Tag: premiere

LISTEN: Robert Vincent, “I Was Hurt Today But I’m Alright Now”

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Artist: Robert Vincent
Hometown: Liverpool, England
Song: “I Was Hurt Today But I’m Alright Now”
Album: In This Town You’re Owned
Release Date: February 14, 2020
Label: Thirty Tigers

In Their Words: “We live busier lives, less time for ourselves. Social media has thrown even greater pressures at us, creating lack of personal connection and the loss of self-esteem if we are not rewarded with the right number of likes from our electronic peers. So who knows what anyone is going through in their day? At times we all need help, but still worry more about others’ opinions and forget to help ourselves. ‘I Was Hurt Today But I’m Alright Now’ is a message written from the perspective of someone trapped in their own mind and speaking to that fearful side we all have within us to be stronger, but also easier on ourselves. And to step back into the real world.” — Robert Vincent

Photo credit: Alex Hurst

LISTEN: Appalachian Road Show, “Goin’ to Bring Her Back”

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Artist: Appalachian Road Show
Hometown: Appalachia
Song: “Goin’ to Bring Her Back”
Album: Tribulation
Release Date: March 27, 2020
Label: Billy Blue Records

In Their Words: “‘Goin’ to Bring Her Back’ tells the tale — in quite a humorous way — of a mountain boy who has fallen in love. Unfortunately, he doesn’t realize that the girl he loves might not feel the same way, seeing as how she has run off and caught the train across ‘them yonder mountains!’

“I wanted to create a piece that made the album more dynamic and this chorus jumped into my head! An hour later, the song was complete. I felt pretty confident it was something that Darrell Webb and Barry Abernathy would play and sing the daylights out of. We felt that this song fit right into the Appalachian aesthetic and into the overall narrative we’ve been developing within this band and especially this project. It feels ‘classic’ to us, but the ink has barely dried, and we love that!” — Jimmy Van Cleve, Appalachian Road Show

Photo credit: Micah Schweinsberg

LISTEN: Nathan Evans Fox, “Cigarettes and Moon Pies”

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Artist: Nathan Evans Fox
Hometown: Glen Alpine, North Carolina
Song: “Cigarettes and Moon Pies”
Album: Kindness
Release Date: February 20, 2020

In Their Words: “I wanted to write a love song that’s equal parts cultural idiosyncrasy, self-reflection, and just kinda manic. Some of my favorite places in the world are small, local gas stations in the Carolinas. They’re such an interesting cultural intersection; there’s goods from local growers alongside industrially manufactured, shrink-wrapped foods, and old relics of legendary NASCAR racers next to brand new vinyl banners promoting strange, cheap beer spin-offs. You’re left with a big cultural mish-mash that’s really complex and rich, and I think there’s something really romantic about these small drive-by spots. They’re a true reflection of all the strangeness and complexity of growing up in a place like North Carolina. They just seem like a good place to fall in love.” — Nathan Evans Fox

Photo credit: Zach Wolfe

LISTEN: The Barefoot Movement, “At the End of the Day”

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Artist: The Barefoot Movement
Hometown: Based in Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “At the End of the Day”
Album: Rise & Fly
Release Date: February 7, 2020
Label: Bonfire Music Group

In Their Words: “’At the End of the Day’ is one of those songs I needed to write for myself. Growing up I was taught a lot about ‘turning the other cheek,’ which I think is a beautiful ideology and I still try to embrace it, but the lesson I think I missed was how to stand up for myself, to express frustrations, and to do it in a loving way. It’s one I’m still learning. I tend to avoid conflict. But as the song says, ‘the truth is all we have’ and I’ve realized that one of the most kind things you can do is to be honest. Even when your honesty might sting a bit.” — Noah Wall, The Barefoot Movement

Photo credit: The Barefoot Movement

LISTEN: Sasha K.A, “Tall Grass”

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Artist: Sasha K.A
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Song: “Tall Grass”
Album: Family
Release Date: February 21

In Their Words: “‘Tall Grass’ is about a musician friend of mine who got on the wrong path with drugs and alcohol. The ‘tall grass’ is a metaphor for hanging with the wrong crowd and making the wrong decisions. This guy is so naturally talented and so rich in spirit, but was snagged by the vices that haunt the music industry. Really fun experience bringing this song to life with Eric Harrison and Michael Ingber at Studio 601. Eric played bass, Michael played drums, we all produced the song. Incredibly collaborative and creative process.” — Sasha K.A.

Photo credit: Kush Mody

LISTEN: Rachel Baiman and Mike Wheeler, “Turn It Off”

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Artist: Rachel Baiman and Mike Wheeler
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee (Rachel), nomadic (Mike)
Song: “Turn It Off”
Album: Countin on You Sessions
Release Date: February 7, 2020
Label: Tone Tree Music

In Their Words: “I (Rachel) started this song in a moment of frustration, wishing I could just escape from the news of the world. I was lucky enough to be a part of a writing residency in Jacksonville, Florida and the place I was staying had all of these turtles hanging out in the back yard. I think I started five songs about turtles that week, the shell idea was just feeling very appealing.

