Tag: Folk

With ‘Do You Recall’ Dori Freeman Demonstrates Appalachia is Not a Monolith

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

One of the most stunning and enjoyable albums of 2023 was released in mid-November by Galax, Virginia-based singer-songwriter Dori Freeman. Entitled, Do You Recall, it’s a vibrant and energetic collection of eleven original songs that also feel cozy and down home, like a back porch jam or guitar pull – there’s a buzz in the air, but no overhanging urgency. It’s pure fun, but it’s also earnest and, at times, devastating.

That homey sense, pervasive and enveloping on Do You Recall, is thanks in no small part to Freeman and producer, her husband, drummer Nicholas Falk, having tracked the entire album in their backyard studio. But these tracks don’t feel antiquated or pastoral, and they certainly do not evoke a revisionist, white-washed, or sanitized rural ideal. There’s no preaching or authenticity signaling undergirding these songs, they’re simply genuine representations of Freeman and Falk intentionally following or guiding each song to its best, natural endpoint.

Freeman has decidedly re-centered her career and her music making away from so-called Music Cities – like Nashville and New York City – over the course of her five critically-acclaimed albums. She clearly feels no need to peacock or to raise a middle finger to the Music Industry, or play to “outlaw” narratives in country. Rather, she and her creative community have deliberately shifted the focal point of her songs and albums away from industry currencies and social or political structures bit by bit, click by click. As a result, her music truly shines – and certainly reaches audiences that see and appreciate that deliberation. Each of her prior albums are testaments to this growth and action, but Do You Recall may be Freeman’s best to date.

Our Cover Story conversation began discussing this shift away from music industry models and naturally and languidly, as the album, touched on agency, nuance and complication in Appalachia, solidarity and class consciousness, and so much more.

BGS: I wanted to start by asking you about how your priorities maybe have shifted in relation to the music industry? I sense that there’s this insulation between you and the capital M, capital I, “music industry,” whatever that means, right? It feels like you care less about what matters to the industry and more about what matters to you. And that feels so tangible in the music. Do you agree or disagree with that?

Dori Freeman: I do agree with that. I think I kind of always have written music from a perspective of not really caring – I never approach music through the lens of what would please a record label or what is going to be a song that people want to play on the radio or anything like that.

But I do think that perspective has only gotten stronger as I’ve gotten older. The longer I’ve written music, [the more] I write music that means something to me and that I hope will resonate with other people, because I find that the music that I’m drawn to is written in that same way. It’s music that is honest in the best way possible.

That honesty you’re talking about feels so homey, so grounded in your everyday. I think that’s part of what makes it feel like you’re not just giving a middle finger to the industry. It’s more that you’re re-centering what you do away from the industry record by record.

I would agree with that. It’s not that music isn’t a big part of my life – I mean, it obviously is, it’s the career that I’ve chosen – but as far as day to day goes, the majority of my life is spent living in a small town and raising a young daughter. That’s [why] I write a lot about both of those things. I don’t necessarily think those are really topics that record labels are begging to have more songs about, but that’s just what my life is and so those are the things that I write and sing about.

Can you talk a little bit about where you live? You live in Galax proper, yes?

Yeah, I live in Galax proper. I’m actually the last house on the street that I live on that’s technically still in Galax. The population in Galax is around 10,000, so it’s not very big. I’ve moved around a little bit in my life, but the majority of my life I’ve spent here in Southwest Virginia. And Galax in particular is a town that’s known for music. It’s like the self-proclaimed old-time music capital of the world, and we have a Fiddler’s Convention every year that’s one of the oldest. It’s known for music.

I mean, even the way that we – my husband and I – made this album [was] literally in our backyard. He built a timber-frame studio during the pandemic, so we recorded it here too, and at a much slower pace than I’ve ever had the privilege of making a record. In the past I’ve always had a strict timeframe, we have these four or five days and we have to have everything recorded in that amount of time. This time, it was just much more relaxed, and we could go out to the studio and work on one song for a couple days and then do another one the next week. It was just really refreshing to be able to approach it that way, compared to the way I’ve done it in the past. There are things that are really fun about recording in both of those ways. The pressure can be good, too, but it was nice to have a change of pace.

It may just be the time of year where all I want to do is cook something simmering on the stove all day long, but “Soup Beans Milk and Bread” — there’s so much in it that I, and I’m sure other listeners, can relate to. Especially the line, “You can’t lose something you don’t have.” That line bitch-slapped me, for real. In the best way. Can you talk about writing that one and where that line and that song came from for you?

I always find it a little difficult to articulate when I’m talking about Appalachia, just because I find it easier to write about it in song form, but I will do my best to try to talk about that.

It’s such a nuanced issue. I wrote that one – and then there’s another song on the record that’s also about growing up in Appalachia – and about the different layers of that and the different experiences you have here. The good and the more complicated.

In particular, the line, “You can’t lose something you don’t have.” I wouldn’t say I grew up poor, but I grew up not necessarily having a ton of stuff. But, in a lot of ways, I feel like I had a really happy childhood. Part of that line [is positive]. I mean, you can take it in a negative or more sad way, but it’s also, “Well, you can’t be unhappy about something that you didn’t ever have.”

If you grew up with less, a lot of times you just make the most of that and it ends up being better for you in a lot of ways. That line is definitely meant to be a double-edged sword. This area has been so taken advantage of by the government and by big business that it’s clear, yeah, you can’t lose something you never had, because we were never allowed to have it in the first place.

Another one that was my a favorite on the record is “Why Do I Do This to Myself.” I feel like I asked myself that question all the time!

It’s just such a universal feeling, I think. We all do these things to ourselves, certain things are good for you, certain thought patterns aren’t good for you – and you just can’t help it.

What you were hoping to accomplish musically and sonically with that one? Because it reminds me of classic Patty Loveless or like Terri Clark, very trad ‘80s or ‘90s country. Can you talk a little bit about what you were trying to get out of the production style on that?

Well, ‘90s country was definitely what we were going for with that one. I’m glad that came across with that track. I’ve got to give Nick a lot of credit for the production on a lot of these songs and for just picking out the musicians and for directing and deciding what the vibe would be for a lot of these songs. Our guitar player, Adam Agati, Nick hired him and they both came up with that real country lick, they kind of led the charge on that one.

You’re really playing with agency, I feel like it’s such a character in these songs – what are you choosing for yourself, what is being chosen for you, what’s being handed down to you, and how the speaker in your songs is kind of dancing around these things and talking about them.

I don’t know if I consciously approached it in that way, but I do think that it’s interesting – ‘cause you’re not the first person to bring that up. Someone else that I did an interview with said they felt the songs sort of felt like short stories that were part of the same book. After the fact, sometimes it’s like that. Sometimes you just write the batch of songs and then afterwards it becomes clear.

So I do see that in hindsight, but I don’t know necessarily if I was looking at it that way when I was writing songs, because I just write songs so individually. I’m not thinking of a theme when I approach writing songs for an album. It’s more just work on the songs individually and then hopefully they sort of come together in some sort of cohesive way.

Another thing, which I actually think has been a blessing in disguise, is that I’ve only had one album on an actual label. The subsequent four I’ve self-produced and put out on my own little label at home. I think that’s actually ended up being a good thing, because it has just left me without a lot of boundaries or feeling boxed in. I feel like I’ve had a lot more freedom to write about the things that I wanted to. It may be a smaller audience that I’m reaching and it may be a slower growth and a slower track, but actually, in the long run, I’m glad that I have done it the way that I have.

There are a couple more songs I wanted to ask you about. One is “Movie Screen.” It’s the one that feels most bluegrassy to me in some ways, and it feels very “mountain music,” which is always a nebulous term to me. “Movie Screen” is a story song, and it feels very specific, but it also feels so general and zoomed out and aspirational. It kind of reminds me of Dolly [Parton] and the way that she’d write songs about wanting to be the girl in the movie or on the radio or on stage.

[Laughs] Thank you for the Dolly comparison. I mean, I will always take that.

