Tag: premiere

LISTEN: Zoe & Cloyd, “Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down”

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Artist: Zoe & Cloyd
Hometown: Asheville, North Carolina
Song: “Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down”
Album: I Am Your Neighbor
Release Date: June 14, 2019 (single); Fall 2019 (album)
Label: Organic Records

In Their Words: “‘Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down’ is a traditional African American spiritual that we learned from a solo field recording of Frank Proffitt from 1965. Proffitt claimed to have learned the song from a black banjo player named Dave Thompson, also from the Sugar Grove area of northwestern North Carolina. It is a simple yet powerful musical statement, and Natalya’s stark, solo vocal mirrors the sound of many old-time source recordings that we love. The lyrics are haunting and hypnotic and our version features flat-picked guitar and bowed upright bass coupled with the more ‘old-time’ elements of cross-tuned fiddle and clawhammer banjo. There is a timelessness to this song that contributes to its survival. Every generation has its Satan. — John Cloyd Miller

Photo credit: Sandlin Gaither

WATCH: Merle Monroe, “Dad”

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Artist: Merle Monroe
Hometown: Sanford, Florida (Tim Raybon) and Elizabethton, Tennessee (Daniel Grindstaff)
Song: “Dad”
Album: Back to the Country
Release Date: June 21, 2019
Label: Pinecastle Records

In Their Words: “Out of all the titles I have had, ‘Dad’ is the best. This song resonates with me on many levels — my own dad, the father figures I have had influence me through the years, and being a dad to my two sons. Words can’t describe how wonderful I feel when I hear ‘I love you, Dad.'” — Daniel Grindstaff

“To all the Dads who go to work everyday to provide for their family… Save a little back for a weekend fishing trip or have to buy gym shoes for their kids to play ball. Thank you Dad for all you do for us!” — Tim Raybon

Photo credit: Pinecastle Records

LISTEN: Ariana Gillis, “The Maze”

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Artist: Ariana Gillis
Hometown: Vineland, Ontario, Canada
Song: “The Maze”
Album: The Maze
Release Date: June 14, 2019

In Their Words: “‘The Maze’ is based upon the Greek myth of the Minotaur in the labyrinth. The hero, Theseus, needs to find his way back out and he does so with the help of a ball of thread. The song deals with the questions, ‘What are we most afraid of? Are these fears real or are they just imagined?’ The ribbon in the song is the thread that guides us through dark and frightening times in our lives. By facing our fears head-on we develop a strength and courage that we never had before.That’s what ‘The Maze’ means to me.” — Ariana Gillis

Photo credit: David Gillis

LISTEN: Breaking Grass, “Old Pharr Mounds”

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Artist: Breaking Grass
Hometown: Booneville, Mississippi
Song: “Old Pharr Mounds”
Album: COLD
Release Date: June 21, 2019
Label: Mountain Fever Records

In Their Words: “‘Old Pharr Mounds’ was written about a large group of Native American burial mounds near my home in Northeast Mississippi. It’s rumored that this area is home to a Bigfoot-like creature that has been seen in the joining slough. I’ve been told about it all my life, and to my knowledge, film crews and college groups have even visited trying to capture video and sound recordings of it. It’s our local legend and makes for a fun story. I hope you all enjoy ‘Old Pharr Mounds.'” — Cody Farrar, Breaking Grass

Photo credit: Kady Carter Photography

LISTEN: Clare Bowen, “Tide Rolls In”

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Artist: Clare Bowen
Hometown: South Coast, New South Wales, Australia
Song: “Tide Rolls In” (featuring Buddy Miller)
Album: Clare Bowen
Release Date: July 12, 2019
Label: BMG

In Their Words: “‘Tide Rolls In’ is about people and things that seemed like a good idea at the time. We’ve all put our love in the wrong place at some point — my romantic career before I met my sweet, wonderful husband Brandon was a proverbial train wreck, with napalm on top. Brandon and I have the most incredible love story that people ask me about all the time, and I want everyone to know that we didn’t just find each other immediately. It started with self love, for both of us. If you’ve made dreadful romantic choices in the past, you’re not damaged goods, like I thought I was — you are a beautiful, unique creature who deserves to be loved so very much. Especially by your own heart.” — Clare Bowen

