Artist:Colby T. Helms Hometown: Boones Mill, Virginia Song: “Mountain Brandy” Album:Tales of Misfortune Release Date: January 19, 2024 Label: Photo Finish Records
In Their Words: “I am delighted my original song ‘Mountain Brandy’ is being featured on BGS. This song has been a local fan favorite for years. I wrote the song when I was 16 as a response to seeing my way of life disappearing around me. As a Franklin County, Virginia native, moonshine history and culture have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. Over the years, family and friends have passed on, leaving behind a legacy and culture that I plan to keep alive. I wrote this song in honor of the culture, tradition, and landscape that has inspired me to pursue my passions. I hope that the fans of BGS identify with this tune and cherish it the way I have.” – Colby T. Helms
Track Credits: Written by Colby T. Helms. Produced by Billy Hurt. Mixed by Jason Richmond. Mastered by Kim Rosen.
Photo Credit: Guadalupe Bustos Video Credit: Video Director – Mike Mazza Director of Photography – Christian Kline Video Producer – Mike Mazza Editor – Mike Mazza
Vivian Leva and Riley Calcagno, known as Viv & Riley, dive deep into the nuances of old-time music, their folk influences, and the process behind their album, Imaginary People. The duo, who met at a music camp in Port Townsend, Washington, trace their roots from Riley’s disciplined musical practice to Viv’s intuitive approach. The two found inspiration from growing up in the Seattle area listening to KEXP to living in Portland, Oregon, to their current home in Durham, North Carolina. Drawing on their experiences at fiddlers conventions and music camps, Viv & Riley reflect on the transformative power of collaboration and the vibrant community that has shaped their unique sound in their duo as well as their other band, The Onlies.
As they share insights into their songwriting process, the episode unravels the intricate layers of Imaginary People, delving into the harmonious blend of indie roots and experimental production that defines their latest release. With a nod to their eclectic influences, including the supportive atmosphere of Durham, North Carolina, the duo discusses the evolution of their sound under the guidance of producer Alex Bingham from Hiss Golden Messenger, who produced their latest album.
Artist:Clay Parker & Jodi James Hometown: Baton Rouge, Louisiana Album:Your Very Own Dream Release Date: January 19, 2024
In Their Words: “We set out to make this record in early 2020, but things got a bit trivial then. However, we came out of the pandemic with some new ideas on how to approach these songs. Exploring the dynamics of two electric guitars sitting together against starkness was an exciting exploration for us and capturing that became our new focus. As for the songs, we didn’t really lean on any notions of genre; the stories themselves aren’t strictly linear. There are moments of bitter tenderness and some of flat-out absurdity – these songs are from those crossroads. Your Very Own Dream is equal parts plaintive folk existentialism, blue-note bluster, prairie-fire idealism, and fever dream ballad. It’s a raw representation of us searching for and finding a new sound.” – Clay Parker & Jodi James
Artist:The Glass Hours Hometown: Red Hook, New York Song: “Same Old You” Album:The Glass Hours Release Date: March 1, 2024 Label: Cornelius Chapel Records
In Their Words: “‘Same Old You’ started out as a straightforward observation of how hard it can be to change, even when we keep hitting the same proverbial wall. It then evolved into a diary of sorts about life on the road as a musician. As is often the case, the monetary yield of creativity turns out to be much slimmer than the soul yield. But in the end, we make art because we’re called to the process, and that’s really the spirit of the album.” – Megan Barbera
“Touring has always been pretty rough. Surprise. We used to stay at campgrounds to keep the money in the gas tank. There was always something so beautiful and romantic about that and about the lies we tell ourselves to justify keeping on with it. Reminds me of a line by Oberst about some sad singers playing tragic. But that doesn’t make it any less true.” – Brad Armstrong
Artist: Jaimee Harris Hometown: Born in Nacogdoches, Texas; Raised in Hewitt, Texas; Living in Nashville, Tennessee Song: “Orange Avenue”
In Their Words: “My partner, Mary Gauthier, was given an incredible writing residency in Key West for the entire month of January 2022. We often tour together, so I decided I’d take the time of solitude to search for songs. I started my search in the panhandle of Florida and spent a month driving down to Key West. Every two to three days I traveled to a different town, collected stories, visited fascinating museums, explored the variety of Florida’s natural beauty, and wrote a song in every town I visited.