Yes, that is a really specific song. I wrote that song after becoming really obsessed with, during the pandemic, watching Peaky Blinders on Netflix and just having such a crush on Cillian Murphy, the lead actor in that. It’s pretty funny, because I wrote the song and my husband is one of the first people, if not the first person, I always share songs with. I play him this song and he immediately was like, “Oh, okay– so this is about that guy from Peaky Blinders?” Which is just so funny, because, my husband has brown eyes and there’s a very distinct line in the song about blue diamond eyes. It didn’t take him long to put that together. He likes to give me a hard time over that song. But it’s also about entertainment and movies and TV shows and books, as like an escape from reality and anxiety and all those things.

The other song you mentioned as being about growing up in Appalachia, “They Do It’s True,” it reminds me of Charles Booker’s political action group in Kentucky, Hood to Holler. There’s a line: “If you’ve ever lived on a mountain side/ in a little shack or a double-wide/ Then there ain’t no seat at the table for you.” That line is so striking, especially because it then continues by naming solidarity with women and with Black and Brown folks. It mades me think of Hood to Holler and this idea that in the holler and in the hood, we are more similar than we are different. I wondered if you could talk a little bit about that line in that song and where it came from for you?

That’s definitely what I was trying to write about in that song. I think one of the tactics that conservatives and people in higher positions in government love to use is to pit poor white people against poor Black people just to use that for their own gain. It’s another perspective that I think gets lost when people talk about the Appalachians. They think it’s just 100% white and people have this very specific idea of what it is, but there’s a large Black population. West Virginia has one of the most concentrated populations of transgender teens. There are Appalachian queer film festivals – there are a lot of things that get lost in that bigger message, because people [in power] don’t want us to have solidarity, because that would mean there would be actual change.

Another example of that is the way prisons often end up in poor and working class white communities, and then that’s how they pit Black and white people against each other again, because the white people are afraid of losing the work from the prison. So they want it to stay there, and it’s just a very vicious cycle. I think that it’s something that we should talk about more, because I think the wider audience doesn’t realize a lot of these things about Appalachia.

The class consciousness in the album and the way that you wove class into these songs feels so artfully done.

Appealing to the commercial side of things has never been something that I’ve felt the need to do. That goes back to what I was saying as far as having the freedom to write about what I want to and not being beholden to record labels or anything like that or agents. But it’s also because those are all just important things to me. I grew up in a really rural area and I’m bringing up my daughter in a rural area. I don’t ever want to romanticize the area in an unrealistic way, but I do think it’s important to have conversations as much about the negative things that we do need to improve as all the positive things.

I think that’s it’s really important for people from the area to continue to talk about all of this. In music and writing – and whatever other mediums. So that the rest of America can see that [Appalachia] is not just one stereotypical picture that they have in their heads.

Photo Credit: Kristina Lynn

Out Now: Madeleine Kelson

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Madeleine Kelson blends traditional folk, country, and Americana. She played Queerfest and took part in AmericanaFest this year, has been featured multiple times on NPR, and was a finalist in the Kerrville Folk Festival’s New Folk Competition. 

Madeleine is from Chicago and based in Nashville, where she lives with her partner. Her single, “The Way I Do,” displays her relationship with her partner through a lens that shows how ordinary queer relationships can be: Drinking coffee every morning, coming home for dinner, and falling asleep beside each other every night. The hook declares, “God has never loved a woman the way I do.” It’s an iconic LGBTQ+ anthem, and in my opinion, it’s one of the most compelling songs about queer love and pride.

We’re proud to promote this dedicated and creative up-and-coming coming artist. Our Out Now interview discusses why Madeleine creates music, her favorite LGBTQ+ artists, her release and touring plans for 2024, and more.

Why do you create music? What’s more satisfying to you, the process or the outcome?

Making music has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. When I started playing and singing as a kid, it was a way for me to connect to the people around me – at first by singing around the house with my mom and my sister and then by playing music with my friends. That’s still a big part of it now, but starting around my teenage years music became a way for me to process big emotions and give them somewhere to live outside of my mind.

As far as the process versus the outcome, I don’t tend to think of making music as having an outcome. A song gets written, and maybe that’s the outcome of songwriting, but then it might get arranged, or performed, or recorded. Even after I stop playing a song at shows, people still listen to it and it grows and changes with them. I’d say the most satisfying part is the impact, whether that be for me or for someone else.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?

I love this question! I couldn’t pick just one piece of advice, so here are a few:

One from my mom: “No is a complete sentence.”

Some from my grandpa: “Shoot for the moon. You might surprise yourself and get it.” “Follow your passion. If you love what you do that’s what you will do best.“ And “Treat others with respect. The way up can be a hard slow journey but the fall can be very fast and you meet the same people on the way down as you did on the way up.”

I’ll throw in a good Yiddish saying too: “When you have a lot to do, go to sleep.”

Who are your favorite LGBTQ+ artists and bands?

Oh man! Here’s a big long list, because it’s so hard to choose!

Brandi Carlile (I will always look up to her), Freddie Mercury (I listened to a lot of Queen in high school), Indigo Girls, Linda Perry, Allison Russell, Brandy Clark, Aaron Lee Tasjan, Katie Pruitt, Amythyst Kiah, Celisse, Boygenius…

Also want to shout out some amazing local artists that I love: Purser, Autumn Nicholas, Jobi Riccio, Becca Mancari, Denitia, Jaimee Harris, Liv Greene, and Julia Cannon.

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 was really lucky to grow up in a very liberal city in a very liberal family. When I came out, I knew the people around me would be supportive. Any apprehension I felt had to do with the people outside of my circle and my life beyond Chicago. That being said, I still didn’t really know I was gay until high school. I think the things that helped me find myself were the people around me – having friends who were out, seeing queer couples, going to pride parades, watching shows with queer characters, going to concerts or other events that I knew lots of queer people would attend.

Seeing what that part of my life could look like in other people helped me make sense of who I could be. Coming out is something you don’t do just once, but constantly for the rest of your life. At some point it changed from something I dreaded doing to something that has brought me comfort, joy, and community.

What are your release and touring plans for the next year?

I’m currently releasing singles off of a four-song EP that will be out mid-February. I’ll be on tour with Alaina Stacey supporting that EP, through the Midwest and Northeast starting February 16th in Chicago. Touring is one of my favorite things, and I can’t wait to see everyone at these shows! Seriously, show up. I want to see you!

You’ve done a lot this year, from touring to playing several festivals, including Queerfest, AmericanaFest, and Perseids Music Festival. What’s that been like for you?

It has been so much fun! There are few things that bring me more joy, or make me feel more like myself, than being on stage. It’s such a rush and so emotionally gratifying, even to play sad songs and feel things so deeply with other people. There’s really nothing like it. It’s been a busy year, and one in which I have definitely overcommitted myself, but I’m grateful for every part of it.

In 2022, you released your debut album, While I Was Away, on Olivia Records. Can you share some of the key inspirations and themes behind the album?

While I Was Away was actually my college thesis project! The idea was to write and produce an album that musically pulled from the different building block genres of Americana (folk, rock, country, etc.), and lyrically spoke to the years since I moved away from home. It’s a real time capsule of my life from 18-22. It’s about leaving home, being gay in the South (oy), growing up, watching the kids I babysit grow up, my dog, so many things!

You were also a finalist in the Kerrville New Folk Competition. Could you tell us about that experience?

Kerville Folk Festival was incredible. I had no idea what to expect going into it. I applied on a whim and when I heard that I got in, I could never have imagined what it would be like. If you haven’t been to a festival like that, it can be hard to imagine, but essentially there’s a big piece of land in the middle of Texas and for three weeks every year it turns into a city of stages, tents, RVs, and so much good music. It’s home to the most respectful and outstanding song circles that carry on through the night, and quite possibly do not ever end. Playing and competing was an honor, but the real privilege was to be around so many phenomenal songwriters whom I’m happy to now call my friends.

Could you share the creative process, inspirations, and the significance behind your song ‘The Way I Do’?

“The Way I Do” started as a line that floated around in the back of my mind, honestly probably for months before I knew what to do with it. The line was, “If I don’t get to heaven for loving her true, God has never loved a woman the way I do,” which ultimately became the hook of the chorus.

