Artist: Upstate
Hometown: Hudson Valley, New York
Song: “Catalpa”
Album: You Only Get a Few
Release Date: March 31, 2023
Label: Royal Potato Family
In Their Words: “‘Catalpa’ begins with the backdrop of a cold spring rain, but draws quickly to the familiar sounds of a summer night. Spring is such a beautiful but fleeting time of year. The flowers brighten the landscape but they’re gone as quickly as they come. I wrote ‘Catalpa’ after falling in love with tall catalpa trees in the Hudson Valley. They stuck out to me because they bloom in June, after the flowers, which I thought would be a lovely musical image. The chorus came almost as a surprise and carried a much deeper meaning than I had known was there when I was just dwelling on their loveliness. The song moves through moods like seasons, from a melancholy quiet spring morning to a warmer summer night, and the brute urgency of the chorus’ reminder that time is unrelenting. Still I think the song finds a reassuring calm in Mother Nature’s ever new promise of spring.” — Melanie Glenn, Upstate
Photo Credit: Bridget Badore
