Tag: premiere

LISTEN: Kevin Daniel, “Time to Rise”

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Artist: Kevin Daniel
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Song: “Time to Rise”
Album: Things I Don’t See
Release Date: July 12, 2019 (single)

In Their Words: “I wrote the first draft of ‘Time to Rise’ at my hotel in Nashville during AmericanaFest in 2018. My friend and I were riffing and he gave me a word to rhyme. That word was ‘apologize’ and then a song came out, which I worked on over the next few months. It features Shannon Soderlund from Punch The Sun on vocals, singing into a super vintage RCA mic from the 50s. We met at a random show in NYC and she’s so good, I just had to have her sing.” — Kevin Daniel

Photo credit: Robbie Quinn

WATCH: Kacy & Clayton, “The Forty-Ninth Parallel”

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Artist: Kacy & Clayton
Hometown: Rural Saskatchewan
Song: “The Forty-Ninth Parallel”
Album: Carrying On (produced by Jeff Tweedy)
Release Date: October 4th, 2019
Label: New West Records

In Their Words: “‘The Forty-Ninth Parallel’ video was filmed in Regina, Saskatchewan, and it shouldn’t be hard to tell. Filmmaking treasure, Sunny Adams, has created somewhat of a young woman’s ‘Experience Regina’ demonstration video. There are off-putting moments throughout involving a Bud Light Lime hat, a very faint farmer’s tan, and a couple of total Sasky party machines. The song itself is a Gen Z’s attempt at a fable. The moral is skewed but there still is one if you’re looking. Watching a truck rip donuts to our song has been an unexpected highlight of my life and I hope others may enjoy it too.” — Kacy Anderson

Photo credit: Mat Dunlap

LISTEN: Louisa Branscomb’s “Gonna Love Anyway”

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Featured Songwriter: Louisa Branscomb
Hometown: Cartersville, Georgia
Song: “Gonna Love Anyway” (written by Louisa Branscomb and Jennifer Strickland, performed by Sierra Hull, Jim Hurst, Bryan McDowell, Missy Raines, & Molly Tuttle)
Album: Gonna Love Anyway
Release Date: July 26, 2019
Label: Compass Records

In Their Words: “Being a songwriter keeps you honest if you let it. When I began this project, I’d been through a time of loss and change, including a tornado that took out my farm, losing both parents, and a little heartbreak thrown in to sweeten the mix. So I was looking for images of hope and resilience. Those images became the theme, and then the songs became the album. The song I worked the project around is ‘Gonna Love Anyway,’ with images of fragility and survival at the same time: a flower blooming in December, a cloud letting go of rain, and finally the guitar you pick up on a gamble that there’s one more song. I was so honored that Molly Tuttle agreed to do this one; she herself has such artistic power and grace at the same time, so it’s a perfect match. That is true of Sierra Hull, Jim Hurst, Bryan McDowell, and Missy Raines as artists as well, and that’s why I think this collaboration is so stunning and magical.” — Louisa Branscomb

Photo credit: Vicki Burton

LISTEN: Philippe Bronchtein, “Oregon Air”

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Artist: Philippe Bronchtein
Hometown: Portland, Oregon / Montclair, New Jersey (now based in Nashville, Tennessee)
Song: “Oregon Air”
Album: Oregon Air EP
Release Date: July 23, 2019

In Their Words: “I remember finishing the song ‘Oregon Air’ at my friend Martin’s kitchen table in Seattle. The song had sat half-finished for a few years as a patchwork of imagery about my hometown in New Jersey. Over the course of the afternoon it morphed into an introspective saga about what home means, contrasting landmarks of my adopted hometown of Portland, Oregon, with the childhood familiarity of New Jersey. The song asks more questions than it answers, but the immediacy of time and place within the track hopefully leaves the listener with a silhouette of what home means to them.” — Philippe Bronchtein

Photo Credit: Laura Partain

LISTEN: Charlie and the Rays, “Away For The Weekend”

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Artist: Charlie and the Rays
Hometown: New York, New York
Song: “Away For The Weekend”
Album: That’s Where You Were Born
Release Date: July 5, 2019

In Their Words: “We had just gotten back from a small tour out to Montana [when] Rebecca heard about a protest in Seattle where some people had been tear-gassed by police. Like so much of the news today, it was deeply upsetting that this event didn’t circulate through the public like we thought it would. This song is the reaction to a seemingly futile social and political atmosphere and our confusion about the best way to create momentum surrounding important civil rights issues. It may seem like a song about heartbreak, because it is. We are heartbroken that school children are continuously being shot up in our country, and that the color of someone’s skin dictates the likelihood of being shot and killed by those who are supposed to be protecting us. We don’t know the answers, but we hope this song can spur conversation and motivate change.” — Jordan Stobbe, Charlie and the Rays

Photo credit: Anna Letson

LISTEN: Ben Winship, “A Little Goes a Long Way”