Growing up, I was very aware of homophobia, but it wasn’t something I experienced personally in any significant way. That really changed when I moved to Tennessee. And I say that not to generalize or condemn the South – there are a lot of amazing people here who are deeply involved in fighting inequality. In my experience, it’s a more tangible and pervasive issue here, and if anyone is going to make a difference, it’s the people here who are fighting that fight every day. I think growing up with the experience of feeling entitled to confidence and comfort in my sexuality made me that much more pissed off when I was faced with intolerance. Especially the virulent brand of “Christian” homophobia that the South is so well known for. That, I really didn’t and still don’t understand.

The thought behind the song is kind of a sarcastic, “If your god knew how great it is to love a woman, he/she/it definitely wouldn’t hate me for it.” It’s definitely a “fuck you,” but it’s also an honest reflection on how easy and natural it is to love someone who happens to share your gender.

Photo courtesy of the artist.

BGS Wraps: Patty Loveless, Darin & Brooke, Brei Carter, and More

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

How is December already half over? Christmas is merely 10 days away – and in just over six days, Winter Solstice will bring the light back into our lives. We hope your home smells of evergreen and sugar cookies and that a seasonal roots music tune is wrapping you up in wintry coziness. If that isn’t the case, we can help with the rootsy seasonal tunes bit!

For our third week of BGS Wraps, we have celebratory bluegrass alongside loping country, introspective indie and gothic Tim Burton-esque tales, too. Plus, don’t miss Jeannie Seely as Grand Marshal of the Donelson Hermitage Christmas parade in Nashville tomorrow.

Whatever you’re celebrating this season, we’ve got the music, songs, albums, and events to pair with your peace and joy.

Darin & Brooke Aldridge, Hometown Holiday

One of bluegrass’s preeminent couples, Darin & Brooke’s new Christmas album, Hometown Holiday, feels like an afternoon visit in their living room, as they play down a few of their favorite seasonal numbers. The husband and wife duo are known for their covers of non-bluegrass songs, and several among this collection truly shine – like Joni Mitchell’s “River,” rendered beautifully by Brooke. You’ll hear country piano, a modern classic popularized by Amy Grant, “The Chipmunk Song,” and more, all packaged with a neat and tidy bluegrass bow.

Beth // James, Christmas at the Burchills

Friends of BGS will know this team loves a good tiki drink, so including this Beth // James original seemed essential for our holiday Wraps. “Tiki Christmas Land” is one of four originals – joined by a cover of “Blue Christmas” – on Beth // James’ new EP, Christmas at the Burchills. Make yourself a holiday mai tai or painkiller and enjoy your visit with Beth, James, and the Burchills.

Brei Carter, Twinkling Tales of Christmas

Your cheeks may be a bit rosier after listening to Brei Carter’s jazzy, pop country holiday collection, Twinkling Tales of Christmas – and not just because of the chill in the air! “50 Shades of Christmas” will certainly get you in a festive and adventurous mood, and “Santa Wontcha” is for all Christmas season fans who proudly extend the season well prior to Thanksgiving. But “Bow on You” and “Christmas Is You” are certainly the stand out tracks.

38th Annual Donelson Hermitage Christmas Parade December 16, with Grand Marshal Jeannie Seely

If you’re near to Music City USA, head out to Donelson tomorrow afternoon, December 16, to catch country legend Jeannie Seely as she Grand Marshals the 38th Annual Donelson Hermitage Christmas Parade. Seely is standing in for Brenda Lee, who ended up being unable to attend the event – and who better to step into Lee’s Christmas hit-singing shoes? Seely has been involved with the parade many a time before and this year is an especially perfect time for the Grand Ole Opry member to Marshal, as she just released a holiday single with the Flat River Band entitled “Christmas Time.”

Pat McGrath, “Let’s Just Get Past Christmas”

A smooth, swingin’ Christmas song from singer, songwriter, studio musician Pat McGrath that looks forward, willing the new year to come fast and wipe the slate clean. A great tune for anyone who feels the holidays are often bittersweet, with a heavy dose of love and putting one foot in front of the other, you can get past just about anything. Christmas included.

Drake Milligan, “Cowgirl for Christmas”

More Christmas songs need yodeling, right? Right. Drake Milligan’s “Cowgirl for Christmas” is a delight, from the sound stage music video set that feels direct from a ‘50s western to the catchy, yodeled hook, to the danceable, western swing beat. Not a brand new track or video, but one worth remembering each year when December rolls around for sure. You’ll be wishin’ for a cowgirl under your tree, too.

The Nields, “The Darkest Day”

A harmony rich neo-folk song from The Nields, “The Darkest Day” was released earlier this year on their brand new album, Circle of Days. To herald solstice, they’ve brought out a video to highlight the track and ask the titular question, “What do you want on the darkest day?” A timely reflection, as we welcome back the sun and look ahead to spring – however far away it may feel.

Malin Pettersen, “Santa”

Malin Pettersen’s first ever Christmas song is an entire vibe. With a classic R&B back beat and conversational tone with Americana touches, Pettersen lays out her wishes for the holiday – for her longing to end and for some light to brighten the holidays and dark January. Whomever you’re trying to manifest into or out of your life, Pettersen can offer a shortcut to writing your letter to the big man at the North Pole.

Hannah Rose Platt, “The Wendigo Rag”

Wendigos and skinwalkers, oh my! If your TikTok For You Page knows that you love a cryptid tale or the paranormal or other unexplained phenomenon, Hannah Rose Platt has made a wintry, stop motion, Tim Burton-esque video just for you. And if you’d like to continue your rootsy Wendigo songs playlist, we have another selection from back around Halloween by Thunder & Rain you’d enjoy, too.

Larry Sparks, “White Christmas”

Each Christmas we’re reminded of this amazing album by bluegrass legend Larry Sparks and especially of this four-chord version of a holiday classic, “White Christmas.” Only a picker like Sparks could pave over such an iconic chord progression without leaving the listener missing it – at all. “White Christmas” is a jam buster no more, anybody can play along. We put this album on every year around the holidays and are never disappointed.

Sofia Talvik, “Alone for Christmas”

Swedish folk and Americana singer-songwriter Sofia Talvik utilizes jazz touches and dramatic strings to paint a lonesome Christmas portrait that both relishes and abhors the season. Playing around within that paradox – how can lonely holidays feel so bereft of Christmas spirit, while also epitomizing so many of the feelings of the season? The repetition in the song (“Alone for Christmas… Again. Again.”) underlines how being “Alone for Christmas” really isn’t as uncommon or unfamiliar as any of us would hope it is.

The Wildwoods, “Somewhere in the Snow”

Nebraska-based folk trio The Wildwoods offer their first-ever holiday song, “Somewhere in the Snow,” replete with a Peanuts-style animated video. It’s gauzy and sweet with a burnished patina and tone of redemption. Whether you love or hate the snow, it certainly seems like a perfect place to bury your troubles and fears.

Our Classic Holiday Album Recommendation of the Week:
Patty Loveless, Bluegrass & White Snow, A Mountain Christmas

Patty Loveless’s bluegrass bona fides are unassailable, it’s true, but this album might clinch her claims to the genre, if ever challenged by a naysayer or proverbial chair snapper. Bluegrass & White Snow is a perfect combination of classic, sing-along carols and bluegrass staples, plus a couple of bespoke beauties, too, sung as only Patty could sing them. With a big, belty voice that carries with it some of that signature high lonesome grit. Dr. Ralph would be proud. (And he was.)

Photo Credit: Darin & Brooke Aldridge by Kim Brantley; Brei Carter courtesy of the artist; Drake Milligan courtesy of the artist.

LISTEN: Diane Coll, “I Don’t Know”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Diane Coll
Hometown: Chicago, Illinois
Song: “I Don’t Know”
Album: Old Ghosts
Release Date: January 16, 2024

In Their Words: “This is a lighthearted song about spiritual surrender and my own internal dialogue of learning to let go. There is great relief in detaching from any outcome. There is great beauty in not knowing what’s around the corner and just simply sitting, watching the river flow.

