Tag: Americana

‘Acadia’ Expands Guitarist Yasmin Williams’ Creative Universe

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Oscar Wilde said, “If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing well. If it is worth having, it is worth waiting for. If it is worth attaining, it is worth fighting for. If it is worth experiencing, it is worth putting aside time for.”

Composer and guitarist Yasmin Williams can certainly relate to the sentiments in Wilde’s reflection. Williams – who went from New York University in 2017 to releasing her first LP in 2018 to performing across the world – says when she picked up the acoustic guitar, it was about “trying to become the best guitarist [she] could be.”

Though a straightforward aspiration, and one that Williams has pursued fervently between the release of her debut album and now of her third record, Acadia, Williams has lived through ups, downs, and unknowns of the music industry, which have shifted her goals along the way. Particularly between 2020 and 2024, when Williams wrote the songs that would become Acadia, the inherent nature of public visibility and the process of establishing herself in the music landscape led Williams to discern what exactly is worth doing, having, waiting for, attaining, fighting for, and experiencing as a musician. It’s this amalgamation of inner realizations and external escapades that make Acadia the compelling journey it is.

Listening to each piece is like exploring a miniature world. Songs like album opener “Cliffwalk” unlock the door to an event memorable to Williams and all the emotions that came with it – performing at Newport Folk Festival and writing most of the song the night before, with the rest unfolding as an improvisation on stage. Pieces like “Virga” and “Dream Lake” reflect the duality of positive and negative challenges that come with nurturing a career as a musician. The two tracks are fittingly written with this direct connection to the other in mind.

Acadia as a whole is brimming with collaboration, a potpourri of artists, instruments, and culture, songs like “Harvest,” “Hummingbird,” and “Dawning” speak directly to what can grow from embracing new friendships, communities, and the unique creative resonance that can be found therein.

Acadia may encompass a fixed window of time in her life, but much like the many meanings of its title and Williams’ own ethos for the album – a place of peace, a place where creativity can blossom – the project endures as an oasis, a reminder from the past thriving in the present that scatters new seeds for music in the future, as Williams continues to walk down a trail of her own design.

Speaking with BGS by phone before a tour that will take her across the U.S. and to the UK later this year, Williams talked about the value of empowerment and patience, the expectations of the music industry, insights that came from producing her own music, and more.

What was the evolution of your vision for Acadia like and how did things develop as you met new artists and had so many new experiences from 2020 to 2024?

Yasmin Williams: I wasn’t really envisioning the album being as expansive as it is. Back in 2020 and even before that, I was still focused on just trying to become the best guitarist I can be, trying to become more confident in my playing and more confident in my abilities.

When I played Newport Folk Festival [in 2021], it gave me the confidence and the encouragement that I needed to realize that I can actually do this for a living – be a professional musician. It definitely lit a spark and after that, I realized I should take meeting people more seriously. Not necessarily networking, but just trying to make friends with musicians that I’m meeting at these festivals since I keep seeing the same people. That’s kind of how the collaborations came about: Just me being not afraid to tell people, “Hey, I really like your music. I’d love to do something with you,” or people telling me that and me not being afraid to follow up with them because, I guess I dealt with some sort of– I don’t want to say, “inferiority complex,” but like, I feel like the musicians that are on the record have been doing their thing for long time. I’d be afraid to reach out to people and ask them to collaborate with me.

After 2021, I got over that fear, which helped immensely. That led to the collaborations and that led to me thinking, “My next record can be what I want it to be but, I can also invite people to do things that I cannot do.” Like, I don’t play saxophone, I don’t play drums. I’m not super comfortable singing on my music yet and inviting all of these people to do those things really created the atmosphere and the universe that I wanted for Acadia. I wanted it to be something that my other two records aren’t necessarily, which is a more expansive kind of universe.

How did you approach conveying themes, motifs, or emotions when writing music to include others versus writing for yourself?

Every song was different. As far as [asking myself], “How does this person fit into the theme or the emotion that I’m trying to present?” What I did was, I told the collaborator, “Here’s what emotion or mood I’m trying to evoke here. Does this make sense to you? Do you think you can do this? Let’s figure out a way to do it.” I gave them slightly free reign, but help if they needed help figuring something out.

Where does your dedication to informing folks about the social and historical aspects of music, and the prospect of personal responsibility around that, fit within your music career?

It took me years to figure out if I even wanted to be involved in making people aware of the historical aspects of the music that I was playing. I also had to learn a lot about music that I was playing and about folk music in general, because I didn’t really grow up listening to folk music at all or bluegrass or things like that. So I’ve learned a lot in the last five, six, seven years.

Things changed when I finished [my album] Urban Driftwood. Just remembering, going to protests up here in Washington, D.C. when George Floyd’s murder happened and seeing all of the political unrest and social unrest around here where I live, and obviously seeing it on the news everywhere else definitely made me change my mind. As far as being open about, for example, speaking about being a Black female guitarist, which is not something I really wanted to do in my late teens, early 20s. I definitely came around to it and now see it as a necessity.

To me, social media is a great tool to try to help educate folks, because there’s so much online at our fingertips that’s just factually incorrect. Anything I can do to try to help mitigate that, I think is good. I think it’s important for me now to be involved in the full scene in a way that’s positive and educating people – to just get involved in things or be involved in ways that I’m interested in. I’ve always been a history nerd anyway so to me, it makes sense now to do that, whereas before, I guess I just wasn’t mature enough to understand why I would have to be a musician and educate folks and have a social media presence. But now I don’t have a problem at all.

What would you describe as the most challenging aspect of making Acadia and how did you wade through that experience?

Figuring out how to finish some of the songs. I realized I have to let time pass and let it come to me. “Sisters,” for example, I came up with that melody like, two, three years ago now? And it was stuck being a two-, three-minute song for years. I thought, “This doesn’t feel done.” But I couldn’t come up with anything. Then, the night before my recording session, I came up with four extra minutes of material. For me, I can’t force the issue of finishing a song. It just kind of has to come to me. And whenever it comes, it comes. And these songs, some of them took a really long time to get finished. So that was probably the most difficult part of it.

What was the most interesting new musical technique or process you explored while making Acadia and why was it so meaningful?

Producing was the most interesting part of it; hearing what people heard in my music was by far the most interesting aspect of recording. Just hearing how people process it, then hearing what they do in response. Pretty much everyone grasped what I was trying to accomplish in the song that they’re featured on.

For example, “Hummingbird” with Allison de Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves. They both come from a more, I guess, old-time tradition, which is very different than [the kind of song] “Hummingbird” is. It took a little while for us to kind of get the song in the studio, because the song is very difficult, first of all, to play. But they absolutely nailed it. Hearing how they heard the timing and the syncopation and the melody, and the melodic aspects of the song, and how they thought, “Okay, I can fit in here and drop out here and harmonize here,” it was really interesting to see how people’s brains worked and how it’s so different from how mine works but it somehow fits together pretty seamlessly.

How did you discern your feelings when a collaborator might encourage you to try something new, versus deciding to stay true to yourself and your voice as a composer and musician?

I feel like I was more so bringing the collaborators to a different place that maybe they weren’t used to and pretty much everybody who’s on the record was willing to do that and go to somewhere new.

Once the recording process and collaboration process got started, it was really easy for me to just tell people, “Okay, I want this, this, and this.” And most of the time, people are just like, “Yeah!” With Darlingside and the song “Virga,” I made it clear that I actually wanted them to do lyrics and then we worked on that. They were open to it for the most part so for me it was easy. But maybe for some of the collaborators it was about getting them out of their usual music making mode and into a more open-minded mode.