“I did not plan to stop by Pulse Nightclub, but I found myself there alone at night. The first thing that struck me about Pulse was its location. I imagined it would be located in a nightlife district, but that is not the case. I was surprised to find it standing at the end of Orange Avenue, across from a Dunkin’ Donuts – the only two businesses on a street lined with houses. Pulse was a queer-friendly club, but it was also a neighborhood bar. The entry age was 18, so there were plenty of teenagers who hung out at Pulse simply because it was a friendly place where they could dance without having to be 21 to enter.
“The second thing that struck me was a plaque that listed 48 names of those who were killed on June 12, 2016. The third thing I noticed was a block of text that read, ‘We honor the 49 angel birthdays by placing angel wings next to their name. You are always in our hearts.’ If there were 49 killed, then why were only 48 names listed? I then noticed a plaque that said, ‘Out of respect for the family’s wishes, a victim’s name has been kept private.’
“I was curious about why that was and so I did some research. What I discovered was that the family of one male victim did not know he was gay until he was murdered at Pulse. The man’s family did not want to collect his body. This is why officials in Orlando felt it was important to emphasize to the world that this, up until that point, the highest casualty mass shooting in America was a hate crime targeting the LGBTQ+ community.
“I tried not to write ‘Orange Avenue.’ I tried to run away from it. But the song kept nagging at me. The original version of this song was sung from my perspective, but I felt it wasn’t quite right. I tried a lot of other narrative perspectives until I landed on the one that made me cry the hardest: the unnamed, unclaimed man.
“I have only played ‘Orange Avenue’ in public three times. In July 2023 at the Woody Guthrie Folk Festival in Okemah, OK, in September 2023 at the Americana Proud showcase hosted by Autumn Nicholas, and for this Pilot Moon Films taping.
“I am so grateful that Pilot Moon Films invited me to participate in this incredible From One, to Tenn. series. Because Pilot Moon Films was so generous with their time and talent, I felt deeply that I should use this gift as an opportunity to share this man’s story.” – Jaimee Harris
Video Credits: Filmed by David Allison, John DeMaio, and Joel Malizia, Pilot Moon Films / Islander Entertainment Audio captured – Brett Blandon Mixed/Mastered – John Kelly Special thanks to Helene Cronin & Victoria O’Campo
Photo Credit: Video stills courtesy of Pilot Moon Films
(Editor’s Note: New for BGS in 2024, each week we’ll share a round up of the best premieres, videos, tracks, and releases from the world of roots music. Welcome to our inaugural edition!)
2024 is off to a roaring start, with exciting single and album releases already stacking up at merely two “new music Fridays” down and fifty to go! This week, BGS readers have enjoyed premieres from artists like The Earls of Leicester performing for a special Behind the Walls session at Newport Folk Festival; Jim Kweskin in a gorgeous duet with his daughter, Fiona; Alice Di Micele covering Tom Petty; a special Out Now video premiere by Lila Blue; and more.
Below, enjoy exclusive premieres you gotta hear from in-demand, veteran bluegrass outfit the Grascals and Portland alt-folk songwriter Eddie Berman, plus we’ll take you back through the entire week of premieres from BGS.
For more new music this fine Friday, don’t forget about the BGS Class of 2024 playlist! We update it every week with new songs just like these.