“I love how Daniel Groover’s drums and Jonny Daly’s guitar solo magnify the playful, nothing-to-lose mindset needed to truly let go of control and trust in the flow of life. It is affirming to me that, although I had not originally planned for ‘I Don’t Know’ to be on the album, the song took on a life of its own and became a no-brainer for inclusion. To surrender control can lead to some happy surprises!” – Diane Coll

Photo Credit: Troy Moore and Diane Coll

BGS Class of 2023: Our Year-End Favorites

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Year-end lists can be so problematic – pitting distinct sounds and music against each other, peddling absolutes, attempting objectivity in a demonstrably subjective field. Each year, as we consider the music that impacted us over the course of twelve months, we try to challenge ourselves and each other, as BGS contributors, to think outside the year-end round up “box.” 

For the BGS Class of 2023, our intention is to highlight music, songs, albums, and performances that have stuck with us, or that we know will continue to stick with us into the future. We wanted to deliberately look beyond the music and creators that merely have the resources, networks, and access to reach us; we wanted to utilize genre as a checkpoint or touchstone, but never as a blanket criterion; we wanted to broaden what forms of media or formats are included; and overall, we wanted to attempt a holistic look at what a year of listening, learning, watching, and hearing can look like to this particular group of people. 

You’ll find ravishing and large indie folk, earnest and literary – and raucous and silly – bluegrass, legendary legacy artists and brand new lineups, soundtracks and live shows, and more. Ultimately, whatever the year, we always want our retrospective lists to be a starting point, a springboard, for our readers, followers, and for roots music fans. This is not the end-all, be-all “Best of 2023” list. Instead, it’s a reminder of the music that scored a year absolutely filled to bursting with excellent, exemplary, ecstatic roots songs, albums, and shows. 

boygenius in Pittsburgh, June 2023

When I saw boygenius this summer, I was milktoast about the whole thing going into it. As soon as I arrived, I realized I was surrounded by young people – and not just any young people: All the beautiful freaks were out for Lucy, Julien, and Phoebe. The energy was palpable and something that I have not experienced in over 20 years. Everyone knew every word. They were FaceTiming friends who cried and sang along remotely with these heroes on stage. It was inspiring!

boygenius feels like an important band. I so wish they had been around when I was an outcast teenager feeling such confusing, wild emotions. Music has a way of helping the world make sense. boygenius radiates communion and it felt like an honor to be a part of their world. – Cindy Howes

Caitlin Canty, Quiet Flame

My favorite bluegrass album of the year is often an album that, through no fault of its own, ends up receiving little to no bluegrass radio airplay or IBMA Awards recognition, and as I listened to Caitlin Canty’s Quiet Flame over and over this year, I couldn’t help but expect it would end up criminally underrated by the general bluegrass community. It’s made by bluegrass pickers – Canty assembled Chris Eldridge (who also was the project’s producer), her husband Noam Pikelny, Brittany Haas, Paul Kowert, Sarah Jarosz, and Andrew Marlin for her band – and as a result Quiet Flame, more often than not, is just an unencumbered string band album that’s as much bluegrass as it is Americana and singer-songwriter folk. But while Mighty Poplar, with a similar lineup of folks, takes off in bluegrass circles, it raises an eyebrow that this impeccable, heartfelt, and complicated set of songs hasn’t seen the same trajectory. Not that that was Canty’s goal – it’s obvious her priorities in music making are grounded and community-minded, part of why this album is such a stunner. “Odds of Getting Even,” co-written with another BGS favorite, Maya de Vitry, is one of the year’s best songs, bar none. – Justin Hiltner

A Homeplace Pilgrimage to Earl Scruggs Music Festival, August 2023

L: Nina Simone’s homeplace in Tryon, NC. R: Earl Scruggs’ homeplace in Boiling Springs, NC. Both photos by Justin Hiltner.

BGS once again co-presented the Earl Scruggs Revue tribute set hosted by Tony Trischka at Earl Scruggs Music Festival, held just outside of Shelby, North Carolina at the Tryon International Equestrian Center in August. On my drive to the festival grounds, I made stops in Tryon proper, to visit Nina Simone’s childhood home, and also in Shelby, to visit the Earl Scruggs Center and to drive by both of the Scruggs homeplaces just outside of Boiling Springs, North Carolina. It was stunning to visit both homes on the same day, to realize the interconnectedness of so much of American popular music. Simone grew up with a view of the Blue Ridge Mountains from her front porch nestled in one of their hollers, yet we place Scruggs as an Appalachian musician and not Simone? 

The festival and Scruggs Center, for their parts, did an excellent job of demonstrating how broad, varied, and intricate American roots music is, even while focusing closely on bluegrass, string band, and Americana music. Listeners of our podcast, Carolina Calling, will know how much BGS loves North Carolina music history – the show features episodes on both Scruggs and Simone. Seeing that history in person, while heading to a first-class, banjo-heavy festival was a favorite musical moment of this year, for sure. – Justin Hiltner

East Nash Grass, Last Chance to Win

East Nash Grass seems to be all the buzz on the bluegrass circuit these days and those who have ventured to Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge on any Monday night since 2017 can certainly understand why. The band’s long-standing residency at the Madison, Tennessee dive bar has taken them from a weekly pick-up band to performing at the Grand Ole Opry, the Ryman Auditorium, and at bluegrass festivals across the U.S. Their sophomore album, Last Chance to Win, captures the band at their very best (albeit, without their lovable stage antics). Following a 2023 IBMA nomination for Best New Artist, it won’t be a surprise if we see this record, and these musicians, sweeping awards in 2024 and beyond. – Thomas Cassell

Alejandro Escovedo at Cat’s Cradle Backroom, Carrboro, NC, November 2023

There are countless good reasons why you should make a point of seeing the Texas punk/soul godfather if he’s ever playing anywhere near you. But what might be the best reason of all is it’s a lead-pipe cinch that everyone in your town worth hanging out with will be there, too – onstage as well as in the crowd. Escovedo was among a dozen stars drawn to the North Carolina Triangle for an all-star “Nuggets” tribute show overseen by Lenny Kaye in November. So, he came a night early and played a solo show, too, ably supported by local luminaries Lynn Blakey and Pinetops/The Right Profile guitarist Jeffrey Dean Foster. The love in the room was palpable on deeply moving originals like “Sister Lost Soul” and “Wave Goodbye.” And when Kaye and R.E.M.’s Peter Buck came on for a closing Velvet Underground cameo of “Pale Blue Eyes” and “Sweet Jane,” the circle was complete. – David Menconi

Ben Garnett, “Open Your Books” (featuring Brittany Haas and Paul Kowert)

Before I’d listened to the complete #BGSClassof2023 Spotify playlist and realized this track was one of our first additions, the app kept recommending “Open Your Books” to me – and it’s not hard to see why. From guitarist and composer Ben Garnett’s debut album, Imitation Fields, the track features bassist Paul Kowert and fiddler Brittnay Haas and is an example of what bluegrass music can be, and what traditionally bluegrass instruments can do.

The tune opens slowly, with guitar and mandola – provided by Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway’s own Dominick Leslie. Fiddle swells, orchestral arrangements, and dreamy acoustic production make for a piece that feels distinctly intellectual. It’s chambergrass, but it’s also highly listen-able. While there’s a strong melodic thread throughout, the surrounding instruments and their players are allowed to wander off up the guitar neck, throwing in trill-y banjo licks, and detouring outside traditional fills and solo styles. The record was produced by Chris Eldridge and also features Matthew Davis on banjo and additional guitar from Billy Contreras. I’d recommend this tune to low-fi lovers, roots music fans, and anyone looking for a chilled out moment. It’s perfect for an introspective drive or a rainy winter day spent drinking hot tea at the window. – Lonnie Lee Hood

Alice Gerrard, Sun to Sun

Never, over the course of her lifelong career in music, has Alice Gerrard stopped, having reached her musical destination. She has challenged herself, time and time again, not simply for reinvention’s sake, but because she is a consummate old-time and bluegrass musician, someone so solidly bitten by the string band bug that making music requires that constant movement, that aspirational looking into the future, girded by songs of the past. But Sun to Sun, her latest – and perhaps final – album, features songs decidedly of the present. A synthesizer of traditional art forms, Gerrard takes textures and colors we relate to “authenticity” and leverages them to serve the messages in these tracks. Aging, mortality, justice, apartheid, gun violence, community are all woven into this collection. Alice is their nexus point, around which the entire project revolves and reflects the cosmic light she continues to shine on all of us – and on roots music subjects too often hidden in the shadows. – Justin Hiltner

A Good Year for Soundtracks – Asteroid City, The Holdovers, and More

Between the Writers Guild and Screen Actors’ strikes, 2023 was a weird year for the entertainment industry. But for those releases that did make it to the screen, it was a great year for movie soundtracks, especially for roots music fans.