Being ready to make an album like this, it took living life and having different experiences.

(Editor’s Note: Continue exploring our Artist of the Month coverage of Yasmin Williams here.)

Photo Credit: Ebru Yildiz

BGS 5+5: David Berkeley

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: David Berkeley
Hometown: Santa Fe, New Mexico
Latest Album: A Pail Full of Fire
Personal Nicknames (or rejected band names): The only time I really had a nickname was when I was teaching in a public middle school in Bushwick. The kids called me Shaggy.

What’s the toughest time you ever had writing a song?

I gave up on my song “This Be Dear to Me” probably a dozen times. I began writing it as an exercise in positivity after Trump got elected. Instead of lamenting all the things I feared would be ruined, I decided to try to write a list of what I loved. That’s where it started. Pages and pages of places I found beautiful, people I cared about, lists of what I valued. I guess I wanted to unite people who were behaving like they had nothing in common by reminding them (us) that there are lots of things we all love. Like, here are some things we all must hold dear, right? Rivers and trees, the autumn, the moon, our children. If we remember that then maybe we stop fighting about less important things?

But I didn’t want it to be heavy-handed or preachy. And I didn’t want it to be too syrupy. Eventually, I had the list and I shaped it into maybe forty verses. That felt like a few too many, though, so I spent a long time whittling. I got it down to three. At first the chorus was just an extended Amen. “Ah ah ah ah… men.” But that seemed like a cop out. So I ultimately added a lyric, which wasn’t easy to write. It appeals to Adonai to help remind us what is worth fighting for. That also felt like a risk. I’m Jewish, but I rarely reference my Judaism in my music. Finally, I had this idea that the song should lift and modulate as it progresses, so the lyric would feel more urgent and the music could soar. But I also knew that I wanted it to feel cyclical and to come back home at the end. So then it became almost like a puzzle. Could I move through several keys and return to where we began? That’s ultimately where the song landed. It’s the hardest I ever worked on a song, but it’s also probably the most powerful to sing live.

Which elements of nature do you spend the most time with and how do those impact your work?

I never had a dog growing up. In fact, I never really liked dogs. I pretended to like your dog if we met. But really I was a little afraid of her/him. And I never understood dog people. I’m a father of two boys. And when people talked about their dog like a child, I bristled. But we got a puppy during COVID. Her name is Mali, and I love her. Like I really love her. She’s changed my whole world. Don’t tell my boys, but I often miss Mali more than my kids when I’m on tour. She certainly seems happier to see me when I come home than they do.

This all to say, I spend a lot of my time hiking with her in the Sangre de Cristo mountains above Santa Fe. You’re far more likely to run into me hiking up Picacho or on the backside of Sun Mountain than anywhere else in town. You can see a hundred miles from up there. And I normally bring a blank book with me. I start a lot of songs on those hikes. And I try my melodies out on Mali. She has better ears than humans do, so I think it’s fair to trust her reaction.

How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me”?

I wouldn’t call it hiding, but I use characters more and more in my writing to express certain ideas or emotions that might be clearer through the eyes or mouth of someone else. My song “Omaha,” for example, is a song about a guy trying to reunite with a lost love. That’s not autobiographical at all, but it’s honest.

And of course in my duo project, Sons of Town Hall. My partner and I have created a whole mythic backstory. My name in that project is Josiah and every song is sung from within that fictitious world. We’re now rolling out a comedy-fiction podcast series called Madmen Cross the Water that tells the stories behind the songs on our new album. But just like in my solo work, even though there is a character I’m writing for it doesn’t compromise the honesty. In fact, sometimes I think we can be more honest and open when we are wearing a kind of mask.

If you didn’t work in music, what would you do instead?

I’d go back to the Salmon River in Idaho and try to get my old job back as a river guide. I love playing music, but it isn’t an easy career and there’s a lot of it I don’t like – promoting myself, for example, or sound checking, or all the travel. But I liked every bit of being a river guide back in the day.

Since food and music go so well together, what is your dream pairing of a meal and a musician?

I’d like to travel back with Anthony Bourdain on a food tour of Italy. And after eating our way through the country for a few weeks, we end up in Rome. We head to the Pantheon one night under a big moon. It’s all barricaded off, but we’re ushered in. It turns out that Neil Young is there (but it’s 1971 Neil). He’s got a pipe organ in there and a few guitars. They serve us plates of cacio e pepe and glasses of cold Frascati and he basically plays the Massey Hall set for maybe fifty of us.

Photo courtesy of the artist.

Kris Kristofferson’s Most Human Moments

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

After passing away on September 28 at the age of 88, Kris Kristofferson has rightly been eulogized as a renaissance man without compare. It makes sense, since the colorful character’s legendary resume includes time as a Rhodes scholar, Golden Gloves boxer, U.S. Army Ranger, Golden Globe-winning actor, janitor at Columbia Studios, and helicopter pilot who once brought Johnny Cash a demo by landing on the superstar’s front lawn.

In fact, it was only after all of these accomplishments that Kristofferson became the icon we remember – a songwriter’s songwriter, and one of the most authentic and impactful artists to hit country and roots music since its development. Yet his longest-lasting gift to all of us may prove to be his humanity.

Emerging onto an American landscape just beginning to feel the pangs of decay – the “Sunday Morning Coming Down” of its post-war glory – Kristofferson’s work found beauty in even the ugliest moments life had to offer. He broke every mold of what a country star “should” be, choosing substance over style, embracing the unwanted, and cutting a trail for generations of artists to follow. Stunning empathy seemed to be his primary tool and as a man of many lives, he was well suited to put himself in the shoes of whatever characters he conjured up.

That deep well of human empathy might be the source of his gravity on camera and on stage. Maybe that’s why his songs came alive for the 450 other artists who covered them. But whatever it was, Kris Kristofferson accessed emotion and compassion without pretension. His humanity will live on now like a beacon, guiding others away from the shallow posturing of country songcraft and toward the authentic depths of the art.

In honor of his life, legacy, and impact, here are eight moments where Kris Kristofferson’s humanity shined bright.

“Help Me Make It Through the Night” on The Old Grey Whistle

After his debut album in 1970, Kristofferson made frequent TV appearances with duet partner and soon-to-be-wife Rita Coolidge – with one capturing his tender side especially well. Singing “Help Me Make It Through the Night” on the UK variety show The Old Grey Whistle in ‘72, Kristofferson and Coolidge were just a few months away from their marriage and seem enchanted with each other. Sharing a microphone and never more than a few inches apart, you can almost feel the sensual spark.

“Help Me Make It Through the Night” on The Muppet Show

Same song, different duet partner – and a totally different view of Kristofferson as an artist. Fast forwarding to 1978 and Season 3 of The Muppet Show, the respected singer-songwriter showed he was good sport by doing “Help Me Make It Through the Night” with none other than Miss Piggy. Clean shaven and re-creating the close proximity of the first clip, Kristofferson could barely hold back the laughs as he serenaded a swooning swine – then lost it completely as Miss Piggy broke into the chorus. Hopefully he and Kermit patched things up later.

“Sunday Morning Coming Down” on The Johnny Cash Christmas Special

Later in 1978, Kristofferson had the chance to perform alongside an idol and show his respect for the artist who had done more to popularize his work than any other. Joining Johnny Cash for the Man in Black’s yearly Christmas special, Kristofferson was left almost speechless as Cash introduced the vivid “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” which they then took turns singing. After Cash noted he’d been making the song his own for years, Kristofferson responds, “Up until now that was the proudest moment of my life. Now this may be the proudest.”