The Grascals, “Just Let Me Know”
Artist:The Grascals Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee Song: “Just Let Me Know” Release Date: January 12, 2024 Label: Mountain Home Music Company
In Their Words: “When Jamie [Johnson] brought us ‘Just Let Me Know,’ we immediately knew we wanted to record it and thought it would be perfect for John [Bryan] to sing. It’s really nice to hear a hopeful and positive love song! The peace that comes knowing that you’ll always be someone’s #1 is one thing that gives us stability in a crazy world and we all need the assurance of having a steady, patient commitment in relationships. That’s what this song is all about to me.” – Kristin Scott Benson, banjo
“‘Just Let Me Know’ is really a song about being best friends with the person you fall in love with. I’m a hopeless romantic — more hopeless than romantic — but nonetheless. The Grascals have once again come with the stellar music and vocals and put this over the top for me!” – Darren Nicholson, song co-writer
Eddie Berman, “Anymore”
Artist:Eddie Berman Hometown: Portland, Oregon Song: “Anymore” Album:Signal Fire Release Date: January 19, 2024 Label: Nettwerk Music Group
In Their Words: “I write these songs semi-stream-of-consciously, so I sometimes have to unpack them a bit myself. I think ‘Anymore’ is from the point of view of someone teetering right on the edge. There’s an unmoored, demented feeling from living in the world today, wading through headlines, 10-second clips, and AI-generated articles. I suppose this song is from my (maybe heightened) perspective of not knowing if I’m seeing things with a kind of terrifying clarity or if I’m utterly delusional. It’s like the line from the famous Yeats poem, ‘The Second Coming:’ ‘The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.’ And I’m not really sure which camp I’m in at times.
“Musically, the song started with this Mississippi John Hurt fingerpicking part, and then it really came together with my bandmates. Chris Wabich pulled out this big Celtic hand-drum tambourine thing, and combined with Gabe Davis’ bowed double bass and Gabe Feenberg’s lap steel, the song took on this sort of haunting, mystical feel. We made this whole album totally live during a bizarre, torrential LA rainstorm. It was an especially great vibe for recording this song.” – Eddie Berman
Alice Di Micele, “Square One”
Artist: Alice Di Micele Song: “Square One”
In Their Words: “I’ve been enamored by Tom Petty’s songwriting for most of my life. The depth and diversity of his catalog is inspiring. Back in 2018, shortly after his passing, my co-producer Bret Levick and I formed a tribute band called Petty Thievery. It has been really fun to rock out to his songs and it gave me a new outlet for playing and singing. I absolutely love being a singer-songwriter, but it’s fun to wear a different hat now and again. I chose this mellower tune for my record, because I was driving home from tour with my drummer the first time I heard it and I had to hit replay six or seven times. I went home and learned it. The theme of starting over really struck a chord in me.” – Alice Di Micele
Artist:Jim Kweskin Song: “You’re Just In Love” (featuring Fiona Kweskin)
In Their Words: “‘You’re Just In Love’ was written by Irving Berlin, who wrote it for the 1950 Broadway musical Call Me Madam. It’s been recorded many times, but never like this – we do it almost as a folk song. I love the counterpoint, the two different words, and the melodies going on at the same time. Irving Berlin, of course, is a famous American popular music composer. He’s written songs that everybody knows, like ‘God Bless America’ and ‘White Christmas,’ but in fact, he wrote hundreds of hit songs for Broadway musicals, movies, and pop records. He’s one of my favorite composers. And for me, what could be better than a grandfather singing to his granddaughter about what it feels like to be in love?” – Jim Kweskin
In Their Words: “‘Sewing the Same Seam’ is an uptempo existential crisis. Like many songs on No Such Thing as Forever, it indulges in a bit of fatalism while also worrying that I’m capable of more than I admit. I’m a sucker for worst-case scenarios —maybe things won’t get better and not everything turns out alright. And when I linger on those thoughts, it gets easier to convince myself I know what I’m talking about instead. This live take was filmed at a house in Juneau that often hosts songwriters, with the same band that plays on the record.” – Josh Fortenbery
In Their Words: “There’s a wonderful tension running through the songs on this album that marks a monumental faultline in my life. I wrote half the songs before I met and fell in love with my now-wife Lauren, and the rest in direct response to that life event – trying to make sense of how I got so lucky (see: ‘Mercury Sable’ and ‘First Song for Lauren’).