First up, Wes Anderson’s western sci-fi Asteroid City. In addition to the usual cadre of Anderson’s cast, the film was peppered with classic country and bluegrass recordings from the likes of Tex Ritter, Slim Whitman, Bill Monroe, and Johnny Duncan & the Blue Grass Boys (you read that right). That’s to say nothing of the incredibly catchy original ear worm, “Dear Alien (Who Art In Heaven)” which felt as classic as those twentieth century tunes of the frontier written decades ago.

Capping off the year was Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers, a beautiful ode to a particular style of 1970s filmmaking that stars Paul Giamatti. Set in snowy western Massachusetts over a lonely winter break in 1970, the soundtrack plays like an old, soft blanket – familiar and warming.  Newer tracks from Damian Jurado and Khruangbin weave seamlessly alongside ‘70s AM gold and Mark Orton’s pensive, folksy score. But the real standout of this soundtrack is a rediscovery of British folk artist Labi Siffre. His music has been shamefully overlooked in U.S. folk canon. Hopefully this movie can help start to rectify that.

Finally, it would be criminal if I didn’t mention the key placement of Indigo Girls’ “Closer to Fine” in the biggest hit of the year, Barbie. Here’s to another generation of young women finding themselves in Amy and Emily’s music. Thanks, Greta Gerwig. – Amy Reitnouer Jacobs

Kristen Grainger & True North, “Extraordinary Grace”

Take the anvil from my chest…

I am gasping for breath at this opening line. In her extraordinary, intimate voice, Kristen Grainger is pleading, letting us know she has lost hope. And we are right there with her. Whether we believed salvation came from the church or the Voting Rights Act, we believe no more. We are a fractured world, and it seems there is no bringing us together. Kristen’s melodies pull you in as much as her words, and I sometimes wake with this haunting song emerging from my dreams. Her bandmates’ graceful harmonies and instrumental accompaniment support the stunning words. 

I once believed in extraordinary grace
I put my faith in saints and saviors
In the mirror, I can’t bear to see my heroine
Killing time until time returns the favor.

Still, there is cause for hope: the promise of more music from True North. – Claire Levine

Angélique Kidjo at New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, April 2023

“We can’t hear! We can’t hear!” Not what a performer wants to hear an audience chanting – though Angélique Kidjo didn’t hear it for a couple of songs at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in April. She was giving it all, singing and dancing with vigor and verve, as she does. But the Benin-born star’s voice and all but the drums and percussion from her band were not reaching the crowd, that had already waited out a 45-minute rain delay. Finally, the stage crew got the message, but it still took some time to get things working. When they did, Kidjo betrayed no frustration – just pure, joyful release as she packed a full set’s worth of spirit into the handful of songs she could squeeze in the remaining time slot, including a few highlights from her re-infusion of Talking Heads’ Remain in Light album. Closing with her idol/mentor Mariam Makeba’s signature “Pata Pata,” she was radiant, as was everyone who stuck around to see and hear her. – Steve Hochman

The Lemon Twigs, Everything Harmony

This album is, without reservation or exaggeration, one of the most beautiful records I have heard in my entire life. Building on inspiration from ‘60s/’70s pop-rock (think the Byrds,Todd Rundgren, the Beach Boys, the Flamin’ Groovies), the Lemon Twigs achieve a layered delicacy of nostalgia and innovation. Their creative impulses are so detailed, articulate, and inspired that the entire album feels unfathomable; how could music reach such timelessness that it tickles at the preterhuman? Brothers Michael and Brian D’addario share the songwriting credits for pieces that feel distinctly matured from much of their earlier work. They’ve pared down the theatrics, tightened the sprawling lyrics, and created from a place that strikes a quintessential balance of self and influence. Their result is something oceanic – music that calls upon its ancestry in a way that is pervasive, striking, and sublimates the query of eternity. – Oriana Mack

Ronnie Milsap’s Final Nashville Concert, October 2023

Ronnie Milsap’s final Nashville concert will resonate with me for many years to come, both because of the multiple memorable performances and because it represented the best of country music from the standpoint of diversity and inclusion. Various performers from across the musical spectrum covered Milsap hits, with songs from every arena – honky-tonk and straight country tearjerkers, reworked doo-wop, R&B, and pop classics, love songs, and slice of life retrospectives. The roster of artists who displayed their love and affection for Milsap’s music crossed racial, gender, and sexual orientation lines, and it was also great to see the legend himself conclude the proceedings. While the Nashville audience and community will miss Milsap’s performances, this last outing provided plenty of wonderful moments and lots of great music that will never be forgotten. – Ron Wynn

New Dangerfield’s Debut at IBMA Bluegrass Live!, September 2023

For years a growing number of Black musicians have entered the trad scene and reclaimed Black traditions key to its development and evolution. Their work has run the gamut from preservation to experimentation. Audiences at this year’s IBMA Bluegrass Live! were introduced to a new Black string band that does it all: New Dangerfield. Made up of powerhouses Tray Wellington, Kaïa Kater, Jake Blount, and Nelson Williams, New Dangerfield has, in their own words, “risen to carry the torch.” In their premiere performance the band delivered an eclectic set of early jazz, early blues — and even a cover of R&B musician H.E.R’s “Hard Place,” led by Kater’s deliciously lush vocals. Each member, proficient instrumentalists in their own right, also showed off their technical chops and drew whoops from the crowd. Their set was something historic, and I’m excited to see what comes next from New Dangerfield. – Brandi Waller-Pace

Railbird Festival, June 2023

Set in the heart of Lexington, Kentucky, under a deep-red Strawberry Moon, the 2023 Railbird Festival was an under-the-radar masterstroke, highlighting the confluence of roots music and the mainstream. Held June 3 and 4 on the spacious lawn of The Infield at Red Mile, a sold-out crowd of 40,000+ enjoyed a non-stop lineup of performers from across the “Americana” pantheon, expertly curated and spread out over three stages. With 32 acts in total, country, rock, folk, bluegrass and more were all represented, as headliners Tyler Childers and Zach Bryan topped a bill including Charley Crockett, Whiskey Myers, Morgan Wade, Nickel Creek, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway – even Weezer and Sheryl Crow. Combine all that with a well-thought out fan experience and an off-the-beaten path vibe, and the weekend was an ideal kickoff to festival season. – Chris Parton

Sam Shackleton at the Horseshoe Tavern, October 2023

Country fandom has always been ideological, but in the last few years the genre’s politics have felt plainer – clear villains and clear heroes, but also messy interior politics. Through this time, I’ve mostly been listening to folk music far away from the fighting at home, from musicians like Sam Shackleton, a genius singer and banjo player from Scotland. He was supporting the Mary Wallopers, the radical Irish party band, in Toronto in October. Shackleton was great, working the audience, singing his songs, and classic folk tracks. The crowd was restless, the beer he was offered on stage seemed pro forma, but he tried. There was a version of “All You Fascists (Are Bound To Lose)” that gave me hope for a few minutes. We step out for a smoke, and Shackelton is on the patio, nursing a lager. I tell him I loved the show and that I wanted vinyl. He hugs me and thanks me. Walking back in, the room is filled with Irish expats who are singing along to the Wallopers in ways that feel a little hostile. I leave early, going for Chinese food. These couple of hours were country/folk in 2023 for me – inclusive, exclusive, hand shakes, hugs, and isolation – plus enough physical/emotional distance from the world that I didn’t ask exactly how the fascists would lose. – Steacy Easton