“Me and Bobby McGee” on Austin City Limits

Kristofferson appeared on Austin City Limits a few times, but in 1981 he had a hot band behind him and that led to a rollicking delivery of his biggest rock hit, “Me and Bobby McGee.” Made famous by the late Janis Joplin 10 years before, the freewheeling anthem put Kristofferson’s range – and a sense nostalgic joy – front and center. Although, there’s still a tinge of sadness embedded in the tone. From our perspective now, the iconic line “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose,” is matched only by “I’d trade all my tomorrows for one single yesterday.”

“For the Good Times” with Tanya Tucker

Kristofferson always looked more comfortable in a flannel shirt than a black tie, but in the long run, that only made him more endearing. Joined by Tanya Tucker on a 1982 awards show, Kristofferson climbed into a tux and delivered the one-last-time anthem “For the Good Times” in classic pop style. Backed by an orchestral score and with Tucker taking the lead, it was a rare ballroom-country presentation of a song also recorded by Ray Price, Al Green, and more, which proved the Hollywood heartthrob would truly rather be hanging out with friends at the local dive.

“The Hot Dog Tree” with Pee Wee Herman

By 1988 Kristofferson had built up decades of acclaim as an actor, artist, songwriter – and as an international sex symbol. But he was never too big to have fun. Playing opposite Pee Wee Herman in the kid’s comedy Big Top Pee Wee, Kristofferson slipped into silliness with an easy charm. The iconic scene sees Pee Wee unveiling his top-secret Hot Dog Tree to Kristofferson, and the star’s initial skepticism – and then child-like awe – will brighten any day. Despite being held up as a talent of rare caliber, he never took himself too seriously.

Encouraging Sinéad O’Connor at Madison Square Garden

If you want to know about Kris Kristofferson’s character, look no further than what he did for Sinéad O’Connor at New York’s Madison Square Garden in October 1992. A few nights earlier, O’Connor had shocked the nation by protesting the Catholic Church’s still-under-wraps sex abuse scandal on Saturday Night Live, ripping up a photo of Pope John Paul II as cameras rolled.

When she then took the stage for Bob Dylan’s 30th anniversary concert, the crowd erupted in boos. As O’Connor stood there, unable to begin her performance through the rain of jeers, Kristofferson stepped beside her and spoke the famous words of encouragement, “Don’t let the bastards get you down.” He didn’t try to save her or get her off stage, or diminish her in any way – he just let her know she wasn’t alone. For her part, O’Connor went on to scream sing an a-capella rendition of “War” over the crowd, before staring them down as she left the stage. She said the moment created a lifelong appreciation for Kristofferson.

“Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I’ll Ever Do Again)” with Rosanne Cash at Willie Nelson’s 90th Birthday

Kris Kristofferson made his final public performance in 2023, appearing at the Hollywood Bowl in honor of his longtime friend Willie Nelson’s 90th birthday. The moment was filmed for a special airing on CBS and gave us one last moment with an icon.

After a shaky walk to the microphone, Kristofferson joined Rosanne Cash for an arm-in-arm rendition of “Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I’ll Ever Do Again),” a devastating ballad first released at the start of his career. Following Cash’s lead with a wide smile and a twinkle in his eye – one armed raised in triumph – Kristofferson soaked up the moment, while the rapt attention of the audience evolved into a thunderous applause. As Cash adapted the song’s hook to address Kristofferson himself, the whole world seemed to send him out on a high note:

Loving you was easier than anything I’ll ever do again…

Photo Credit: Scott Newton, courtesy of New West Records.

MIXTAPE: Celtic & American Folk Inspirations From Rakish

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

As a duo rooted in both Celtic and American traditions, we find the intersection of these worlds to be a rich and endlessly inspiring place. From the rhythmic drive of Irish & Scottish reels to the melodic storytelling of ballads, we’ve always been captivated by how these two traditions speak to one another. They each carry a sense of community and history, and both offer the chance to push boundaries and explore something new.

Our latest album, Now, O Now, wants to embrace this duality. It’s a reflection of our love for these traditions, but also a hope to continually reinterpret them. This Mixtape is a collection of the kinds of tunes and songs that have shaped our journey – music that evokes both the wild energy of a late-night session and the quiet contemplation of a solo walk through the woods.

These tracks are selected from the voices of friends, mentors, and heroes who have inspired our original music along the way. We hope you enjoy the mix! – Rakish

“6 Then 5” – Seamus Egan

We love to put this track on at the beginning of a long drive. Seamus continues to be a master of bringing together composition, sound design, and groove.

“Goodbye” – Sean Watkins & The Bee Eaters

This whole record is great; it combines Sean Watkins’ brilliance with the thoughtfulness of The Bee Eaters, who happen to be some of our favorite musicians in the world.

“765” – Rakish, Jamie Oshima

We composed these tunes and had the idea of having our good friend Jamie Oshima produce/remix the track. He’s an incredibly thoughtful and agile musician and brings such a unique aesthetic to new fiddle music. Thanks Jamie!

“Hidden Love/Sheila Coyles” – Four Men & A Dog

We listened to this album in the car recently and this track was so good that Conor had an epiphany about how it brought together all the elements of arranging music that inspire him: highly poetic language, mystery, and an excellent Irish tune.

“City In the North” – Maeve Gilchrist

Maeve is remarkable at seemingly everything she puts her hands to; this song highlights not only her virtuosity and inventive harmony, but also her narrative ability to weave melancholy and joy.

“Bull Frogs Croon (Suite)” – Aoife O’Donovan

This whole record is potent for so many reasons. Aoife’s setting of Peter Sears’ poems is a reminder of her singular gift for putting melody to text, and Jeremy Kittel’s string arrangements are some of the best we’ve ever heard!

“Jack Dolan” – John Doyle

Just of the grooviest versions of a ballad ever from the preeminent master of Irish guitar in the modern era.

“Imaginary People” – Viv & Riley

Viv & Riley are at the forefront of writing incredible original music inspired by their traditional music backgrounds. We’ve admired them for a long time and they always blow us away.

“6 O’Clock in the Morning” – Darrell Scott

Tristan Clarridge, who always has the best listening recommendations, turned us onto this album. This track stands out with its intense lyricism and amazing instrumental orchestration.

“Turn the Page Again” – Tim O’Brien

We’ve loved this song for so long. This whole album is incredible, but this track in particular has been a source of inspiration by bringing together Tim’s songwriting, John Doyle’s groove, and Casey Driessen’s improvisational style.

“We’ve Got Our Friends” – Maura Shawn Scanlin

Maura’s solo record impeccably brings together the many things she excels at (and some of the things this playlist hopes to demonstrate): instrumental acuity, lyrical thoughtfulness, and masterful arranging.

“Strange Vessels” – Caoimhin Ó Raghallaigh & Thomas Bartlett

Conor listens to this album all the time. It’s a source of inspiration and a reminder to make music that feels relaxed and to not use too many notes.

“Dear Starling” – Pumpkin Bread

This is a favorite tune from a band with some of our best friends we were a part of in our college days. Thanks for listening!

Photo Credit: Sasha Pedro

On ‘Pathways,’ Julian Taylor Looks Inward Rather Than Outward

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Much like the songs on his latest album Pathways, the sounds swirling around Canadian singer-songwriter Julian Taylor on our recent phone call for BGS were also filled with curiosity, emotion, and the subtle, intrinsic tones of a modern world unfolding.

