Tag: rising appalachia

You Gotta Hear This: New Music From Rising Appalachia, Tim O’Brien, and More

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

What a week in music! Not only has our Artist of the Month, Kaia Kater, released her new album Strange Medicine today, but we’ve also got an absolutely incredible premiere round-up filled to bursting with brand new videos, songs, and tracks.

First, there’s transcendent sister duo Rising Appalachia with a James Blake/Bon Iver cover, “I Need a Forest Fire,” and Tim O’Brien pays tribute to iconic folk songwriter Tom Paxton with a song they co-wrote, “You Took Me In.” Plus, don’t miss new songs from Ellorie McKnight, Natalie Spears, and Nick Taylor.

We round out our list with two premieres that debuted on BGS earlier in the week, a new one from Alisa Amador’s just announced album that features Madison Cunningham and Meadow Mountain continue their SkyTheory Sessions series with “Waiting for Tomorrow.”

It’s all right here on BGS and to be perfectly honest, You Gotta Hear This!

Rising Appalachia, “I Need a Forest Fire”

Artist: Rising Appalachia
Hometown: Asheville, North Carolina
Song: “I Need a Forest Fire”
Album: Folk and Anchor
Release Date: May 17, 2024

In Their Words: “‘I Need A Forest Fire,’ is our interpretation of a rich and righteous James Blake track. We have been big fans of his artistry and aural weavings for many years and wanted to do a folk rendition of this striking song. The texture of its sounds stretch far and wide in atmospheric rhythms as well as the lyrics and it took some deep digging to conceptualize what Blake was perhaps trying to say… Our interpretation is this:

“We live in a time of rapidly destructive (and so often man-made) wildfires in many parts of this planet. Singing a song that says ‘we need a wildfire’ felt cautionary, but enticing, as we explored the many metaphors that ‘forest fire’ could represent. We came to believe it is about the burning of the ego, the take down of destructive habits and destructive relationships, even destructive sides of self. In a time where everyone is on one side of the coin or the other, in a highly polarized nation, a burning symbolizes a great reset. A death and rebirth cycle. We hope you enjoy our take on this track as much as we have enjoyed stretching into its different sounds.” – Rising Appalachia

Tim O’Brien, “You Took Me In” (from Bluegrass Sings Tom Paxton)

Artist: Tim O’Brien
Song: “You Took Me In”
Album: Bluegrass Sings Paxton
Release Date: May 17, 2024 (single)
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

In Their Words: “Jan and I came of age listening to and then singing Paxton songs before we ever knew his name. We both learned ‘Last Thing on My Mind’ and sang it around campfires before we met each other. So like a lot of folks, we kinda have Paxton in our musical DNA.

“Tom has been friendly and supportive over the years and in recent years often expressed his desire to write together. With this project, push came to shove and Jan and I wrote ‘You Took Me In’ with Tom on our second session. I had the lyric idea and imagined some Earl Scruggs-style gospel guitar as backing. We had the song in about an hour. When we were done I asked Tom how many songs he’d written that week and he said, ‘I’ve written four songs today!’

“Paxton’s early songs were the kind that sorta begged audiences to sing along. This one reaches in that direction. I love how simple and direct it is. Since that day, the three of us have written another 15 songs, all of which are daring Jan and I to record them, so stay tuned. Songs are like little puzzles that a certain strata of musicians have fun solving. We’re just honored to sit beside Tom, even if only virtually, as he does his masterful thing. He knows to let the song happen. He can pull a lyric from an instrumental riff, he improvises easily, and you can just trust him. When he says to go higher with the melody or go to the four chord, we’re never afraid to follow.” – Tim O’Brien

Track Credits:
Tim O’Brien – Guitar, lead vocal
Jan Fabricius – Mandolin, harmony vocal
Shad Cobb – Fiddle, harmony vocal
Mike Bub – Upright bass

Ellorie McKnight, “Whitepass”

Artist: Ellorie McKnight
Hometown: Whitehorse, Yukon
Song: “Whitepass”
Album: Equinox
Release Date: May 3, 2024

In Their Words: “White Pass is a magical, remote mountainous area connecting Yukon’s southwest with Alaska. If you’re driving from Whitehorse, YT to Skagway, AK, you pass through mountains and boreal forest until you reach the Canadian border crossing, after which the road winds through 25km of treeless, rugged alpine terrain before dropping down towards the ocean, where you then drive through the US border and then into the coastal ecosystem of Skagway. There is no reception on this stretch of road and no sign of humans except for the road and the border patrol buildings.