“Anyway, this is one of those songs which I couldn’t seem to finish. I’ve been a big fan of Mike’s writing and singing for years and one afternoon back in Nashville I asked him to come by and help me finish this one (he was my neighbor at the time). We worked through it and really enjoyed singing and writing together. This song ended up launching this EP collaboration.

“When he told me he was planning to head out to Colorado for the winter (Mike is decidedly nomadic), we both thought it would be fun to record some of what we had been playing together in a really live style, to reflect the inspiration we had gotten from our neighbor jams while he was in town and the magic of Nashville nights spent trading songs with good friends.” — Rachel Baiman

Artwork by Taylor Ashton

WATCH: Wood Belly, “Can’t Get Behind”

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Artist: Wood Belly
Hometown: Denver, Colorado
Song: “Can’t Get Behind”
Album: Man on the Radio
Release Date: January 31, 2020
Label: Belly Up Records

In Their Words: “This is a tune about the basic need for acceptance. We’ve all had a moment questioning ourselves, ‘Is it me? Or is it you?’ I relate with these struggles, which can be taxing on a person’s mind. It’s sometimes challenging to arrive at acceptance before we process with our own coping mechanism. No matter how we get there, we usually come to realize we always had the answer within — but not before a little self-torment.” — Craig Patterson, Wood Belly

“James Armington really made this vision come to life. We all knew and loved James from the bluegrass community and he was a fellow Telluride band competition winner. When it came time to cast our hero, I remembered standing on the main stage at Telluride watching the tarp-run next to James decked out in suit, cape and mustache. We had no idea just how perfect he would be for the role. James had the cast and crew in stitches scene after scene and we can’t thank him enough for the wonderful performance and memories.” — Chris Weist, Wood Belly

Photo credit: Emily Sierra Photography

WATCH: Kristina Murray, “Tell Me”

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Artist: Kristina Murray
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Tell Me”
Album: Southern Ambrosia (2018)
Label: Loud Magnolia Records

In Their Words: “Soon after I moved to Nashville, I met musician and writer Logan Ledger and we became fast friends over of our love of traditional country music; soon we discovered that our voices complemented each other well, too, so we played out a bit as a duo and wrote a few songs together. One afternoon I said straight up, ‘I want to write a classic country duet.’ We then proceeded to get stoned and listen to hours of vinyl records by the Louvin Brothers, The Beach Boys, George Jones & Gene Pitney, and on and on… we almost didn’t even start writing! But Logan pulled out the melody and first line, and the rest of the verses spilled out from there.

“A month or so later, on a sunny May afternoon, I wrote the chorus. Frank Carter Rische’s vocal part next to mine on the recording is what really makes the song for me; he is so emotive and follows my voice effortlessly. Though the inspiration for the song came originally from a traditional era, I’m proud of the timeless and vibe-y feel of ‘Tell Me.’ Truly, the video is up for individual interpretation, but after I watched it a few times, I think it’s about a woman who initially feels defeated by an impending breakup but then turns it on its head, burns it down, and perhaps realizes she’s better off.” — Kristina Murray

Photo credit: James Paul Mitchell

LISTEN: Hannah Connolly, “Meet You There”

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Artist: Hannah Connolly
Hometown: Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Song: “Meet You There”
Album: From Where You Are
Release Date: January 31, 2019

In Their Words: “In writing this album about grief I knew I also wanted to share the beauty of moments when I still feel my brother’s presence. For me those moments often happen in nature, so spending time in wild places became an important source of comfort and healing. That’s what ‘Meet You There’ is about. This was one of the last songs on the record to be finished, because deep down I didn’t feel ready to write something hopeful. In a way, this song helped guide me toward a feeling I had been searching for. Writing it was a reminder of the joy my brother brought into the world, as well as the magic in moments when I know he is still with me.” — Hannah Connolly

Photo credit: Joanna Rentz

LISTEN: Union Duke, “Left Behind”

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Artist: Union Duke
Hometown: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Song: “Left Behind”
Release Date: January 28, 2020

In Their Words: “‘Left Behind’ is exactly what you think it is: a song about leaving things behind. We were trying to capture the feeling of loneliness and isolation one can feel when they’re far from the one(s) they love — both lyrically and musically. It’s about the distance often forced between us and the longing to be together again.

“The last of our four newest songs produced by Jeff Hazin, ‘Left Behind’ is the only soft-ish song of the music we’ve released over the last year and once we got in the studio with it we had the opportunity to explore some really cool ideas that are pretty new for us. It was a lot of fun building this tune and taking it from mellow and simmering to a driving banjo-driven sing-along. Plus: lap steel! (Played by our guitarist Rob McLaren.)” — Matt Warry-Smith, Union Duke

Photo credit: Alex Nunes