Tag: premiere

WATCH: Heather Maloney, “Oklahoma Lullaby”

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Artist: Heather Maloney
Hometown: Northampton, Massachusetts
Song: “Oklahoma Lullaby”
Album: Soil in the Sky
Release Date: June 14, 2019
Label: Signature Sounds

In Their Words: “‘Oklahoma Lullaby’ was inspired by the Ken Burns documentary, The Dust Bowl — so when I starting working on the lyric video for it, I decided to incorporate some historic footage as a little nod to my inspiration. Digging around in the National Archives, I eventually found the perfect footage to use in the video: The 1936 short documentary film on the Dust Bowl (by director Pare Lorentz) called The Plow That Broke The Plains.

“I filled an old book with green construction paper and green-screened the images below the words to make it a sort of ‘moving picture book.’ At the last minute, I decided to write a quote by 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg inside the first page of the book. (‘I want you to act as if the house was on fire. Because it is.’) I added the quote because, while the song is inspired by an environmental disaster that happened in the past, I wrote the song to point to the environmental disasters we are creating now. Near the end of the Dust Bowl, we took some accountability for what we’d done to the land, changed the way we farmed, and passed legislation that has kept it from happening at that scale for nearly a hundred years. That gave me some hope that we can make change again.

“Fun fact: Jay Ungar wrote and played the theme song in Ken Burns’ PBS series The Civil War. He also plays the fiddle on ‘Oklahoma Lullaby,’ as well as the prelude to the song ‘Porch Story.’ It was incredibly special to me, having his fiddle on this song.” — Heather Maloney

Photo credit: Scott Housley

WATCH: Adam Chaffins, “I’m Over You” (Live From Southern Ground)

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Artist: Adam Chaffins
Hometown: Louisa, Kentucky (now Nashville, TN)
Song: “I’m Over You” Live from Southern Ground
Album: I’m Over You (EP)
Release Date: May 10, 2019
Label: Chaffins Music

In Their Words: “It was a great time being in the same room with all those amazing players, capturing the track on film altogether. Southern Ground Nashville is such a beautiful space to make music in. Studio A’s lively tones and vibe are all on display in the video. I’ve felt Keith Whitley’s imprint my whole life. From growing up in East Kentucky to moving to Nashville, his sound has always been close to me. It’s been a surreal experience sharing my take of ‘I’m Over You’ with the world.” — Adam Chaffins

Photo credit: Ryan Musick

LISTEN: The Small Glories, “Secondhand”

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Artist: The Small Glories
Hometown: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Song: “Secondhand”
Album: Assiniboine & the Red
Release Date: June 28, 2019
Label: Red House Records

In Their Words: “We spend a significant portion of our life out on the road, without our partners, families, or close friends. When we come home we tell stories about our adventures and share all our photos, and everyone seems happy for us. But the reality is that our loved ones want to be in those pictures; they want to be there with us experiencing all these interesting things together. A song written for those we love, dreaming and wishing they could take the plunge and be out on the road with us.” — Cara Luft, The Small Glories

Photo credit: Aaron Ives

WATCH: Brooks Forsyth, “Cast My Dreams to the Wind”

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Artist: Brooks Forsyth
Hometown: Boone, North Carolina
Song: “Cast My Dreams to the Wind”
Album: So Much Beyond Us
Release Date: May 8, 2019
Label: ArenA Recordings

In Their Words: “There was a strange alchemy that brought the project together. And literally, it was a gold mining town! The director, Nigel Dick, told me how many of his videos began from an odd synchronicity of events. A few of us met my producer Buzz Cason in Denver, and we drove down to Victor, hearing two ’90s hits on the radio that Nigel shot the videos for. The first day was more or less a workout, outside shots and carrying guitar walking around. The second was more intimate, performing the song inside a historic building downtown. The majority of the song was recorded in one take, Eamon McLoughlin added strings and I played piano subsequently.” — Brooks Forsyth

Photo credit: EJ Carr

WATCH: Jeremie Albino, “The Cabin”

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Artist: Jeremie Albino
Hometown: Toronto, Ontario
Song: “The Cabin”
Album: Hard Time
Label: Cinematic Music Group