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Artist: Ben Winship
Hometown: Victor, Idaho
Song: “A Little Goes a Long Way”
Album: Acorns
Release Date: July 19, 2019
Label: Snake River Records

In Their Words: “Life presents us all with many recurring themes — some are daily joys (like the first cup of coffee), others more irritating (like mosquitoes or people who talk too much). Some folks navigate the hard stuff with zen-like grace. Others yell and throw stuff, and worse. Me, I tend to quietly suck it up, while secretly fuming inside. Occasionally a song comes out of it. ‘A Little Goes a Long Way’ is a comment on my lifelong tendency towards impatience, set to an old-time groove.” — Ben Winship

Photo credit: Lara Agnew Photography

LISTEN: Valley Queen, “Razorblade” and “In the Garden”

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Artist: Valley Queen
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Song: “Razorblade” // “In the Garden”
Album: Supergiant (Deluxe Edition)
Release Date: June 28, 2019
Label: Roll Call Records

In Their Words: “We have been looking forward to releasing these tracks, as they were recorded in the same sessions as our debut album, Supergiant. This pairing felt like the cool-down songs of the record and were recorded last, eventually [carving] it down to just the 12-string guitar and vocals on ‘In the Garden.’ They were some of the first written in various down and open tunings on the guitar, serving as our kind of working homage to [Led Zeppelin’s] ‘Rain Song.’ ‘Razorblade’ explores the entanglement of shame, intimacy, beauty, and dependency. ‘In the Garden’ meditates on feminine tranquility and experiential states of being.” — Natalie Carol, Valley Queen

Photo credit: Mark Cluney

WATCH: Old Salt Union, “Tell Me So” (Feat. Bobby Osborne)

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Artist: Old Salt Union
Hometown: St. Louis, Missouri
Song: “Tell Me So” (Featuring Bobby Osborne)
Album: Where the Dogs Don’t Bite
Release Date: August 16, 2019
Label: Compass Records

In Their Words: “‘Tell Me So’ was an old song idea we had that we brought back to life with the help of Bobby Osborne. You know, an honest tune with simple lyrics about daily frustrations and uncertainties. I think really the track pays homage to traditional bluegrass and parlor-style call-and-response.” — Justin Wallace, mandolin

Photo credit: Sekondtry

LISTEN: L.A. Edwards, “Reign Over Me”

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Artist: L.A. Edwards
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Song: “Reign Over Me”
Release Date: June 24, 2019

In Their Words: “‘Reign Over Me’ is the follow-up single after our debut record, True Blue. Ron Blair from The Heartbreakers was at the helm producing again, so it definitely models itself after many of the classic Petty records with a fresh take. We wanted to abstain from any sort of modern overproduction and really emphasize lyrical strength and Americana grit, taking inspiration from Petty’s Wildflowers, Neil Young’s Harvest, and Jackson Browne’s Running on Empty. It’s an honest recount of times spent in the Southeast touring during hurricane season with my brothers. We always have a good time singing this one.” — L.A. Edwards

Photo credit: Mike Bresnen

LISTEN: Molly Parden & Hollow Hum, “Why Worry”

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Artist: Molly Parden & Hollow Hum
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Why Worry”
Album: Why Worry: A Collection of Covers
Release Date: June 28, 2019
Label: Independent / Distribution with Tone Tree Music.

In Their Words: “The essence of Mark Knopfler was introduced to me back in 2012 and I wish I could remember which of his songs I heard first. I had no knowledge of Dire Straits or their international stardom, absolutely none. Only this deep, gentle voice with a backing band that sounds like it has been there since the dawn of time, a sole guitar, smooth as butter with intermittent growly tone to let you know Mark wields power, but uses it ever so mercifully. His songs are hymns to me. ‘Sailing to Philadelphia,’ which is basically a musical history lesson featuring James Taylor, nearly brings me to tears. ‘Back to Tupelo’ and ‘Our Shangri-La’ are in the vault, the one that I send to space and then it comes back to my children 50 years later with 10 Things That Mommy Needs You To Have. But this song, ‘Why Worry,’ is a Dire Straits tune off of Brothers in Arms (1985) — I first heard it as a duet between Emmylou Harris and Mark — that has been covered by the Everly Brothers, Chet Atkins, and now I can proudly add my name to the list. Featured on this version is London’s resident guitar aficionado Matt Park. I discovered that he and I share a mutual admiration for The Knopf whilst we together were on tour with Sam Outlaw in the summer of 2018.” — Molly Parden

“This song was new to me, Molly played it for me once, and of course I wanted to cut it with her. It’s just one of those timeless songs that brings an immediate exhale and sense of comfort. The simple arrangement lets the vocal sit out front and really communicate the message of the song, which I love. Because it’s not such a well-known track, I hope some new ears discover this beautiful tune.” — Hollow Hum

Photo credit: Marcus Maddox