Tag: music video

WATCH: Rachel Gore, “Good Death”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Rachel Gore
Hometown: Wilmington, North Carolina
Song: “Good Death”
Album: Forgotten Woman of Folk
Release Date: August 11, 2023 (single); October 6, 2023 (EP)

In Their Words: “I wrote ‘Good Death’ in the midst of dealing with a lot of anxiety – specifically surrounding death. I feel like it’s a topic that’s not normally discussed openly, so I wanted to write a song that took that fear and made it into something really beautiful. I recorded the song with Americana artist and producer Sarah Peacock, who transformed it into something beyond what I could have ever imagined.

“Much of ‘Good Death’ and the upcoming EP surrounds spirituality and Southern upbringing, so I knew for the video that I wanted to find some really beautiful old churches in the country. I brought this idea to the director, Corbin Eaton, who just blew it out of the water. We spent a day roaming around rural Tennessee finding the most incredible historical chapels, and we even got invited to record inside the last one we were filming. I’m so thrilled to share this song with the world, and I hope there are people who feel like ‘Good Death’ is exactly what they’ve needed to hear.” – Rachel Gore

Photo Credit: Corbin Eaton

WATCH: Billy Raffoul, “In My Arms”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Billy Raffoul
Hometown: Leamington, Ontario, Canada
Song: “In My Arms”
Album: For All These Years 
Release Date: July 28, 2023 (single); October 20, 2023 (album)
Label: Nettwerk Music Group

In Their Words: “‘In My Arms’ is a special one for me, because it’s something I wrote with my brother. For the first half of 2022 I was writing nearly a song every other day getting ready for this album, and there were about two weeks that Peter and I wrote at our place in Nashville. We would get six songs, and ‘In My Arms’ was one of them.

“I wrote it on my ’59 Gibson 335. I’m a lefty who plays right-handed guitars upside down and this song requires me to get pretty high up the neck for some of these chord shapes. Needed something with a double cutaway and the 335 did the trick. There’s no real picking pattern to this one. Just kind of raking into the chords and quite a bit of palm muting. This one was more about the tone, a ’40s tweed deluxe right at its breaking point.

“Playing the guitar upside down can be super inspiring when I’m writing. Having the bass strings on the bottom allows me to use my index, middle, and ring fingers to make some different bass patterns while my thumb plays the melody on the higher strings. These patterns are found all over this new album, particularly in songs like ‘Jim Carrey’ and ‘I Can’t Love You Anymore.’ I’m thrilled about this new album, because it’s the first time all of my influences are rolled into one record. Recording songs has always just been a vehicle to get people in a room together to hear them live, and the dynamic of this album is a good representation of what you’d hear from me in a live setting. I can’t wait to bring these songs to life on stage.” – Billy Raffoul

Photo Credit: Vanessa Heins

WATCH: Stillhouse Junkies, “Never Going Back Again”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Stillhouse Junkies
Hometown: Durango, Colorado
Song: “Never Going Back Again”
Album: Small Towns
Release Date: September 9, 2022
Label: Dark Shadow Recording

In Their Words: “‘Never Going Back Again’ was always on our short list of cover ideas and it felt like a natural candidate for the lone cover slot on our Small Towns album. The 1977 Lindsey Buckingham song was a fun challenge to arrange for the trio since it’s essentially just a fingerpicked guitar riff to start with. We changed the groove and added some melodic interplay between the fiddle and guitar over Cody’s backbeat bass line and came up with what we think is a fresh take that still honors the spirit of the original.

“Given the source material, it only seemed appropriate to make a video that looked and felt unlike anything we’d ever done before. Our amazing creative team of Hanna Irene (Hanna Irene Motion Pictures) and Renee Cornue (Renee Cornue Studio) came up with a concept that captured the funky, retro vibe of the song and used a stop motion technique to create a unique aesthetic that fit our reworked two-and-a-half minute arrangement perfectly. We shot the video in one day in an old gymnasium in Green Mountain Falls, Colorado, as part of an artist residency at Green Box Arts. We’re absolutely thrilled with the outcome and can’t wait to share it with the world.” – Stillhouse Junkies

Photo Credit: Renee Cornue Studio

WATCH: Amanda Fields & Megan McCormick, “Wild As A Flower”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Amanda Fields and Megan McCormick
Hometown: Madison, Tennessee
Song: “Wild As A Flower”

In Their Words: “We started writing ‘Wild As A Flower’ almost two years ago, not knowing how the story that the song reflected would progress. After we lost one of our beloved animals in January, we were finally able to finish the song. It’s been refreshing to allow ourselves to explore new territories in our songwriting together, especially the spiritual elements that come up often in our conversations — we get pretty deep into the existential a lot of times and it’s opened up our writing a lot.” – Amanda Fields & Megan McCormick

Photo Credit: Lindsey Patkos
Video Credit: Rebecca Branson Jones

WATCH: Mark Wilkinson, “Taking Our Time”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Mark Wilkinson
Hometown: Sydney, Australia
Song: “Taking Our Time”
Album: Golden Afternoons
Release Date: July 7, 2023
Label: Nettwerk Music Group

In Their Words: “I co-wrote this track with Ben Cramer from Old Sea Brigade. We wanted to write a song that carried a sense of nostalgia mixed with an optimism about the future. The song is essentially about how our lives are constantly evolving and about learning to adapt and let go of the past. It’s almost like a quiet pep talk to yourself to stop chasing history and start embracing what’s in front of you. Memories can be beautiful things, but spending too much time looking back can stop you creating something new. For me, the track is a recognition or realization of that, as it moves from reflective thoughts in the verses to a point of resolution in the bridge, culminating with the line, ‘I won’t fall into the shadows of what I intend to leave behind.'” – Mark Wilkinson