Walking the streets of his native Toronto, the introspective depths of Taylor’s voice and pure sentiments radiated in conversation were only complemented by the organized chaos of an international city in motion. Honking of taxi cabs at clustered intersections; the thrust of train cars on the underground subway; other conversations of varying degrees of volume in passing. And Taylor himself.

“Don’t the grass look greener on the other side/ but be careful of what you wish for could get left behind,” Taylor weaves through “Ain’t Life Strange.” “I see where I went wrong and all I could have done. There’s a fine line between a broken and beautiful mind.”

Those lyrics in particular speak to the long, arduous, yet bountiful road for Taylor. At 46, he’s spent his entire adult life in pursuit of creative fulfillment and stability in an often haphazard industry. In his tenure, Taylor’s seen the high-water mark and complete collapse of the music business – and then some.

Co-founder of 1990s Canadian alt-rock act Staggered Crossing, Taylor found himself in big meetings with even bigger record label executives. The band was signed by Warner Music Canada and earned some limited success before being dropped by the label not long after their debut album hit the streets.

From there, it became a DIY ethos at the heart of Staggered Crossing. But, after a handful of albums and plateauing popularity, the group split in 2007, ultimately leaving Taylor out on his own. But, he trudged ahead, even if he was unsure of his next move, whether personally or professionally.

Frustrated and burned out by the music industry, Taylor circled back to a beloved bar of his, the Dora Keogh Irish Pub in the Danforth neighborhood of Toronto. There he summoned the courage and energy to start an open mic night. With a stripped-down set of simply Taylor and his guitar, he quickly found this new path of intent and purpose for the music within him.

From there, it’s been this ongoing journey of self and of song for Julian Taylor. What has resulted is this soothing voice of determination and compassion pushing steadfast into this latest chapter of his sound and scope.

I was recently in Toronto for the first time and it felt like one of the most culturally and sonically diverse cities I’ve ever come across.

Julian Taylor: Yeah, definitely. It’s been that way ever since I was a kid. It was a real small town when I was born, but it’s just grown exponentially. The music thing has been extremely positive. People really do support each other and everything. Like, it doesn’t really matter where you’re coming from.

What does it mean to be a songwriter from Ontario and greater Canada? I mean, you have some of the best of the best. Gordon Lightfoot, Gord Downie, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen. The list goes on.

It’s an honor. I’m happy to be from here. You have the rich heritage that I have and the rich musical landscape that we grew up with. A lot of people don’t really know that so many of these artists, like the people that you’ve mentioned, are Canadian. We’ve had such an incredible influence on the world. I think a lot of that has to do with the cultural mosaic and landscape we live in. I mean, it is not easy to tour this country. And we sort of grind our teeth here a lot of the time. So, when you do that, it makes you a little bit more appreciative of any sort of accolades or any sort of impact that you may have on the world.

When I was reading your backstory, you must have been a teenager when you started Staggered Crossing.

Yeah, I was pretty young. When we first got signed, it was at the tail end of, I guess, what you would want to call the high-water mark. We didn’t get to really experience that. We experienced the very last little bit of it. And then the entire industry changed. I’ve seen it change so many times in my career. And I started when I was 16.

What was it that kept you going after Staggered Crossing broke up? Was it just this idea that, “Hell or high water, this is what I’m going to, no matter what”?

Part of that was it. The other part of it was encouragement. The fact that any of my songs resonated with anybody really was the main point. You’re like, “I’m going to do this no matter what, because this is my calling and this is my passion, this is my purpose.” But, when you have those things validated by other people? That’s just a huge gift. The fact that people would continue to book me and play my stuff on the radio or people would come to shows and tell me that my music meant something to them. With that kind of encouragement, it’s really hard to stop going.

With Staggered Crossing being signed and going through the motions of very large corporations, what were some of the things you took away from that experience you applied to your solo career?

I think it all happened afterwards, really. Not during that period of time, because afterwards we had to fend for ourselves. But, it was the first time that the do-it-yourself mentality was put into place. We didn’t even know what DIY was. I just ended up doing it because I wanted to get my music out there. I wanted to keep touring, to continue to create records. So, I did anything and everything I could to keep that happening. I learned a lot about the business, about promotions, marketing, and distribution. Basically, everything a label would do for an artist, I learned how to do it alongside my friends and we kept on pushing ahead. It was hard and also easy at the same time, because it was something I wanted to do. It certainly tired me out at one point in time. I was so disenchanted with music that I stopped and then I came back with a brand-new sort of outlook on it.

What does it mean to be at this juncture of your career and still be just as curious, and always mining for the next song, as ever?

That’s a good question, man. It’s really about the job and the task at hand. And the job is to document the human condition through my experiences. World domination is still on the back burner. [Laughs] As an artist, it’s about putting in the work and that work is really hard to do. It’s emotionally exhausting. It’s physically exhausting. But, at the end of the day, when you look at yourself in the mirror and think about it, “I’ve written these beautiful songs and they’ve brought beauty to people’s lives.” And these performances have brought beauty to both of our lives – not just theirs, but to mine. It’s a two-way street.

Where does that work ethic come from within you?

Maybe it’s the Jamaican side of me. [Laughs] It’s definitely a family thing. My family on both sides have worked so hard. My mom’s side of the family has sacrificed and worked so hard. And my dad’s side, who migrated [to Canada]. On my mom’s side, we were here to begin with. And my dad’s side, they came here with not a lot to go on, and discrimination and things like that. They worked their asses off and always told me I would have to work 150 percent harder than anybody else because of my background.

And have you?

From a very young age.

Do you find they were correct with that assessment?

Yeah, they’re still correct about that. And, I don’t really know how and when that’s going to change. There are more opportunities reported to people now that are minorities, but the reality of having to work that much harder is still a truism. That’s unfortunate. But, you know what? I dare to ask anybody from the minority to say that something hasn’t benefited them from that work ethic.

As you were trying to move forward after Staggered Crossing, you started this open mic at a bar in Danforth. Were you kind of circling back to where it all began and recalibrating things?

Yeah. I used to work at that same Irish pub in the Danforth. I was a bus boy and also a server. One day, some old guy came in and he was just so rude to me, so racist. And I thought to myself, “What am I doing? I’ve got to do something about this.” That was the catalyst that got me back into performing music. The proprietors of that establishment offered the open stage to me on that Monday to help me get going again. They’re some of the greatest friends I’ve got in this world. And it was funny because, after Staggered Crossing, I just couldn’t go on. I had tried so hard to “make it” and it was such an uphill battle. Pushing a boulder up a hill. I gave up and needed some time. And then when the open stage came back, it was a community thing. I rallied around people and they rallied around me. And it’s still a musical community out here in the city. It all comes down to community.

Why did you title the album Pathways?

Pathways felt like a journey. It’s been so long getting here, you know? I’ve got 12 studio records in my name and a couple of live records. I’ve toured extensively for the last 20 years. And this felt like a record that I needed to go inward, rather than outward. Some of my records are very contemplative of the outside world. And this one, I was contemplating my inside world – what was in my head, my heart and soul. Trying to battle through some of the things that go on in everyday life decisions and choices I’ve made. The pressure of the last two records and creating a new record was on me. I was feeling that and decided Pathways was a really good metaphor for where I was headed, where I’ve gone, where I’ve been. I’m not sure where it’s going to take me next, but it just felt like a nice walk in a cool breeze.

Since the 2020 shutdown, there’s been, thankfully, a lot more conversation in the music industry about mental health and physical wellness. Does that play into where you’re at right now?