Sleeping in the Woods Festival, May 2023

At a time when money in the music industry is at an all time low, and expenses are at an all time high, I have immense gratitude for anyone starting new community projects to showcase and uplift musicians and songwriters. I was lucky enough to get to be a part of Nicholas Jamerson’s Sleeping in the Woods Festival in Cumberland, Kentucky in May of 2023, and this event makes my best-of list. The festival bills itself as songwriter specific and showcases many lesser known Kentucky songwriters and bands. The strategy is to create a listening environment and bring together a Southern audience hungry for more straight-shooting roots music and hard hitting lyrics after becoming fans of Tyler Childers, Sturgill Simpson, and of course, Jamerson himself. After a successful first year, the festival is poised to grow exponentially and become a beloved annual event for all of those involved. – Rachel Baiman

Billy Strings at Bourbon and Beyond, September 2023

After five years of programming the BGS stage at Bourbon & Beyond, the Louisville-based festival has become something of a homecoming for our whole team. But nothing was more special than this year, when we got to see Billy Strings headline the main stage in front of over 50,000 people. It seems like just yesterday (in reality it was more like 2018) that Billy played our own stage inside the Bourbon Tent, a memory made all the sweeter by his surprise appearance this year on our stage during Michael Cleveland’s set. Hopefully it’s one of many happy returns to B&B for Billy, his fans, and BGS for years to come. – Amy Reitnouer Jacobs

Sunny War, Anarchist Gospel

Nobody sounds like Sunny War. As her profile has risen over the past decade, Sunny has held onto her punk rock politics and direct lyricism, grounding her artistry in the blues. Listening to one of her songs is like looking at a diorama of a nearby planet, similar to our own, but with none of human society’s bullshit. 2023’s Anarchist Gospel features Americana heavyweights David Rawlings, Jim James, Allison Russell, and Chris Pierce, but always sounds exactly like Sunny. Her hypnotic guitar work and precise songcraft shine. Her vocals walk a fine line between eerie and inviting. And at the end of a year when riot grrl aesthetics have gone mainstream, Sunny War is a rare reminder of what the real thing sounds like.  – Lizzie No

Photo Credit: Angélique Kidjo by Fabrice Mabillot; Billy Strings by Christopher Morley; boygenius by Matt Grubb.

 

On ‘About the Winter,’ Barbaro Find an Emotive Sound All Their Own

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Barbaro, who take their name from the famous Kentucky racehorse whose life was tragically short, have recently released About the Winter, their second full-length album.

The band was founded as a duo by Kyle Shelstad and Isaac Sammis in 2017, later welcoming Rachel Calvert and Jason Wells into the fold. They released Dressed in Roses in 2020, and while Sammis departed the band after the birth of his second child, he contributed heavily to the new album and left a great deal of inspiration with the rest of his bandmates.

About the Winter, which was co-produced by Shelstad and Brian Joseph (Bon Iver, Sufjan Stevens), features nine original tracks that seamlessly weave in and out of one another, gently guiding the listener through vulnerable lyrics, intimate soundscapes, and technical prowess.

BGS caught up with Barbaro following their month-long album release tour to chat about the new record, their musical process, and recent world travels.

The textures on this album – while ranging from synths and samples to pizzicato bass and fiddle – maintain a familiar sonic foundation for each of these songs to sink into. How did you go about selecting and arranging the material for this record?

Kyle Shelstad: As a group, I think we tend to gravitate towards tunes that we can connect with on some sort of deeper level, tunes that we can internalize in some way that provokes an emotional reaction in ourselves and hopefully those listening. This is the basis for all our song choices in this group, finding tunes that allow our whole selves to buy into the intimate, distant, delicate, and coarse moments that help create the dynamic range found in many of these tunes.

Regarding the arrangements, some of this was pre-planned going into the recording, but many of these songs were somewhat unfinished going in. Our goal was to explore in the studio and Brian allowed us a space to be creative and experimental with these songs. For example, there is a moment in “Subpoena Colada” where Jason is crunching a plastic water bottle full of leaves into the microphone… it’s a sick solo, check it out. Brian took all these experiments and helped us make them musical.

There’s a line in the album’s press release that caught me: “Barbaro’s compositions prioritize texture and expression over technical virtuosity.” I really like that, considering that two of you – Calvert (fiddle) and Wells (bass) – come from the classical world, whereas Shelstad has a stringband background. That said, this music is thoughtfully orchestrated, which I know must require a fair amount of calculation and precision. When putting this music together, where do you find the balance between those two worlds?

Jason Wells: I’d say the balance comes more from each of our instincts than from traditional orchestration. Since Kyle writes the material and brings the songs to the rest of us, I’d say the base of the music is in the string band tradition, but the way Kyle writes and how he uses space and texture is really unique and lends itself to a more classical approach to filling out the other parts.

What makes the songs work is each member’s commitment to really listening for what each song needs and not adding any more than that. As we workshop new material, each of us will try different things and only keep what seems essential to the song, and through that process the form of the song takes shape. It’s a really natural process.

I love the Bruegel piece, “The Hunters in the Snow,” that you chose for the album cover, and the way that it pairs with this music. Can you tell me more about how you came to feature the famous painting alongside this music?

Rachel Calvert: I was researching how winter shows up across art history when I came across the Bruegel painting. I was surprised that it was a 16th century painting, it looked more modern to me. I was seeking something that evoked emotional ambiguity, nostalgia, and the collision of the natural and manmade – and it hit all the marks! I also noticed that the colors matched up with the Barbaro “uniform.” We typically show up to gigs wearing denim, black, and earth tones. “Hunters in the Snow” was already one of us!

The farewell track, “Ike’s Farewell,” is obviously much more than a lone instrumental to close out the album – it’s clear that Isaac Sammis had a big impact on this music, both through his co-founding of the band, and expressive banjo playing. While I know that someone leaving the band can be difficult to navigate musically, I like that Sammis’ contributions are celebrated on this album. I was curious if you could attest to the influence, musically or otherwise, that he’s left with you.

JW: Man, Isaac’s influence on the band’s sound can’t be overstated. He has this unique ability to really push the boundaries of sound and tonality, and I attribute his instinct for tension and release to be one of the primary reasons our songs flow compositionally the way that they do. In addition to his stellar banjo playing, Isaac’s also a hell of a guitar player and you can hear him adding electric guitar effects and note bends on several of the tracks. Those lines and sounds he laid down ended up being foundational to the new sound direction for the album, so his influence is everywhere!

This is unrelated to the record, but I wanted to ask about your 2023 American Music Abroad tour. That seems like a pretty special thing to do – to get to journey to Qatar, Turkey, and Bulgaria to share this music. I know it was after the recording of this album, but how do you think that tour influenced the band?

RC: Our travels abroad reaffirmed our overall mission – to form pathways for all sorts of folks to connect to both their interior emotional world, and to the people and place that form communities around them. Bringing audiences to tears, even through cultural and language barriers, was a powerful reminder that music and art are indeed universal languages that allow us to see the sparks of life and love within ourselves and others.

With your album release tour wrapped up, what’s on Barbaro’s horizon for 2024?

KS: Barb is excited to keep working on and recording new music. We really enjoy the process of writing together and look forward to working on a fresh batch of tunes. I think we found a voice on this record that is uniquely ours, and we intend to keep exploring that.

Photo Credit: Wolfskull Creative

BGS Wraps: Brenda Lee, Andy Thorn, Joy Clark, and More

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Hanukkah has begun, advent calendars have barely three weeks left, and days will start getting longer when we reach winter solstice in merely 13 days – but who’s counting? As we lean further and further into the coziest, roots music-iest time of year, we’re rounding up our favorite seasonal and holiday albums, tracks, and shows each week on BGS Wraps. Scroll to find this list in playlist form, plus don’t miss our Classic Holiday Album Recommendation of the week.

We’ll be back next Friday with more BGS Wraps! Until then enjoy some hot cider or some eggnog and some delightfully festive bluegrass, country, and roots music.

Hayes Carll and Melissa Carper, “Christmas in Prison”

A perennial favorite penned by none other than John Prine, “Christmas in Prison” is a rare country Christmas song that can be sung year-round. Like your favorite holiday movie that’s actually not specifically a holiday movie – Die Hard? Little Women? – this is a song so classic, so iconic, that it demands recognition across the calendar and not merely in December. Hayes Carll and Melissa Carper join together on this brand new rendition and they do the song justice, for sure.