Photo Credit: Maclay Heriot

WATCH: My Brother’s Keeper, “The Edge of the River”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: My Brother’s Keeper
Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio
Song: “The Edge of the River”
Album: Field Guide
Release Date: July 6, 2023 (vide0); May 26, 2023 (album)
Label: Robust Records

In Their Words: “‘The Edge of the River’ is a lively song that combines elements of bluegrass, folk rock, and quartet gospel. The river in the song is a simple metaphor of feeling stuck and lost in a personal journey. The song was recorded at Neon Cactus Studio in Cedar Grove, Indiana, and it opens our latest album, Field Guide, released on Robust Records. The music video was directed by Joseph Cox (Average Joe Films), who was instrumental in bringing our ‘music video meets indie film’ vision to life. The hilarious ‘Harmonica Man’ was played by Judah D’Amico.” – Benjamin Luckhaupt

Photo Credit: Wyatt “Sawmill” Murray

WATCH: Trapper Schoepp, “The Fool” (Live from Cash Cabin)

Posted on by Justin Hiltner
Artist: Trapper Schoepp
Hometown: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Song: “The Fool” (Live from Cash Cabin)
Album: Siren Songs
Release Date: April 21, 2023
Label: Grand Phony (US) / Rootsy (EU)
In Their Words: “Joseph Cash filmed and photographed us throughout the sessions for Siren Songs, which was recorded at the historic Cash Cabin. From Merle to Snoop Dogg to Dolly Parton, this sacred space has had many visitors and I hoped to tap into some of that DNA they left behind. ‘The Fool’ is the first song I wrote in an open D tuning. I stumbled upon it while toying with an Irish folk song during lockdown, finding that it offered a whole new canvas to write songs from. It produced a full and vibrant sound in my lap that guided me through writing this record. As I figured out the new shapes up and down the neck of the guitar, I wrote lyrics for ‘The Fool’ from the perspective of a sage, old romantic who’s giving advice to a younger version of himself.” – Trapper Schoepp

Photo Credit: Joseph Cash

Brent Cobb Follows His ‘Southern Star,’ Announces New Album

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

If the rest of Grammy-nominated Brent Cobb’s first self-produced album is like its debut single, “Southern Star,” it’ll be sweet as molasses. To celebrate the upcoming release of the record by the same name, Cobb released the music video for “Southern Star” last week.

The track features Cobb’s honeyed vocals, a vintage tone on the keys, straightforward acoustic strumming, and a light percussion touch. Cobb sings of being a drifter, of feeling lost at sea, but of always having a place to return to — a bright point to move toward no matter what. The video shows Cobb cooking up Southern greens and features shots of the artists who brought the music to life.

“You know how when you’re growing up, you’re told that if you ever get lost out there, look for the northern star to help find direction back home? Well, I’m from Georgia,” Cobb said in a statement. “So, I always look for the southern star. This album, the songs, the sounds… it’s all a product of where I’m from both musically and environmentally.”

Southern Star will be Cobb’s fifth studio album and follows releases like his 2022 debut gospel record, And Now Let’s Turn To Page…. Rolling Stone called him “an enlightened figure, blessed with the gift of finding purpose and meaning in the smallest of details,” and we concur.

The new record is a love letter to Southern roots and the state of Georgia, and drops September 22 via Ol’ Buddy Records/Thirty Tigers.

Photo Credit: Jace Kartye

WATCH: Sarah Morris, “Ruthless”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Sarah Morris
Hometown: Shoreview, Minnesota
Song: “Ruthless”
Album: Here’s To You
Release Date: May 5, 2023

In Their Words: “‘Ruthless’ was a writing prompt in the summer of 2019. My initial response was the opening line, ‘Your calloused fingers, my calloused heart, I bet you earned your lack of feeling by working hard …’ My husband has calloused hands from building a cabin for our family, I have earned my own calloused fingers from guitar strings over the years – it was an easy image to grab on to. So often my songwriting takes me to deeply domestic moments and this song felt removed from that in a way that was so fun to write (and now to sing). I’ve written many songs about kindness; offering one another healing, a soft place to fall – it was fun to explore the other nooks and crannies of human emotion and character.

“On a late winter run I was listening to the masters of the album and when ‘Ruthless’ came on, I saw all these images – the two people, the sink, the dark background, a sense of kaleidoscope. As soon as I landed back at home, I emailed the amazing team of Sarah and Erik Elstan to ask if they were up to collaborating on a video again. On a blustery April day, we hid in a Minneapolis studio with Michael Gay, some great vintage pieces courtesy of Seven Suns Vintage out of Eau Claire, and shot the video. What a gift to find people who you can share a tangle of run-induced ideas with, and then they create something so fantastic!” – Sarah Morris

Photo Credit: Emily Isakson

WATCH: Katie Cole, “Young and Stupid”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner
Artist: Katie Cole
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee (originally from Melbourne, Australia)
Song: “Young and Stupid”
Album: Rivers & Roads
Release Date: June 5, 2023

In Their Words: “This song is truly about the struggles of being young. When I think back to being a teenager or in my early 20s, it’s clear to me how difficult and confusing it was. Technically, at that age we are adults, but we don’t yet know who we are. So there is bittersweet nature to this lyric. The amount of times I cried and felt defeated – I lost count. I played so many gigs each week and would busk til my fingers were raw to pay rent. I would never want to live through that again. But right now, I can look back at my youth and remember how beautiful it all was. Mess and all. When you are young, you don’t yet see what can go wrong, so you are always wearing rose-colored glasses. You just don’t realize it ’til you’re older. To capture the sound of this story, I worked with Producer Howard Willing on the whole Rivers & Roads EP.” – Katie Cole

Photo Credit: Dire Image