It does, yeah. I think about it every day. It’s really hard to make it as a musician. And it’s really hard to be a human in this world. I’ll be the first to admit that I go through a lot of stuff in my head. I’ve never been diagnosed with a mental illness, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I have something. I feel it a lot, the pressure to keep making a living, so that I can keep a roof over my head and my family fed. I could walk away from music if I had to, but I don’t want to. I don’t know if that would make me happy or not.

But, when it comes to fiscal responsibility, that’s a lot of stress. And then, there’s the stress social media puts on us, where you get attacked for no reason by people who don’t even know you. Sure, there’s a lot of praise going on, but there’s a lot of the other stuff, too. And now everything’s sort of been put into the musician’s hands. It’s a bit of a mental dilemma. I’ve lost a lot of people this year and that was part of that as well. You know, it’s life. People think people in the public eye or musicians putting themselves out there have rhino skin and they’re superhuman — but we’re not.

Photo Credit: Robert Georgeff

You Gotta Hear This: New Music From Darin & Brooke Aldridge, Adam Chaffins, and more

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

We’re excited to kick off October with a mighty New Music Friday and our first edition of You Gotta Hear This for the month.

You’ve simply gotta check out new music videos from folks like Darin & Brooke Aldridge (who pay tribute to Byron Berline with a track featuring Vince Gill), Buffalo Wabs & the Price Hill Hustle (who’ve brought us a charming animated music video), Claire Hawkins (who wrote her selection, “Oh Daisy,” while living in France), and Rachel McIntyre Smith teams up with Janelle Arthur to premiere her Honeysuckle Friend Sessions with a live cover of “Strawberry Wine.”

Plus, Darren Nicholson premieres his bluegrass track, “Windows Have Pains,” and singer-songwriter, vocalist, and bassist Adam Chaffins feels capable of anything on “Little Bit At A Time.” Our longtime friends Jamie Drake and Justin Wade Tam have teamed up on a brand new single as well, entitled “Free.”

To wrap up, don’t miss our final Yamaha Session in our latest series with the brand. It features Jack Schneider performing his original song, “Don’t Look Down.”

It’s all right here on BGS and You’ve Gotta Hear This!

Darin & Brooke Aldridge, “A Million Memories (A Song For Byron)”

Artist: Darin & Brooke Aldridge
Hometown: Cherryville, North Carolina
Song: “A Million Memories (A Song For Byron)”
Album: Talk of The Town
Release Date: October 4, 2024 (video)
Label: Billy Blue Records

In Their Words: “We’ve all had people in our lives who have believed in us, loved us, taught us, and guided us, hoping that we could see in ourselves what they have always seen. It isn’t just about teaching and shaping someone, it’s about helping them discover what they can do from within themselves. For us, it is one of our greatest joys to invest time and encouragement to those who come behind us. It is one way to pay forward the gifts given to us from our own heroes and mentors, to help bring out the best in younger people in the same ways someone did for us.

“We were reminded of these truths the first time we heard ‘A Million Memories (A Song for Byron).’ It was written by our friend Vince Gill in honor of fiddler extraordinaire Byron Berline, who was one of Vince’s closest mentors and dearest friends. Byron invited a young Vince to play banjo and guitar in his band, Byron Berline and Sundance, in the late ’70s, and took the clearly talented Gill under his wing. They remained close until Byron’s death in 2021.

“We’re incredibly honored to share the music video for ‘A Million Memories (A Song for Byron).’ As the song is extra special to us, for the meaning behind it and having the chance to sing it with a special mentor and friend. We will always treasure this opportunity to make ‘A Million Memories.’ We hope the video brings back cherished memories to those that watch the video and hear this incredible song.” – Darin & Brooke Aldridge

Track Credits:
Darin Aldridge – Vocal, mandolin, guitar
Vince Gill – Vocal
Brooke Aldridge – Vocal
Mark Fain – Acoustic Bass
Stuart Duncan – Fiddle
Brent Rader – Percussion, piano

Video Credit: Produced and directed by Jenny Gill.

Buffalo Wabs & the Price Hill Hustle, “Vagabond’s Lament”

Artist: Buffalo Wabs & The Price Hill Hustle
Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio
Song: “Vagabond’s Lament”
Album: Buffalo Wabs & The Price Hill Hustle
Release Date: October 24, 2024

In Their Words: “‘Vagabond’s Lament’ is an homage to so many places we know so well. The personification of each location lets the song read as a lost-love song in a way, which is a fun take on the visuals the tune lays out for the audience. It’s also a fun one to play; upbeat rhythm and driving solos get the crowds moving.

“One thing this ‘Vagabond’s’ showcases for the group is our affinity for harmony. It’s a real throwback to the sounds I personally grew up with – rich, churchy voices, the breathy ritardando at the end of the tune followed by a four-part harmonic crescendo into the final phrase, and that driving stomp of a beat. This tune really wraps up so much of what we do into three and a half minutes.

“The song fits perfectly with the overall mood and atmosphere of the album; old-time influence with modern flair. It’s a toe-tapping number that could be a hundred years old if you heard it on AM radio, which fits our style nicely. It’s something that will appeal to folkies and bluegrassers alike.” – Casey Campbell, drummer, vocalist

Track Credits:
Produced and engineered by Alex Lusht at Mind Ignition Studios in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Mixed and mastered by Alex Lusht.
Bill Baldock – Bass, guitar, vocals, banjo
Scott Risner – Mandolin, vocals, banjo
Matt Wabnitz – Guitar, vocals
Casey Campbell – Drums, vocals

Video Credits: Animation by Evan Hand; Fiddle and final image by Alex Hand.

Adam Chaffins, “Little Bit At A Time”

Artist: Adam Chaffins
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee via Louisa, Kentucky
Song: “Little Bit At A Time”
Release Date: October 4, 2024

In Their Words: “I started writing ‘Little Bit at A Time’ with Adam Wright in the fall of 2020, socially distanced on my front porch on a chilly, rain-drizzled day. The song was pretty much finished, but we both felt it was missing some more truth. The next summer, I went on a trip to the Colorado Rockies with some new friends, and, on a whim, we decided to hike a 14,000-foot mountain before the sun came up. I still remember the surreal feeling of standing on that peak after scrambling over boulders and hiking for hours to get to the top. The air was so thin above the treeline and the surroundings felt otherworldly. It was one of the most emotionally jarring events of my life. On the steep hike back down, I felt as if I were leaving a trail of lies behind me with each step. I had just totally surpassed any physical feat I ever thought I was ever capable of, making a monumental truth out of a lifetime of lies I had told myself. I felt capable of anything. In the fall of 2021, I got married and found the truth in love. I now have some new perspectives in life and, perhaps, the missing pieces to that song about delayed gratification.” – Adam Chaffins

Jamie Drake & Justin Wade Tam, “Free”

Artist: Jamie Drake & Justin Wade Tam
Hometown: Los Angeles, California (Jamie Drake); Nashville, Tennessee (Justin Wade Tam)
Song: “Free”
Album: So Many Melodies
Release Date: October 4, 2024
Label: Soundly Music

In Their Words: “‘Free’ was written over a Zoom session in 2021 as pandemic restrictions were beginning to lift. We talked about how this historical time had affected us — how the idea of ‘connection’ had taken on a whole new meaning and how we as humans had become more disconnected from ourselves and from nature in the process. For most, the need to stay connected to technology had become imperative as well as required; a reality that continues today. Maintaining a healthy relationship with our screens is an extremely difficult balancing act. ‘Free’ is a bit of a wake up call to remind us to take a break when we feel the call, to get back into nature and live in a more balanced way, connected to each other in the present moment instead of the narrative on our screen.” – Jamie Drake & Justin Wade Tam

Track Credits:
Written by Jamie Drake and Justin Wade Tam.
Justin Wade Tam – Vocal, acoustic guitar
Jamie Drake – Vocals, acoustic guitar
Juan Solorzano – Electric guitars
Ross McReynolds – Drums
Alec Newnam – Bass
Produced, engineered, and mixed by Jordan Lehning.
Mastered by Casey Wood.
Additional engineering by Reid Sorel.