In Their Words: “‘The Cabin’ is a song that came from a romantic day dream. About that feeling of being away from the one you love and how we always tend to fantasize about when and where we’ll see them again. I think we all like to daydream about the grand adventures we’ll go on with our partners and this song is about how those daydreams are sometimes all we can hold on to when we’re away from each other. Dreams of running away together to a place that’s off the map and just for the two of you. Building a cabin in the woods with my own two hands and living off the land. ‘Cause in the end it doesn’t really matter where you decide to go. As long as you’re there together, ya know? Just another love story I suppose, haha. I was so grateful to have some friends come and perform on the recording with me. My friends Hannah Georgas, Carleigh Aikins and Taylor Guitard join me in the choruses.” — Jeremie Albino

Photo credit: Anielika Sykes

LISTEN: Alice Howe, “You Just Never Know”

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Artist: Alice Howe
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts
Song: “You Just Never Know”
Album: Visions
Release Date: May 17, 2019

In Their Words: “This song came to me as I was driving west on Route 90, affectionately known as the Mass Pike, leaving Boston in my rearview mirror for what felt like the millionth time. It struck me that I had been on that same road in so many different moods and circumstances over the past decade, from weekends visiting my high school boyfriend to my undergraduate years at Smith College in Northampton, and even the time I drove that highway from start to finish, all the way to its western edge in Seattle. Exits and road signs had become inextricably linked to faces and moments in my memory, all vividly flashing before my eyes as I sped past. After all those years, there I was on the same road, and in a way the road was like an old friend who had seen me grow up. This song describes me in a nutshell: a little nostalgic, but looking excitedly to the future, willing to accept the unknown that lies ahead.” — Alice Howe

Photo credit: Jim Shea

LISTEN: Sarah Eide, “Big Mover”

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Artist: Sarah Eide
Hometown: Rochester, New York
Song: “Big Mover”
Album: Dreams on Hold
Release Date: May 6, 2019

In Their Words: “As many songwriters can attest, there are days when you wake up with a sweet little melody swirling around in your head, and your mission then and there is to catch it before it wisps away. One such morning, my husband called me over to my daughter’s crib saying, ‘Look at our big mover.’ She was only a few months old at the time, but she had somehow made her way from one side of the crib to the other. In that moment, the morning melody and my husband’s words coalesced into the chorus of ‘Big Mover.’ I thought about how quickly life moves and the bittersweetness of seeing your child grow just as quickly through it. I could also see myself in her; my need to rush to get to the next big thing, to accomplish goals big and small, to be constantly in motion. I wrote this song as a way to tell her that I’m excited to see how her life will unfold, while reminding her to take in the beautiful but fleeting present.” — Sarah Eide

Photo credit: Helio Sun Photo

LISTEN: Fletcher’s Grove, “Stray Bird”

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Artist: Fletcher’s Grove
Hometown: Morgantown, West Virginia
Song: “Stray Bird”
Album: Waiting Out the Storm
Release Date: May 17, 2019

In Their Words: “I’m a longtime fan of the likes of Bill Monroe and Del McCoury, so I often look to those folks and their ilk for inspiration. I wanted to write a classic country song for our new record. ‘Stray Bird’ is a modern take that pays homage to an earlier era. One of the last songs to be brought into the studio, ‘Stray Bird’ came together quickly and stood out as a different sound for the band that fit this record.” — Ryan Krofcheck, Fletcher’s Grove

Photo credit: Dan Gifford

WATCH: Anna Tivel, “Minneapolis”

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Artist: Anna Tivel
Hometown: Portland, Oregon
Song: “Minneapolis”
Album: The Question
Release Date: April 19, 2019
Label: Fluff & Gravy Records

In Their Words: “This is a song about that stuck feeling, that stagnant winter sadness that can take over everything until you have to physically move yourself to shake it loose. I started writing it after a long tour in the Midwest. I was thinking about how that feeling can seep into a relationship until it seems like the only sane thing to do is pack up and start over somewhere else.” — Anna Tivel

Photo credit: Matthew Kennelly

LISTEN: Irene Kelley, “Highway Back to You”

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Artist: Irene Kelley
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Highway Back to You”
Album: Benny’s TV Repair
Release Date: May 10, 2019
Label: Mountain Fever Records

In Their Words: “David Starr and I started writing together about two years ago. A friend had the notion that David and I might be a good team and that has proven to be very true. We started out on the day we wrote ‘Highway Back to You’ with a melody that I had and a first part of the verse that David brought. We just let the song take us to where we ended up. A song about asking for a second chance. The highway is always a great metaphor for an emotional journey. This one is full of love, sentiment and hope. The musicians nailed the track and Ronnie Bowman’s harmony vocal is a perfect finishing touch. It is one of my favorite songs to sing on Benny’s TV Repair.” — Irene Kelley

Photo credit: Anne Goetze