“‘Clarkston Pasture’ was definitely in the former batch. It’s a dead-of-winter, lonesome-as-hell sort of song, where bachelorhood had lost its luster and I was fantasizing about a brighter future full of love and purpose. That’s why the verses are set in these dismally frigid, Michigan-winter landscapes: Cheering on a bar fight, turning off the furnace so as not to waste the warmth on just myself. Then the choruses flash to the glory of a Michigan summer – cruising through the towns on the Northern edge of metro Detroit where the subdivisions start to dwindle and the fields start to open up. There aren’t many diametric opposites as stark as a Michigan winter and a Michigan summer, and that polarity turned out to be the perfect metaphor for how love changed my world.” – Matthew Milia
In Their Words: “The song ‘Rollin’ in My Sweet Baby’s Arms’ has long been a staple in the bluegrass canon. It’s a good, hard driving song about traveling and returning home to the one you love. Down to the details of some of the family members’ occupations. Also there is a slight Romeo and Juliet effect in the line, ‘I know your parents don’t like me.’ Flatt & Scruggs probably had the best version, but it’s a crowd pleaser and works in any situation.” – Jerry Douglas
Artist:Beta Radio Song: “This One’s Going to Hurt”
In Their Words: “This is the first song we’ve ever co-written with someone (Henry Brill) and I would’ve never written this song on my own. The main line is so direct and I think a lot of my songwriting is dancing around an idea versus saying it plainly. This time, for this song in particular, it felt more appropriate to be clear and to the point about the message.
“It’s mainly a song about reckoning and about realizing that you can’t stand on a fence for so long. The first line, ‘Unrolling on the road,’ is an idea that expands on that feeling, of being away from your own center, out on the edges of your known reality, on the periphery and not at home.
“‘This One’s Going To Hurt’ is about letting something that’s been making you sick die. Because whenever something dies, then there’s space for something else to be born. But knowing that in that process, suffering and pain will be your companions.
“There are also themes of traveling, which was a big part of writing the record and a big part of my life in general at the time. I did a lot of moving around from place to place.” – Beta Radio
In Their Words:“I first heard ‘Roll On John’ on an old Mike Seeger recording called Southern Banjo Sounds. His rendition is haunting yet enchanting, like a lot of old-time music. One of the most rewarding parts of playing in Charm City Junction is how each band member brings their own unique approach to roots music. When we first started playing together nearly 10 years ago, we essentially said, ‘Heck with the genre boundaries! Let’s play music we enjoy playing and see where it goes.’ It’s not quite old-time, it’s not quite bluegrass, it’s not quite Irish music. In a sense, it’s all of those, but none of those. We like it that way.
“Fun fact, this performance was captured live in a restored grist mill barn in Baltimore County, just a few miles from where our fiddler, Patrick McAvinue, grew up.” – Brad Kolodner, banjo
In Their Words: “I wrote ‘Stranger’ in the green room 15 minutes before going on as an opener for Kevin Bacon’s band in Lincoln, Nebraska on Father’s Day in 2018 – which sounds like a fever dream when I write it out. Being in the midwest with the Bacon Brothers led to me ingesting a lot of country and folk music on the road and left me with a deep craving to write a tried and true country-folk tune. I wrote it a cappella, and then found the instrumentation a week or so later.
“When I wrote it, I thought I was singing it to an ‘other,’ a figment of someone I hoped could love me and see me. Now looking back, it feels like a letter from my closeted 18 year-old self to who I am now: Still ashamed of so much of themselves, trying to write to the stranger they craved to become. It makes me endlessly happy to sing this song to them every chance I get from the proudly queer, and deeply loved self I am now.
“The video we got to film in Nashville felt like such a beautiful close to the chapter of bringing ‘Stranger’ to the world. With the small and scrappy team at MOXE, and the amazing Elizabeth Olmstead, I feel we got to showcase what that song is about for me; the music and the words, and the creative lineage that got me there. Myself and long-time collaborators Saskia Lane and Phillip Roebuck got to play through ‘Stranger’ on the beautiful land that MOXE is built on. I got to gaze at the studio in the distance as we sang through a song that means the world to me; I couldn’t have asked for more.” – Lila Blue
(Editor’s Note: Don’t miss the exclusive premiere of Lila Blue’s new video, “Stranger,” as part of this edition of Out Now. Watch below.)