Claire Hawkins, “Oh Daisy”

Artist: Claire Hawkins
Hometown: New York City, New York
Song: “Oh Daisy”
Release Date: October 4, 2024 (video)

In Their Words: “‘Oh Daisy’ was one of the first songs I wrote during my time as an artist-in-residence in France. That time abroad really inspired me to think about my own hometown and what it means to identify as a New Yorker. In writing ‘Oh Daisy,’ I thought back to my earliest memories of wanderlust as a child growing up in New York City. Children see the world through such a different lens and it was interesting to explore how much my worldview has evolved, thanks to the time I’ve gotten to spend with different cultures around the world. When it came time to shoot the music video, I really wanted to capture a certain light-hearted free-spiritedness, but balance it with a feeling of internal conflict. Working with Meg, I think we were able to reflect the challenge of the comforts of home fighting against the curiosity that pulls us away from what we know.” – Claire Hawkins

Track Credits:
Written and performed by Claire Hawkins.
Produced by Hana Elion.

Video Credit: Directed and edited by Meg Mann.

Rachel McIntyre Smith & Janelle Arthur, “Strawberry Wine” (Honeysuckle Friend Sessions)

Artist: Rachel McIntyre Smith & Janelle Arthur
Hometown: Oliver Springs, Tennessee (both Rachel and Janelle)
Song: “Strawberry Wine” (Deana Carter cover)
Release Date: October 5, 2024

In Their Words: “The Honeysuckle Friend Sessions are a companion video series to go along with my latest EP, ‘Honeysuckle Friend.‘ In this series, I invite my friends who are talented musicians to cover a song with me. I was over the moon when Janelle Arthur said that she would join me for this series! Having the opportunity to sing with Janelle was such a cool experience because we are both from the same hometown (Oliver Springs, TN) and I have admired her and her artistry since I was really young. I grew up watching her perform, voting for her on ‘American Idol,‘ and listening to all her music. Her voice is incredible, and so is she. I love ‘Strawberry Wine’ by Deana Carter, so I was very happy when Janelle suggested it. I especially love the incredible riff that Janelle so effortlessly sings at the end of the song!“ – Rachel McIntyre Smith

“Rachel is so talented and dedicated to her craft. I was excited to collaborate and finally get to sing with my hometown girl! ‘Strawberry Wine‘ is such a classic and just felt like the right song to sing for this series.“ – Janelle Arthur

(Editor’s Note: Follow the Honeysuckle Friend Sessions series on Rachel McIntyre Smith’s YouTube Channel.)

Track Credits:
Written by Matraca Berg and Gary Harrison.

Video Credit: Filmed and edited by Rachel McIntyre Smith.

Darren Nicholson, “Windows Have Pains”

Artist: Darren Nicholson
Hometown: Haywood County, North Carolina
Song: “Windows Have Pains”
Release Date: October 4, 2024
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

In Their Words: “What can I say? I love sad songs. I have since I was a small child. In an odd way, sad songs bring me comfort and happiness. I’m drawn to things that evoke emotion. When I first heard these words as a kid, I loved them. I never forgot how the hook and spirit of the song impacted me as a listener. The song was originally written by Wes Buchanan and all these years later, Mark Bumgarner and myself got down and dirty and wrote an additional verse to complete the song for us. I love this one. If you like ole timey music and enjoy your hurtin’ – this one’s for you.” – Darren Nicholson

Track Credits:
Darren Nicholson – Mandolin, octave mandolin, lead vocal, harmony vocal
Tony Creasman – Drums
Kristin Scott Benson – Banjo
Zach Smith – Upright Bass
Deanie Richardson – Fiddle
David Johnson – Acoustic guitar, Dobro
Jennifer Nicholson – Harmony vocal

Yamaha Sessions: Jack Schneider, “Don’t Look Down”

Our latest series of Yamaha Sessions concludes with a final performance from guitarist, songwriter, and producer Jack Schneider. (Watch the full series of videos, which include performances by Trey Hensley as well, here.)

For his second Yamaha Session, Schneider picks up his Yamaha FS9 R acoustic guitar to perform “Don’t Look Down,” an original song from his 2022 album, Best Be On My Way. While the studio version features Schneider’s longtime friend, Liv Greene, the track certainly shines solo in this context, as well.

Gentle fingerstyle picking gives way to tender vocals, text painting a long-suffering image with an ultimately hopeful tinge. It’s a song about keeping your chin up, literally and figuratively. Written during the turmoil of the pandemic, the message in the lyrics is certainly not one of toxic positivity, making the moral within them even more resonant. It’s easy to tell Schneider is not just speaking to his listeners, but also to himself.

More here.

Photo Credit: Darin & Brooke Aldridge by Kim Brantley; Adam Chaffins by Natia Cinco.

Artist of the Month: Yasmin Williams

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

No one on earth plays the guitar like Yasmin Williams. When the BGS team was first introduced to her music – back a few years now, in 2017 or 2018, during our annual programming for our Shout & Shine diversity showcase – it was an objectively jaw-dropping discovery. We’ve covered many singular musicians, instrumentalists, and guitarists over the years on our site, but here was something completely and totally brand new. Then, in 2021, she wowed our BGS audience with her Shout & Shine livestream performance. From our staff to our followers, we were all hooked.

Immediately upon hearing Williams’ ethereal, otherworldly, and effortlessly charming guitar-centered compositions, it’s natural, reflexive even, to imagine how listeners may have first reacted to encountering Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s earth-stopping rock and roll, or Elizabeth Cotten’s unassuming backwards-and-upside-down guitar genius, or Jimi Hendrix’s showy shredding behind his head. There’s a jolt of electricity, a child-like wonder, and proper awe that each result from even the slightest encounter with Williams’ talents.

But, like those legends before her, this is not merely toxically masculine, performative, over-the-top “guitar culture” music. You can tell, from the first breath of tone from her instruments, that Williams is not now nor has ever been the guitarist trying to impress or outdo all of the AC/DC or Led Zeppelin rehearsers plucking through “Stairway to Heaven” at the local Guitar Center.

No, Williams’ approach to the instrument is totally brand new, too – and a remarkable breath of fresh air in a scene that is often derivative, competitive, exclusive, and rife with “Um, actually…” Instead of focusing her ambitions or goals entirely on the insular, inward-facing guitar world, Williams has demonstrated over two impeccable, critically-acclaimed albums – 2021’s Urban Driftwood and her first Nonesuch project, Acadia (out October 4) – that her community is far broader, richer, and truly incandescent.

Acadia builds on the rich and resplendent universe Williams built for Urban Driftwood – and has been cultivating for years, since her full length debut in 2018, Unwind. With a foundation centered on fingerstyle acoustic guitar with plenty of blues, bluegrass, flatpicking, and Americana infusions, Williams approaches the instrument as if a just-invented, novel machine; pedagogy, tradition, and technique are all present, but only ever in service of the melodies themselves – never as exercises in “correctness” or propriety. She’ll play with the guitar in her lap, tapping with both hands on the surface of the strings and fretboard. She’ll affix a kalimba to the face of the instrument and play both simultaneously. She quite literally turns her six-string (and her harp guitars, banjos, and more) on their ears, throwing all expectations and convention out the window.