Photo Courtesy of Activist Artist Management

LISTEN: Michael Paul Lawson, “Memories and Throttle”

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Artist: Michael Paul Lawson
Hometown: Norfolk, Virginia
Song: “Memories and Throttle”
Album: Some Fights You’ll Never Win
Release Date: July 12, 2019

In Their Words: “Driving has always been a kind of therapy for me. It’s where I do a lot of personal reflection and allow myself to sink into thoughts and feelings that I need to work through. Around the time I wrote ‘Memories and Throttle,’ I was trying pretty hard to win back the affections of someone that was pretty resolute in their position. I would get in the car and a thousand different scenes would play out in my head, each one ultimately leading to the same outcome. But even when I’m in a better place and not longing for some lost love, I still find myself going back through past relationships when I’m on the road. It’s a nostalgia trigger, and it’s addicting.” — Michael Paul Lawson

Photo credit: Rico Marcelo

LISTEN: Whitey Johnson, “If It’s Really Gotta Be This Way”

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Artist: Whitey Johnson (aka Gary Nicholson)
Hometown: Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
Song: “If It’s Really Gotta Be This Way”
Album: More Days Like This
Release Date: June 7, 2019
Label: Blue Corn Music

In Their Words: “‘If It’s Really Gotta Be This Way’ was co-written with Donnie Fritts and Arthur Alexander. One of Donnie’s treasured memories is of being present at the studio above the drugstore in Florence, Alabama, when Arthur walked in snapping his fingers and singing ‘You Better Move On.’ I was thrilled to have the opportunity to write and play on a new record by one of the greatest singer-songwriters of his time, revered and covered by Beatles, Stones, Dylan, and many more. It was so sad when Arthur passed before he could tour for the record. I played his last show with him, and we did our song. It’s so great to finally record my own version. I’m forever grateful to my dear friend Donnie Fritts for getting us together.” — Whitey Johnson

Photo credit: Stacie Huckaba

LISTEN: The Iveys, “Whatever Comes”

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Artist: The Iveys
Hometown: El Paso, Texas
Song: “Whatever Comes”
Album: Colors of Honey
Release Date: June 7, 2019

In Their Words: “This song was a work of love. ‘Whatever Comes’ came to me as an idea I had of a parent talking to their child and telling them to not listen to any negativity from others, to not ever doubt themselves, and to believe with all their heart that they can, and will, accomplish great things in life. My co-writer and sister, Jenna Ivey, deserves a lot of credit for bringing this song to where it is now. I almost gave up on it at one point! But she is a great lyricist, and as we talked through the song, she reminded me that parents want their children to grow up strong, to climb mountains, take on challenges, and face the fears…whatever comes. After all, there’s no such thing as a dream too big.” — Arlen Ivey

Photo credit: Fernie Ceniceros

LISTEN: Lindsay Lou, “Ready”

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Artist: Lindsay Lou
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Ready”
Release Date: June 7, 2019

In Their Words: “‘Ready’ is about coming out of the darkness of doubt into the jubilation of knowing love is within us and all around us. Living in that light is empowering, but in the haze of hate speech and the endless broadcasting of bad news it can be easy to lose sight. Reclamation of love and finding faith in the ebb and flow feels like Mother Nature breathing new life into barren branches after a long winter.” — Lindsay Lou

Photo credit: Scott Simontacchi

LISTEN: Liz Vice, “It Was Good”

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Artist: Liz Vice
Hometown: Portland, Oregon (currently Brooklyn, New York)
Song: “It Was Good”
Release Date: Single — May 31, 2019

In Their Words: “We are more alike than different. I like to erase the line between the stage and the audience by bringing some people on stage (when possible). When I perform ‘It Was Good,’ I always break the ice by saying this is my ‘Make America Great Again’ song. The crowd reaction is about 50/50 haha. My hope is to transport the audience back to a time, that I believe describes the creation of the world and humans in a poetic way; a short time of innocence before humans decided to play god and draw the line between good and evil/’us vs. them.’ If I only have 5 minutes to remind a group of people that they are made from love to love freely, then I hope ‘It Was Good’ does the job and in the process, through their faces, I, too, am reminded to love.” — Liz Vice

Photo credit: Chimera Rene