Joy Clark, “Gumbo Christmas” 

As most holidays are, Christmas is its own familial and cultural melting pot, and guitarist and singer-songwriter Joy Clark highlights her own New Orleans traditions with “Gumbo Christmas.” It’s a song with a recipe both literal and figurative, a combination all of the best holiday dishes know intimately. That Big Easy horn section is fit to carry us into 2024.

CMA Country Christmas (December 14, ABC; December 15, Hulu and Disney+)

The queen of Christmas in Nashville, Amy Grant, is co-hosting this year’s CMA Country Christmas TV special on ABC with none other than Trisha Yearwood. With performances by The War & Treaty, Ashley McBryde, Jon Pardi, reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year Lainey Wilson, and more. Tune in on Thursday, December 14 for the live program, or watch the following day – and throughout the season – on Hulu and Disney+. For those of us who won’t make Vince Gill and Grant’s annual holiday residency at the Ryman in Nashville, this show will be an excellent consolation prize.

Rose Cousins, “I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm”

There’s almost no better artist to turn to for delicious melancholia than Rose Cousins. Her new holiday single, “I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm,” demonstrates this fact and then some. Winter songs without a specific religious or traditional bent are too rare, so we especially love this track for its “agnosticism” and relatability. Why care how much it may storm, if you’ve got your love to keep you warm? We hope you are surrounded by love this holiday season, and however lonesome or joyous you’re feeling this year, Cousins’ voice will envelope you like a toasty hug.

Bridget Kearney, “Don’t Think About the Polar Bear”

A vibey and meditative new track from Lake Street Dive bassist Bridget Kearney is another holiday track of the Die Hard sort – not demonstrably seasonal, but it works so we’re accepting it with open arms into our wintry celebration. The accompanying animated music video is whimsical enough to be a fitting addition to any lineup with The Grinch, Rudolph, and all of your other favorite Christmas animated TV specials. If your intention is to not think about someone this holiday season, you might just find them wandering across your mind – so don’t think about the polar bear, instead.

The Kody Norris Show, “Mountain City Christmas”

The territory surrounding Mountain City, Tennessee, in the Blue Ridge Mountains of East Tennessee, Western North Carolina, and Southwest Virginia is home to most of the farms that grow most of the Christmas trees for the eastern seaboard of the United States. It’s more than fitting, then, to take this nostalgic and magical Kody Norris Show-led journey through the picturesque counties they call home. What’s more bluegrass than singing about snow, home, family, faith, and rhyming “there” with “Christmas carol”?

Larry & Joe, “Mi Burrito Sabanero”

Bluegrass banjo player and fiddler Joe Troop and harpist, multi-instrumentalist Larry Bellorín are Larry & Joe. Their new holiday single, “Mi Burrito Sabanero,” is a funny, raucous, and enjoyable version of a quintessential Latin American holiday tune written by Venezuelan harpist and composer Hugo Blanco. Much of Troop’s work connects the dots between Latin folk music and American roots music, crafting idiosyncratic amalgamations often expected to be more disparate and dissonant than they really are. For this track, Bellorín set aside the harp and picked up the cuatro, with Troop adding twin fiddles and banjo in another instance of remarkable latingrass fusion.

Maddie & Tae, We Need Christmas

Maddie & Tae, of “Girl in a Country Song” fame, recently released an extended cut of their 2020 holiday EP, We Need Christmas, adding three new tracks – each classic Christmas carols – to the fan favorite collection. Both women are now married and starting families and there’s a confidence and ease they’ve grown into at this phase of their careers. Easily some of the most interesting pop country being made, and certainly an excellent holiday manifestation of the form.

Brenda Lee, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”

For the first time in her 60+ year career Brenda Lee has scored a Number 1 hit on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart with her truly unforgettable holiday single, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.” How she supplanted Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas,” we’ll never know, but we are so glad for Lee that she’s notched this incredible milestone even at this late stage in her lifelong music-making. She first recorded the iconic track as a thirteen-year-old and in an emotional video posted by Billboard and to her social media, you can tell she never imagined this song would be the gem it is in the crown of her music career. Congratulations, Brenda Lee!

Kaitlyn Raitz, “River”

Cellist, composer, and arranger Kaitlyn Raitz released a stunning, instrumental string-centered cover of Joni Mitchell’s “River” a handful of weeks ago, a timely tune drop for those of us struggling to navigate the holidays without Mitchell’s catalog available on a certain streaming service. Lush and romantic, Raitz’s cut of the track is high concept while down to earth, like a perfect Christmas Eve program at a local church, stained glass bookended by poinsettias and candles. A must-add for your instrumental holiday playlists or perfect to soundtrack your cookie icing party or frenzied gift swaps.

Matt Rogers, Have You Heard of Christmas?

BGS Wraps would be simply incomplete without a laugh-so-hard-you’re-crying option, supplied here by comedian Matt Rogers’ holiday outting, Have You Heard of Christmas? With guests such as Muna (swoon-a), Bowen Yang (Rogers’ co-host of the hit podcast, Las Culturistas, known from SNL), and Leland, Have You Heard of Christmas is pure chaos, absolutely unhinged. Melodrama meets the chronically online. Joe’s Pub, dragged through 54 Below. When you’re offered aux this year at your holiday gatherings, put this one on. We dare you.

Andy Thorn, High Country Holiday

Banjoist Andy Thorn was known as Leftover Salmon’s banjo player, before a video of him serenading a wild fox went mega viral and eclipsed all other entries on his resumé. Thorn – who is a self-professed Christmas fanatic – has recently released a brand new holiday album, High Country Holiday, drawing on inspiration from his Colorado backyard and his musical community to put together a bevy of carols and one bespoke original, “The Bells of Boulder.” Add it to your stack of bluegrass Christmas records! It’s destined to become a classic in that category.

Tim and James, A Tim and James Christmas

Los Angeles-based string duo Tim and James – Tim Reynolds and James Spaite – have followed up their popular debut, Lemon Tree, with a holiday EP, A Tim and James Christmas and it’s already a favorite of ours. These simple duets feel fully realized, even while they remain contained, and draw on folk, new acoustic, and chambergrass influences. The kernel within Tim and James’ music – that took their songs from beginning as a regular Tuesday collaboration to tens of thousands of streams – is on full display. There’s something entrancing about this bare bones, four-song collection.

Our Classic Holiday Album Recommendation of the Week:
Béla Fleck & the Flecktones, Jingle All the Way

Each year we are reminded of the sheer genius of Béla Fleck & the Flecktones’ Jingle All the Way. It’s a Christmas album we return to again and again and we know we aren’t the only ones – it was chosen by O magazine (yes, Oprah’s publication) as 2008’s Best Christmas Album and it peaked at Number 1 on the contemporary jazz charts. Béla and the Flecktones’ cultural impact was certainly solidified by the time Jingle All the Way had released, but this album – perhaps more than any other music by the group in the 21st Century – cemented their broad, far-reaching influence.

Photo Credit: Joy Clark by Nkechi Chibueze; Rose Cousins by Lindsay Duncan; Andy Thorn courtesy of the artist.

Out Now: Zach Day

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Zach Day stands out as an artist who has developed his own sound. His writing is venerable and filled with emotion, his voice is professional and polished, and his lyrics are clever, descriptive, and carefully crafted. 

I loved hearing Zach’s responses for Out Now. It’s such a treat to gain insights into his mind, music, and process. Zach opens up about his experience growing up as an LGBTQ+ kid in Kentucky and how bittersweet it was, on the one hand, to be immersed in deep homophobia, but on the other, to be built into a beautiful Appalachian environment with inspiring storytelling, homegrown food, and the gift to sing with friends and family.

What’s your ideal vision for your future?

I have this dream of being able to make music full time, never having to worry about money to support my friends and family, and traveling the world with my partner. Eventually I will settle down on a little farm with a family milk cow and some chickens, maybe a couple kids, a big vegetable garden, and a porch with a swing and a bunch of people I love singing songs in harmony while I make a giant dinner for us all every weekend.

What is your greatest fear?