There’s showmanship evident herein, of course, and a tinge of acrobatics, but these are merely knock-on effects and not the entire point. Instead, it seems Williams’ intention is to follow each and every tendril and tributary of her musical ideas to their natural conclusions, raising no barriers to herself in the process. Not even the barrier of the guitar itself. What even is a guitar, if you approach it from a unique perspective or through a fresh lens each time you pick it up? Williams shows us this common, everyday, century-spanning instrument can always find new sounds and styles.

Again, in contrast with “norms” in the guitar scene, Acadia is a testament to Williams’ community, as well. Her albums as yet never feel like guitar vanity projects, as the picker decidedly brings in so many facets of her musical and creative community to her music making. In just the first three singles from Acadia she taps an impressive array of featured artists, from Aoife O’Donovan to Darlingside to Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves. On prior releases, she’s recorded with the legendary Tommy Emmanuel, Taryn Wood, Dobrotto, and many more. Her approach to the instrument is singular, but it’s never solitary. Where other guitarists might prefer to leverage the instrument and their virtuosity to center themselves, Williams seems determined to do the opposite. The results are, as always, stunning.

Fingerstyle acoustic guitar is engaging and lovely music to begin with, but given her particular touch, her compositional voice, and her community collaborations, Yasmin Williams is showing roots music fans everywhere that even our most familiar instruments can be wellsprings of originality, inspiration, and joy. Acadia is a masterwork, and a perfect album to spotlight as we name Yasmin Williams our Artist of the Month. Enjoy our Essentials Playlist below to kick off the month and read our exclusive interview feature here. And, read an excellent op-ed on Williams written by buzzworthy viral guitarist and improviser Jackie Venson here. Plus, we’ll be dipping back into the BGS archives for all things Yasmin throughout October.

Photo Credit: Ebru Yildiz

BGS 5+5: Reckless Kelly

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Reckless Kelly
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Latest Album: The Last Frontier

(Editor’s Note: Answers supplied by Willy Braun.)

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

My favorite memory of being on stage is usually the last song at the Braun Brothers Reunion. We always close with a Bob Dylan song, “You Ain’t Going Nowhere.” It’s been a tradition for a long time and that’s always the end of our set. Reckless Kelly always closes Saturday night of the festival. We bring all of our artist friends out to do a big grand finale jam on that song. It’s always really fun, because it’s following a week of great times, great shows, great music, and people getting together having a ball. The crowd is always singing along with it. It’s just a good little crescendo to end the BBR every year. So that’s one of my top ten right there for sure.

What other art forms – literature, film, dance, painting, etc. – inform your music?

I get a lot of inspiration for songs from reading. Actually, I borrow lines from books and maybe story lines or direct quotes. Not sure if that’s considered stealing or not, but haven’t been sued yet; so that’s good. But no, I try to read a lot, especially when I am up in Idaho in the wintertime and I keep a notepad by the chair or by the fire where I’m reading. I’ll jot down lines that jump out at me or you know sometimes when you’re reading a story you’ll get an inspiration for a song. But yeah, I take a lot of inspiration from reading books.

Which elements of nature do you spend the most time with and how do those impact your work?

The nature element that inspired me the most is probably just being in the mountains up in Idaho. Kind of out in the middle of nowhere in the high desert. My place is pretty secluded, so I don’t have a lot of people stopping by, especially in the wintertime. I’m able to just kind of shut the phone off and do some writing. It’s just a great place to just sit and stare out the window at the mountains and just be inspired by the solitude and silence of it all. So I would say the mountains are my number one place to go and get away from it all.

Does pineapple really belong on pizza?

This is two questions rolled into one. First question being, “What’s the most random question you’ve been asked in an interview?” followed by, “Does pineapple belong on pizza?” I think that’s the most random thing I’ve been asked, so we’re going to answer it for you.

The answer is, yes, pineapple belongs on pizza. If you don’t think so, then you’re only fooling yourself, you’re trying to be cool, and trying to be a little more Italian than maybe you are. I can just tell you this from experience. When we have more than one pizza delivered to the bus and one of them contains pineapple, it’s the first one to go. Even though half the guys in the band claim they don’t like pineapple on their pizza, like it is some kind of abomination. So, I’ll take my pizza with pineapple, canadian bacon, and jalapeño, thank you very much. Preferably on thin crust and if you don’t like it, you can go back to Sicily.

If you didn’t work in music, what would you do instead?

If I didn’t work in music, I would probably be a carpenter. I’ve always liked building stuff. My grandpa was a carpenter; he taught me how to build stuff when I was a kid. I just enjoy creating things; whether it’s a coffee table, a cabin, a house, or a picture frame, whatever – if it’s made out of wood. It’s fun, I like to build stuff out of wood. I’m not much of a mechanic, but I can work with wood. Yeah, I’d be a woodworker/carpenter if this whole music thing doesn’t work out.

Photo Credit: Cassy Weyandt

MIXTAPE: Theo Kandel’s Dinner Party Playlist

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Welcome to my dinner party. It’s a potluck, of course, and because I can’t cook so well, I picked up a few cases of Miller High Life. Maybe a couple bottles of chilled red: delicious! Someone cooked an orzo salad, someone else made Ina Garten’s Engagement Chicken, maybe some tomato/mozz/basil type of dish – I don’t know. That’s up to you!

All my friends are here; some people even flew in from out of town. It’s the kind of night that you don’t want to make a big deal out of, but somehow someone’s crying happy tears over dessert and saying, “I can’t believe it’s been so long, why don’t we do this more often?” It’s the nights you took for granted in those early years after college, the ones that seemed to come together so easily, like a puzzle for children where all the pieces fit in such an obvious way. We fall into friendships; the hard part is keeping those friendships strong as we get older and move to different cities.

That tension exists at the heart of Eating & Drinking & Being in Love, my debut album that came out on September 20. It’s the tension of life, man! And that’s what makes it so beautiful. I hope you enjoy my Dinner Party Playlist – I’ve organized it into courses of a meal, highlighted as such for your digestion. – Theo Kandel

Appetizers:

“Sky Blue Sky” – Wilco

This is the easiest song of all time – you can listen to it when you’re sad, happy, angry, whatever. Breezy drums, melancholic lyrics. Welcome in!

“Honeydew Moon” – Theo Kandel

The first song on the album (not counting the intro), “Honeydew Moon” is for sunset cocktails, tasteful hors d’oeuvres, and saying, “How the hell are ya?” to friends you haven’t seen in a while.

“Fool” – Adrianne Lenker

Man, I love Adrianne Lenker. She is making beautiful music with thoughtful lyricism and melodies that float, but somehow still dig deep to scratch whatever itch you’ve got.

“Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard” – Paul Simon

Okay, things are ramping up here. People are getting loose – people are drinking – people are starting to think to themselves, “Jeez, I hope we get to eat the real food soon.”

Entrees:

“Magnet” – NRBQ

Uh oh! We’ve sat down at the table and this funky ass jam pops on. People are cheersing, laughing, digging in.

“Tall Boy” – Abby Webster

Country alert! We’re cracking fresh beers, and they’re ice cold, baby.

“The Dress” – Dijon

Somehow, this wistful song still bangs hard at a dinner party. Dijon makes you think about your past, but also the awesome night you’re about to have.