Lila Blue writes songs with angst, tender love, detailed guitar lines, descriptive lyrics, and witchy energy. Their lyrics pull you into scenes and stories. They sing with great variation, Lila’s vocals are sometimes harsh, like aggressive growling and howling, while at other times they’re a soft and soothing sound. Their craftsmanship is top-tier; their story lines are intricate and engaging. Lila has been working with several of their collaborators since they were a child, developing strong and meaningful relationships. That kind of connection, understanding, and growth creates the perfect grounds for a cohesive sound.
I’m honored to feature this phenomenal artist. I think you’ll find their sound to be engaging, creative, and distinctive. I hope you enjoy Lila’s music as much as I do.
Do you create music primarily for yourself or for others?
Lila Blue: My creative process has become so tied to performing for others that I’m actually not sure anymore. I think before anything else, I make music because I love what storytelling can do. My first love was the written word, and as a sensitive and frequently-overwhelmed individual, it’s been there for me at every turn. I know that I would still write songs even if I never got to play them for anyone again, but I love watching what stories can do to those they touch and how deliciously unreliable they can be to make and ingest.
What is your greatest fear?
I kid you not, my greatest fear is steep inclines that have unsteady ground. If you ever want to catapult me into a state of pure horror (which as I write this down I realize I’m giving any future foe the ability to undo me…), put me on a hill with loose gravel, a sandy bluff, or even a shaky pair of stairs and my nervous system is toast. I fell down a bluff when I was a kid and it’s been ingrained in me since to avoid shifty ground.
What is your current state of mind?
It’s the final day of 2023 as I’m writing this, so I’m feeling more quiet and reflective than usual. There’s been so much pain this year, personally and globally, and I think I’m trying to hold reverence for the grief that comes with that, while also uplifting joy and mindful action whenever I can.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?
I had a poetry teacher in college, Marie Howe. In our first class, she made it very clear that if we didn’t know an answer and pretended to, we would be missing the entire point of being a student and a person. I have pretended to know many things that I don’t for fear of missing out or being deemed less smart because of it. Having someone give me the permission to let that go – and illuminate how much I was actually missing out on in doing so – is something I’ve reflected on time and time again.
For anyone reading this who might not be out of the closet, were there any specific people, musicians, or resources that helped you find yourself as a queer individual?
I grew up on the Indigo Girls and Brandi Carlile and those folks held out a light for me in their songs to feel seen, to have the thought, “Oh, I can do this as a calling and be vocal about who I am and who I love.” I got to share that with Brandi this year, which absolutely knocked my socks off in the most full-circle way.
I also had a middle school music teacher, Rachel Garlin, who was a proud lesbian folk musician and a huge support in my life at that time. Being in the presence of her living her life happily, full of queer love and music, woke something up in me around how I dreamt about my own future [and that it] was a possible reality. Reading Zami by Audre Lorde in high school was also a big turning point for me and what’s been beautiful about coming out and continuing to grow is that I realized the questioning doesn’t have to end at the point when the closet door opens – we all deserve to have a lifetime of discoveries! I felt that when I found Adrianne Lenker’s work or when I recently read The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson.
What does it mean to you to be an LGBTQ+ musician?
I had a hard time answering this, as there’s so many paths to choose with a question so wonderfully vast. I don’t know how it would feel to not have who I am and who I love intertwined with the art I make, they feel inextricable to me and because of that, I have a hard time pinpointing what it exactly means to me that they intersect. What I do know is that uplifting queer and trans stories that make myself and my community feel desired, honored, seen and held is what I feel called to do with my life, and each time I get to do so and share it with the world, it feels holy to me.
What are your release and touring plans for the next year?
We’ll be releasing two videos for “Stranger” [watch above] and “I Met the Devil,” and a music video for “High on a Hill,” as well as dropping the new merch and vinyl available on my Bandcamp page. I’m planning to tour with my friend and dear collaborator NOGA in the spring, am continuing development on an original musical in February, and in the meantime will be consistently playing shows in NYC starting in mid-January!
