre.

The music reflects several international journeys. African music came to America with the slave trade. Slaves and their descendants adapted that music into American blues, which electrified when it followed the jobs to cities like Chicago and Detroit. From those antecedents rock shredders like Jimi Hendrix grew, and their music soon traveled to Africa, where it was filtered through the local lens.

It didn’t matter that the audience couldn’t understand the songs. They were there for the quartet’s hypnotic grooves and Moctar’s supercharged guitar. A man who, forbidden a guitar, had to build his own, is now entertaining people at festivals around the world. Much the same thing happened to Mississippi John Hurt, Son House and Bukka White when they were re-discovered in the 1960s (after recording in the 1920s).

The festival took place over three days, and each one contended with rain. But, even wet, the patrons seemed pretty happy.