“One More Night (With My Friends in the City)” – Theo Kandel

This song is really my ode to this kind of dinner party. Who brought the pizza? Who brought the beer? In this crazy universe, we all did.

“All Right” – Christopher Cross

Did you know that Billie Eilish was the first person to sweep the “Big Four” categories at the GRAMMYs since Christopher Cross in 1981? Of course, his best song (in my opinion), “All Right,” was not on Sailing, but still. This guy rips.

“Rosanna” – Toto

I put on “Rosanna” at every party I’m at. It’s a song that requires no introduction – quite literally, the drum intro speaks for itself.

“Dancing Queen” – ABBA

Okay now! Someone put ABBA on the speakers and people are getting out of their seats to dance. Everyone has finished eating, and it took only that iconic piano sweep to get everyone up and at ’em.

Desserts:

“April Come She Will” – Simon & Garfunkel

Everyone’s sitting on the patio/balcony/fire escape, sipping on the rest of the red wine and smoking cigarettes. It’s winding down, but not in a sad way, just in the way that a beautiful night with friends does.

“Perdido de Amor [Lost in Love]” – Luis Bonfá

I wish I knew any Portuguese, but luckily you don’t need to know any to understand this song. It’s so viscerally romantic, with Bonfá’s gorgeous guitar playing supporting his voice. Yes.

“I Must Be in a Good Place Now – Live at Spacebomb Studios” – Fruit Bats, Vetiver

This live cover of Bobby Charles’ original song makes me feel like I could cry tears of joy every time I hear it (secret: I have). Everyone is sitting comfortably at the end of the night, just happy to be here. Hope you enjoyed the party.

Photo Credit: Kate Stephenson

You Gotta Hear This: New Music From Nefesh Mountain, Juliet Lloyd, and More

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Quality over quantity is sometimes what it’s all about. This week’s edition of our premiere round-up is small but mighty, with brand new tracks and videos from a stellar collection of roots musicians.

To kick us off, singer-songwriter Juliet Lloyd brings us a properly spooky video for her track, “Call Your Wife,” which was filmed at an abandoned amusement park in West Virginia. The song is about anger and shame, growth and change, running away and getting caught back up in it again, too. It’s an excellent lead in to spooky and scary season, that’s for sure.

Next, our friends Nefesh Mountain have a gorgeous new fall-tinged video for an original song, “Regrets In The Rearview,” that features an all-star lineup of bluegrass legends. It’s a paean to gratitude, to living life for the moment, and celebrates finding peace – and a home – in movement and change. We think it’s the perfect song to put on for your drive to the pumpkin patch or apple orchard.

To wrap us up, California roots duo Two Runner – made up of Paige Anderson and Emilie Rose – perform “Late Dinner” live from a cozy front porch. They combine old-time, bluegrass, Americana, folk, and more into their own exemplary sound, which highlights the slightly melancholy story just perfectly.

It’s an apropos musical triptych for fall, for golden hour, for sipping some hot cider or cozying up beneath a blanket as the autumn rain falls outside. And, you know what we think… You Gotta Hear This!

Juliet Lloyd, “Call Your Wife”

Artist: Juliet Lloyd
Hometown: Washington, D.C.
Song: “Call Your Wife”
Album: Carnival
Release Date: October 25, 2024

In Their Words: “It’s funny to me that the most carnival-sounding song on the entire album is not the title track – it’s this one. ‘Call Your Wife’ was inspired by an anonymous text message that I got in the middle of the night. I had released another single from the album, ‘Pretty,’ a few weeks before, and it was a really personal song that parsed through my complicated feelings about an old relationship that I’ve mostly run from in the 20 years since. The text message said I wasn’t being fair to the guy in the song– and all of a sudden I was 18 again, feeling afraid and ashamed. And then I got angry.

“Todd Wright (who co-wrote and produced) and I managed to channel those feelings into a track that goes to a really unexpected place. It starts sweetly threatening and builds to a really satisfying, vengeful final chorus. I love the unhinged banjo and bass lines that kick in in the second verse. After we finished the track, I knew I wanted a video to match the vibe. The song and video for me are really about using art to process, to heal, and to connect with anyone else who has ever felt like they couldn’t speak up and confront their gaslighters and abusers.” – Juliet Lloyd

Track Credits:
Written by Juliet Lloyd & Todd Wright.

Video Credits: Produced by Mind in Motion.
Directed by Joshua Land and Victor Fink.
Featuring Todd Wright and Steve Quintilian.
Colleen Laffey, Zachary Buckley, Abigail Sussman – Production assistants
Shot at Lake Shawnee Abandoned Amusement Park in Rock, West Virginia.

Nefesh Mountain, “Regrets In The Rearview”

Artist: Nefesh Mountain
Hometown: New York, New York
Song: “Regrets In The Rearview”
Album: Beacons
Release Date: September 25, 2024 (single); January 2025 (album)
Label: Eden Sky Records

In Their Words: “We’ve spent the last number of years on the road, getting the band out there as much as possible, all with our now 3-year-old daughter, Willow! Needless to say, it can be hard to balance touring with writing sometimes, but when we finally sat down in early 2024 to write new material, dozens of songs just poured out of us. We spent those early months feverishly creating, composing, and refining our vision and voice for this next iteration of the band. The result of this musical alchemy is Beacons; our new double LP containing eight Americana songs with our electric band on disc one, and 10 more on the bluegrass-oriented disc two.

“We feel eternally grateful and beyond lucky to have become close with our heroes over the years and while our own band makes up much of the two discs, we also called on our friends Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Stuart Duncan, Rob McCoury and Mark Schatz to bring this song to life! This particular song also marks an incredibly special first for us – our older daughter Millie is on it, beautifully singing the third part in the chorus and duetting with mom on verse four.” – Eric Lindberg

“‘Regrets In The Rearview’ kicks off the bluegrass half of Beacons and is a tune all about gratitude and living in the moment. It’s our own personal reminder to stay present and keep moving forward instead of dwelling too much on the past. It’s about finding some peace with the struggles we have, and we wanted to channel the blissful freedom we feel when we’re out there hitting the road.” – Doni Zasloff

Track Credits:
Written by Eric Lindberg and Doni Zasloff.
Doni Zasloff – Vocals
Eric Lindberg – Vocals, guitar
Stuart Duncan – Fiddle
Jerry Douglas – Dobro
Sam Bush – Mandolin
Rob McCoury – Banjo
Mark Schatz – Bass

Video Credits:
Shot in and around the communities surrounding Woodstock, New York.
Directed and conceptualized by Lindberg and Zasloff along with Rafael Roy & Kelin Verrette with All Solid Things.

Two Runner, “Late Dinner”

Artist: Two Runner
Hometown: Nevada City, California
Song: “Late Dinner”
Album: Late Dinner
Release Date: September 13, 2024
Label: Gar Hole Records

In Their Words: “‘Late Dinner’ is a song for all the people who have been ghosted and let down. That feeling of yearning for the perfect relationship dinner where everything feels glowy-warm amongst the candle light. I was cheated on/ghosted in a somewhat new relationship and cooked dinner that night yearning for the person to be there and wishing things were different. This song is a reminiscence about that time and hopefully relates to those who have made the ‘late dinner’ without the person ever showing up.” – Two Runner, Paige Anderson and Emilie Rose

Track Credits: Written by Paige Anderson.
Performed by Paige Anderson and Emilie Rose.
Video Credits: Filmed, recorded, mixed, and edited by Nick Futch.

Photo Credit: Nefesh Mountain by Rafael Roy & Kelin Verrette; Juliet Lloyd by Anna Haas.