Can you tell us a bit about the new video for “Stranger?” We’re so excited to be premiering it within this interview.
I wrote “Stranger” in the green room 15 minutes before going on as an opener for Kevin Bacon’s band in Lincoln, Nebraska, on Father’s Day in 2018 – which sounds like a fever dream when I write it out. Being in the midwest with the Bacon Brothers led to me ingesting a lot of country and folk music on the road and left me with a deep craving to write a tried and true country-folk tune. I wrote it a cappella, and then found the instrumentation a week or so later.
When I wrote it, I thought I was singing it to an “other,” a figment of someone I hoped could love me and see me. Now looking back, it feels like a letter from my closeted 18 year-old self to who I am now: Still ashamed of so much of themselves, trying to write to the stranger they craved to become. It makes me endlessly happy to sing this song to them every chance I get from the proudly queer, and deeply loved self I am now.
The video we got to film in Nashville felt like such a beautiful close to the chapter of bringing “Stranger” to the world. With the small and scrappy team at MOXE, and the amazing Elizabeth Olmstead, I feel we got to showcase what that song is about for me; the music and the words, and the creative lineage that got me there. Myself and long-time collaborators Saskia Lane and Phillip Roebuck got to play through “Stranger” on the beautiful land that MOXE is built on. I got to gaze at the studio in the distance as we sang through a song that means the world to me; I couldn’t have asked for more.
Like you mentioned, you’ve been working with some of your team members and bandmates for over a decade. Could you share that process of growing alongside folks you’ve been working with for years?
I was on a flight the other month with Saskia Lane and Phillip Roebuck (who were the first people I learned how to write songs from) and while the two of them were snoozing, I looked over and had a deep, reflective moment on how lucky I am to be able to collaborate with those who are part of my direct creative lineage. The folks who I made Sweet Pea with literally taught me how to play music, taught me how to be a musician’s musician, and I wouldn’t be the artist and human I am today without them. These songs wouldn’t have bloomed the way they did without Saskia Lane, Phillip Roebuck, Ashley Frith, Gabriel Ebert and Damon Daunno, and Kat Cook’s presence in my life.
You have a distinctive witchy-folk sound. How did you develop your sound and style?
Music has always been a ritualistic and spiritual space for me. As a kid, I was surrounded by folks and relatives who practiced witchcraft and around then I started writing songs in my sleep. Looking back, I wonder if that’s when I was least vigilant to certain turmoils I was going through, but I like to “yes and” when it comes to the rational and the mystic!
From the jump, what’s come out of me is tied to the lineage of folk music and those that taught it to me at the Lake Lucille Project, an artistic commune I’ve been a member of since I was eight years old. Learning to meld my practices of ritual and channeling, with the muscles I’ve built over the years in studying writing and music, has let me feel like I’m not powerless to what comes through me; I think if anything from here things will only get witchier.
Your music plays with intense variation in tempo and dynamics. Some of your songs whisper while others growl. This contrast creates engaging collections of songs. What is it like for you to write with so much diversity in sound?
Thank you for noticing that. I’ve always been really drawn to artists whose bodies of work are full of contradictions. A few months ago, someone asked me what I like most about music. It took me a moment to articulate it properly, but as someone who’s faced a fair share of trauma in my life, with that has come a distortion and “fossilizing” of time. I felt really trapped by my memories and through that felt trapped by time itself. But with music, I found that I could suspend time in the way my trauma did, but not from a foundation of harm. A good song can do that for someone – at least it does that for me. I figured out that for me to keep that suspension going, I needed to make music that felt surprising and dynamic to my ear.
You recently released your fourth album, Sweet Pea. Is there anything you’d like to share with our audience about the new album?
I’ve been so lucky to experiment with every record I’ve done and explore the current themes I felt drawn to at that time. When my producer Jordan Brooke Hamlin and I began to meet and discuss what this record would be about, I realized that I wanted to make a project where if someone asked me who I was when no one was looking at me, I could hand them a piece of music and show them. This is that record for me. If you listen to it, it will tell you all you need to know about me, and it wouldn’t have become that without the amazing crew at MOXE and my bandmates, some of whom have been my collaborators the past 12 years.
