Tag: premiere

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: Hog-eyed Man, “Paddy on the Turnpike”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Hog-eyed Man
Hometown: Currently based in Athens, Georgia
Song: “Paddy on the Turnpike”
Album: Kicked Up a Devil of a Row
Release Date: July 14, 2023
Label: Tiki Parlour Recordings

In Their Words: “There are many great versions of ‘Paddy on the Turnpike,’ but this is the best one to blast with the car winows down when you’re sitting in bumper-to-bumper inter­state traffic at 5:15 p.m. on a sweltering Friday. Jason got it from his Yancey County, North Carolina, neighbor Bruce Greene, who recorded it from Sammie Dyer of Macon County,Tennessee, in the early 1970s. Dyer was near 80 at the time and had a unique repertoire of regional tunes from the upper Cumberland Plateau. Reportedly, he lamented the commercialization of traditional music and loss of the old ways. This resonates with Howard Rains’ incredible cover art for our album, which depicts a rainbow dragon swarmed by modern aircraft.

“One of the joys of playing old-time music is forging and maintaining connections with the musicians and tunes of the past even as the contexts and communities around the music continue to evolve. We typically play as a duo or trio and rarely incorporate guitar, so it was fun to go for a slightly fuller string band sound on this one with Max on banjo and David joining on his 1959 Martin D-18.” – Hog-eyed Man

Photo Credit: David Bragger

WATCH: Bonnie & Taylor Sims, “Texas Again”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Bonnie & Taylor Sims
Hometown: Longmont, Colorado
Song: “Texas Again”
Album: Bonnie & Taylor Sims
Release Date: September 15, 2023
Label: BonTay Enterprises

In Their Words: “‘Texas Again’ started out to be an epic, Grapes of Wrath-esque story of the Sims family, but it soon turned into a love story for the motherland. The diversity of Texas geography has always been in my heart and you can see it all – if you’re willing to drive 18 hours. I love Colorado, but nostalgia is a helluva drug and Texas will be forever home… it will get these ashes when it’s done.” – Taylor Sims

Photo Credit: Natalie Jo Grey

LISTEN: Rachel Garlin, “Madelyne Why”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Rachel Garlin
Hometown: San Francisco, California
Song: “Madelyne Why”
Album: The Ballad of Madelyne and Therese
Release Date: July 21, 2023

In Their Words: “During a family vacation at the beach, I saw a pair of tattered macrame sandals in the waves. They were tied together with a strip of linen, as if someone had carefully attached them before wildly abandoning them. Interested in this tension – care, attachment, abandon, abandonment – I strummed some chords in a Joni Mitchell-esque ‘open tuning’ while spinning out a tale of a fictional beach-goer who had left me this clue to her life-story. The original version was called “Caroline Why,” but I tired of singing Caroline (so many songs with that name!) and so I asked a few friends to suggest names that had a similar cadence to Caroline and Madelyne rose to the top.” – Rachel Garlin

Photo Credit: Tiffany Murray

LISTEN: Handsome Ghost, “Tonight Comes Round Again”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Handsome Ghost
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts
Song: “Tonight Comes Round Again”
Album: Handsome Ghost
Release Date: July 14th, 2023 (single); August 25, 2023 (album)
Label: Nettwerk Music Group

In Their Words: “Eddie and I were chatting through plans recently – tours, recording, etc. – and we realized that we’ve been making music together for over 10 years. Which, in band years, is more like a thousand, in my opinion. Most of the songs on our new record are about my life in music in one way or another. ‘Tonight Comes Round Again’ is about a time many years back, when we were in New York a lot. Neither one of us actually lived there, but we just kind of claimed it as our home base until there was a tour to do or a record to make. The song itself is about a brief relationship of mine during that time. She wanted casual, I wanted more – and frustration naturally ensued as we tried to make something work. It’s rich looking back on it now, given that I was hoping for something serious while I was crashing on couches every night.” – Tim Noyes

Photo Credit: Seb Keefe

LISTEN: Alyssa & Wayne Brewer, “Golden Ring”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner
Artist: Alyssa & Wayne Brewer
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Song: “Golden Ring”
Album: Alyssa and Wayne Sing George and Tammy
Release Date: July 14, 2023
Label: SGM (Stretch Grass Music) Records
In Their Words: “Collectively, ‘Golden Ring’ is our favorite George & Tammy duet that we’ve loved singing together through the years. That made it a very fitting choice for the first single with it also being their biggest #1 hit song and most identifiable duet! We are so proud to have included it on our debut album. If that wasn’t already a dream come true, we recently had the pleasure of meeting one of the gentleman, Rafe Van Hoy, that wrote this song at one of our performances in Nashville, TN. We hope you enjoy it and that it transports you into country music’s euphoric golden era as it does us every time that we are blessed to perform it together.” – Alyssa & Wayne Brewer
“I love Alyssa and Wayne Brewer’s new recording of ‘Golden Ring!’ So proud to have this wonderful couple put their golden touch to my song. A lot of people have done different versions for sure, but theirs is a great new and fresh take that also retains the classic elements with absolutely awesome vocal performances. Not an easy challenge to live up to the originals for sure, but they nailed it!” – Rafe Van Hoy, “Golden Ring” songwriter

Photo Credit: Katie Kauss

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

LISTEN: Martin Simpson & Thomm Jutz, “Come All You Fair And Tender Ladies” (feat. Cara Dillon)

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Martin Simpson & Thomm Jutz
Hometown: Sheffield, England & Nashville, TN
Song: “Come All You Fair And Tender Ladies” (featuring Cara Dillon)
Album: Nothing But Green Willow: The Songs Of Mary Sands And Jane Gentry
Release Date: September 29, 2023
Label: Topic Records

In Their Words: “‘Come All You Fair And Tender Ladies’ is one of the most hauntingly beautiful songs that I know. It is one of the better-known songs from the Sharp collection that is still sung on both sides of the Atlantic. Depending on where it is sung and by whom, different shades of meaning are illuminated – only a truly great song has this quality. We ran through this song twice in Cara’s kitchen, then headed upstairs to her studio and recorded it in one take. I have been a fan of Cara’s singing for a long time. Playing this song with her and Martin Simpson, one of the greatest guitarists on the planet, has been a highlight of my musical life.” – Thomm Jutz

“I’ve long considered that ‘Come All You Fair And Tender Ladies’ was one of the brightest jewels of Anglo-American folk songs. It has a bitter lyrical intensity and an exquisite and poignant melody which serves it so well. This setting and performance was the work of no time in recording terms, but it is three lifetimes worth of musical and personal experience, which allowed it to be captured with such ease. I loved working with Thomm on Nothing But Green Willow, and Cara Dillon is simply one of the finest singers of traditional song, as she demonstrates here.” – Martin Simpson

Photo Credit: Booney Crawford