My greatest fear is not being able to accomplish everything that I have dreamed for myself and being forced to live a life of “What-ifs.” I’ve put a lot of pressure on myself and sometimes that freaks me out, because I worry I may never be satisfied. I have to work actively every day to calm myself down [over] these expectations, because it’ll send me into anxiety! That and the whale from Pinocchio… scared of him.

Why do you create music? What’s more satisfying to you, the process or the outcome?

I create music because I think I have a story that needs to be told. Being a queer person that was raised in the heart of Appalachia is a special and unique perspective. I was raised around amazing singers and musicians, but also I always felt like an observer of my surroundings. I choose to reflect on the great things I took from my raising. I have a huge heart for Appalachia and the stories that come from there. I was raised by generations of coal miners and farmers, teachers and preachers, gardeners and homemakers. I love to reflect on those sentiments in my music and I think you can hear it in my voice and in my songs.

Who are your favorite LGBTQ+ artists and bands?

I can’t get enough of Ethel Cain right now, I really look up to her and her writing skills. She’s inspiring me so much with how she is choosing to tell her stories. Also Searows… can’t get enough.

What are your release and touring plans for the next year?

I have a handful of songs being mixed and mastered right now on their way to streaming platforms and I plan to continue playing all over the place. I have shows booked in LA, Nashville, and NYC all within the next few months. My goal is to open for a big artist like Ethel Cain. I believe it can happen very soon.

 

@youknowzachmusic i was once told that i was coming off as too available and then i wrote a song about it, this is verse 2 #originalmusic #singersongwriter #yallternative #indiefolk #queercountry #guitar #vocals #singing ♬ original sound – Zach Day

You grew up in Kentucky. What was that experience like for you as a queer person?

Growing up in Kentucky as a queer person wasn’t easy. I didn’t even know I was gay until I was a bit older, but I had grown adults saying I couldn’t come to church with them, because they didn’t want a fag in their car. That was before I even knew I was gay. So I had this aura around me my whole childhood that I was different and I think that shifted my perspective on my life. In the good moments though, I could connect with music and really draw on the storytelling and lyrics that I heard to find inspiration. Appalachia is full of amazing storytelling and the environment and nature are so beautiful. I loved eating the food we would grow, I loved singing with my family and friends, and I loved hearing stories from artists like Mitch Barrett and Zoe Speaks.

You stand out as an artist who has developed your own sound. Your voice is professional, polished, and filled with emotion. Your lyrics are clever and descriptive, and the craftsmanship of your songwriting is phenomenal. What was the process of developing your identity as an artist?

Thank you for those kind words, that means a lot to me. I’m still developing my sound and my brand every day. As far as developing what I have at this point, I think that I did my homework for many years… I studied the greats and their subtle nuances… If Karen Carpenter or Joni Mitchell sang something that sent a shiver down my spine I would rewind it and try to emulate that to the best of my ability. If I heard a Dolly Parton lyric that moved me, I would let it sink into my being and ponder it. I just wanted to be able to write iconic songs and sing my face off – and I worked really hard to try and capture that. These days, I feel as though I’ve been leaning more into my Appalachian roots. I spent a long time running from what made me unique, but now I embrace it.

You recently spent some time living in LA and moved back to Nashville. What drew you to live in LA for a while, and what was that experience like for you?

I grew up always wanting to live in LA and experience that lifestyle. I was working with some folks that told me I would “do better” in LA and had a better chance at getting my music heard. But I don’t necessarily think that’s true. I love it there and I love it in Nashville as well. I’ve built a community in both places and have been fortunate enough to work with amazing people in both locations. I have my pockets of support in both cities and for that I’m super lucky. I just realized that I miss being in the woods too much to live in LA right now. I missed nature and I missed being able to turn off my phone and go for a run on a trail, down the road. I love being in the city from time to time but at the end of the day, I’m a country boy and it’s in my roots.

Photo courtesy of Zach Day

6 of the Best Roots Songs on ‘Songbirds & Snakes’

Posted on by Lonnie_Lee_Hood

Years before Katniss Everdeen became the bow-wielding, redneck antihero of impoverished coal-mining District 12, there was another — Lucy Gray Baird. In the new movie adaption of the dystopian prequel to the original Hunger Games trilogy, Baird must brave the deadly annual games as well as future-President Coriolanus Snow’s affections.

If it sounds like the makings of a country murder ballad, well, you’d not be far off. Aside from being a multi-million dollar blockbuster event, the new film, officially titled The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, features an excellent original soundtrack produced by Dave Cobb and chock-full of BGS Friends and Neighbors we know and love. The rootsy songs are the perfect backdrop for boot-stomping bar scenes and the desperate struggle against an authoritarian regime that eventually led to the villainous Snow’s power grab. They’re also just plain good!

If you’re new to the Hunger Games, to these artists, or to roots music, we’re happy to be your guide. With performances from Molly Tuttle, Billy Strings, Sierra Ferrell, Charles Wesley Godwin, Bella White, and more there’s something here for bluegrass and Americana fans of all ages. But there are also hidden gems in Rachel Zegler’s performance. Zegler, who portrays Baird, plays a guitar influenced by a very famous finger picker indeed.

In no particular order, here are six of the best roots tunes on the official Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes movie soundtrack.

“The Garden” – Sierra Ferrell

A slow-moving acoustic, country-ish standard with emotional fiddle swells, Americana firebrand Sierra Ferrell performs “The Garden” on the official soundtrack. The tune features a wistful dream of a green garden watered with something other than salty tears, and of better days ahead.

“Bury Me Beneath the Willow” – Molly Tuttle

Together, Molly Tuttle and Dominick Leslie provide the guitar and mandolin parts heard throughout much of the film, but also on “Bury Me Beneath the Willow.” This tune is more of a bluegrass standard and features Tuttle’s iconic picking style and vocals. The lyrics speak of deep betrayal by a lover.

“Nothing You Can Take From Me” – Rachel Zegler

In the official featurette video for this tune, Rachel Zegler whips a gathered crowd into a barn-stomping frenzy with her vocal performance on “Nothing You Can Take From Me.” While District 12 workers clap and dance and Zegler sings, Molly Tuttle revealed in an Instagram post that she provided the guitar parts.

“I played Lucy Gray Baird’s guitar parts and Dom [Leslie’s] parts are in the Covey Band,” Tuttle said in her Instagram caption. “I was nerding out the whole time we worked on this. Fun fact: the guitar I recorded with is the same one that you see [Zegler] play in the movie. The choice of guitar was inspired by the archtop Gibson that Maybelle Carter plays.”

“Burn Me Once” – Bella White

Bella White’s haunting, vibrato-filled vocals hang in the air on “Burn Me Once,” a finger-picked acoustic tune. The lyrics speak to being heartbroken and wishing for true love with a new, more mature partner.

“Cabin Song” – Billy Strings

By far one of the fastest, hardest-driving tunes comes – perhaps unsurprisingly – from Billy Strings. Employing his famous guitar-picking skills on “Cabin Song,” Strings sings of wishing to go back to the woods.

“Winter’s Come and Gone” – Charles Wesley Godwin

Seasonally appropriate given the movie’s November release date, Charles Wesley Godwin’s smooth but gritty vocals lends the perfect tinge of darkness to lyrics about a little bluebird, being left in the rain and snow, and not having enough money to see the winter through.

Even if you’re not a fan of The Hunger Games, it might be worth hitting up the theatre to support roots music featured in such a high-profile and recognizable title. Or, you know, you could just download, stream, or purchase the soundtrack — it’s available on Spotify, Apple Music, or wherever you get your folk-y tunes!

Lead image of Rachel Zegler as Lucy Baird screenshot from The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023) Special Feature ‘Music.’

WATCH: Sully Bright, “Dark” (Live in Appalachia Video Series)

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Sully Bright
Hometown: Forest City, North Carolina; currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Dark”
Album: Darling, Wake Up
Release Date: October 13, 2023

In Their Words: “‘Dark’ is a special song for me. It’s about my struggles with mental health, specifically Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. The song tells my journey of learning how to see the light shine through the window; how to push past and break through the darkness of your own bedroom.

“In the video, I got the chance to sing it in a dark room with a window.” – Sully Bright

Photo Credit: Wonderfilmco
Video Credit: Seth and Jenna Herlich, Wonderfilmco