Photo Credit: Frank Theodore
“Stranger” Video Credits: Recorded at MOXE in Nashville, TN. Produced by Lila Blue & MOXE.
Elizabeth Olmstead – Direction, cinematography, & editing Lila Blue – Acoustic guitar & vocals Phillip Roebuck – Resonator guitar & percussion Saskia Lane – Upright bass
Special thanks to Jordan Brooke Hamlin, Lake Wilkinson, Kat Cook, & the MOXE crew.
Rachael Kilgour unravels the layers of her late father on the album, My Father Loved Me. Recorded in the cold of Toronto and produced by Rose Cousins (who also joins us for this conversation), this album carries the essence of Canadian roots and is a profound exploration of family heritage through the lens of an ordinary, hard working, and humble man who died in 2017. Duluth-born Rachael, and Rose, based in Halifax, reflect on their cold weather experiences, infusing the recording process with warmth despite the chilly Canadian setting.
The core of our discussion revolves around Rachael’s deep emotional connection to the album, particularly her poignant exploration of the father-daughter relationship amidst the challenges of dementia. We navigate the themes of grief, death, and identity while learning about Rachael’s father, his impact, and how he continues to live on through Rachael’s personality and idiosyncrasies. They shared the struggle of anxiety and self-doubt, which the songwriter addresses on the album. We also get a look into Rose’s perspective on Rachael’s growth and the impact the vulnerable creative process has had on her songwriting. And then, we wrap it all up with a very fun Dad-themed lightning round.
(Editor’s Note: Enjoy this exclusive video premiere from the team at Newport Folk Festival and their Behind the Walls series, featuring a performance of Flatt & Scruggs’ version of “Rollin’ in My Sweet Baby’s Arms” by award-winning Flatt & Scruggs bluegrass tribute band, the Earls of Leicester.)
Artist:The Earls of Leicester Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee Song: “Rollin’ in My Sweet Baby’s Arms”
In Their Words: “The song ‘Rollin’ in My Sweet Baby’s Arms’ has long been a staple in the bluegrass canon. It’s a good, hard driving song about traveling and returning home to the one you love. Down to the details of some of the family members’ occupations. Also there is a slight Romeo and Juliet effect in the line, “I know your parents don’t like me.” Flatt & Scruggs probably had the best version, but it’s a crowd pleaser and works in any situation.” – Jerry Douglas
“The Earls Of Leicester are living embodiments of the traditions of bluegrass that have graced our stages for over 60 years. We’re grateful that they recorded a backstage Behind The Walls session with us at last year’s Newport Folk Festival. And big thanks to The Bluegrass Situation for sharing it far and wide.” – Christopher Capotosto, producer, Newport Folk Festival
Artist:Frontier Ruckus Hometown: Detroit, Michigan Song: “Clarkston Pasture” Album:On the Northline Release Date: February 16, 2024 Label: Loose Music
In Their Words: “There’s a wonderful tension running through the songs on this album that marks a monumental faultline in my life. I wrote half the songs before I met and fell in love with my now-wife Lauren, and the rest in direct response to that life event – trying to make sense of how I got so lucky (see: “Mercury Sable” and “First Song for Lauren”).
“‘Clarkston Pasture’ was definitely in the former batch. It’s a dead-of-winter, lonesome-as-hell sort of song, where bachelorhood had lost its luster and I was fantasizing about a brighter future full of love and purpose. That’s why the verses are set in these dismally frigid, Michigan-winter landscapes: Cheering on a bar fight, turning off the furnace so as not to waste the warmth on just myself. Then the choruses flash to the glory of a Michigan summer – cruising through the towns on the northern edge of metro Detroit where the subdivisions start to dwindle and the fields start to open up. There aren’t many diametric opposites as stark as a Michigan winter and a Michigan summer, and that polarity turned out to be the perfect metaphor for how love changed my world.” – Matthew Milia
Photo Credit: John Mark Hanson
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