“This part of the world is like a dream in summer: the sound of creeks is loud and the wild blueberries are everywhere. In the winter, the area is mystical no matter the weather, with meters of snow blanketing the valleys and mountains. I was making the trip from Whitehorse to Skagway in the middle of winter one year, late at night, to visit a friend. There was a raging blizzard and snow drifts forming on the road, it was hard to see more than a few feet ahead and the going was slow. I pulled over to catch my breath and stepped outside. The wind was steady and the sharp snowflakes bit into my cheeks. I looked up and was surprised when I saw a waxing moon in a clear night sky just above the fog of the ground blizzard. It was a moment of awe, of wonder, of feeling so intertwined with the earth and yet also so small. The song ‘Whitepass’ tries to capture the many similar moments I’ve felt spending time in this stunning part of the world.” – Ellorie McKnight

Track Credits: 
Ellorie McKnight – Guitar and vocals
Brigitte Desjardins – Drums
Jeff Dineley – Upright bass
Ryan McNally – Pedal steel and harmonies
Kieran Poile – Fiddle

Video Credit: Midnight Light Media

Natalie Spears, “Hymn Of Wild Things”

Artist: Natalie Spears
Hometown: Carbondale, Colorado
Song: “Hymn Of Wild Things”
Album: Hymn Of Wild Things
Release Date: May 17, 2024 (single); June 28, 2024 (album)
Label: SleeLee

In Their Words: “Early one chilly autumn morning, I awoke to the chortling cries of Sandhill Cranes echoing through our town. Their sound is one like no other, awkward, beautiful, and haunting. It is a sound that we only hear a few times a year as they journey along their migratory path towards warmer shores. Whenever I hear them, I drop everything I’m doing and try to find them. On that particular morning, I got up with my sweet pup and followed their cries to a local nature park near my home. The clouds were sunk low in the valley and although we could hear them close by, we still couldn’t see them. We sat quietly waiting and eventually the sun’s heat lifted the clouds revealing the ghostly shapes of two beautiful Sandhill Cranes. The words to this song began to take shape in my mind and it was then that Hymn Of Wild Things was born.” – Natalie Spears

Track Credits:
Written by Natalie Spears (BMI)
Produced by Jayme Stone

Natalie Spears – Voice
Christine Bougie – Guitars, lap steel
Pat Keen – Bass
Jayme Stone – Synth, drum programming

Nick Taylor, “Dogs”

Artist: Nick Taylor
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Song: “Dogs”
Album: Not Alone
Release Date: June 21, 2024

In Their Words: “As one of the earliest compositions I laid down for the album, it’s personal and cathartic, a reflection of the anxiety that’s been an ongoing part of my persona. Sometimes it gets particularly overwhelming and that’s how this song was born. It speaks to uncertainty — how it manifests, how it’s perceived by others, and how it affects those around us. When we went into the studio to record it, it just came alive. It was important to me to get it out into the world. It’s the song that inspired the album title, Not Alone, but more importantly, it explores topics that society tends to dismiss — especially when it comes to matters having to do with mental health, insecurity and stability. It calls for understanding and in that regard, my hope is that it will help anyone dealing with a similar situation feel less alone.

“‘Dogs’ is such an emotional song, almost a confessional, that we wanted to make sure the video felt personal. Shooting just one scene created a space where the lyrics were being recited directly to the audience and I think that format really works well with the song. Huge thanks to Will and the team for their vision and direction.” – Nick Taylor

Track Credits:
Written by Nicholas Taylor Wimberg

Nick Taylor – Lead vocals
Wayne Killius – Drums
Dave Francis – Bass
David Flint – Electric and acoustic guitars
Chris Nole – Piano/keys

Video Credits:
Produced by Charlotte Avenue Entertainment
Directed by William Gawley
Shot by Austin Boylen and Dominick Sotis

Meadow Mountain, “Waiting for Tomorrow” (SkyTheory Sessions)

Artist: Meadow Mountain
Hometown: Denver, Colorado
Song: “Waiting for Tomorrow”
Album: June Nights
Release Date: May 13, 2024 (single)

In Their Words: “This song attempts to answer the question, ‘What if, instead of starting the band Foo Fighters, Dave Grohl had picked up a mandolin and spent a year exclusively listening to Alison Krauss & Union Station?’ I guess I was doing a lot of thinking and writing about time – the great healer, but also that which brings an end to all things. And then a new beginning. This is a song about time, and hope.” – Jack Dunlevie

More here.

Alisa Amador, “Heartless Author” (feat. Madison Cunningham)

Artist: Alisa Amador
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts
Song: “Heartless Author” (featuring Madison Cunningham)
Album: Multitudes
Release Date: June 7, 2024
Label: Thirty Tigers

In Their Words: “I love this song. I love it because it acknowledges all of the uncertainties and pain of life and it shines compassion on all of it. ‘It’s okay not to know.’ It was such a joy to sing this one with Madison Cunningham. She learned it right then and there in the studio, and her voice says so much.” – Alisa Amador

More here.

Photo Credit: Rising Appalachia by Syd Woodward; Tim O’Brien by Scott Simontacchi

Basic Folk: Rising Appalachia

Posted on by Shelby Williamson

Sisters Leah Song & Chloe Smith grew up in urban Atlanta, they also lived in New Orleans and outside of Asheville. The pair are deeply rooted in their Southern identities as evidenced in their band, Rising Appalachia. Although their parents are not professional musicians, music was a constant part of the family. Their parents were dedicated students of early Appalachian music. The sisters played music everyday, were classically trained, and attended fiddle camps and music festivals among other musical activities. The sisters developed their own taste in Atlanta’s ’90s rap underground scene. There was a time when the two didn’t want anything to do with their parents’ music — however, eventually they came back to it and decided to pursue Appalachian music thanks to some time spent away living in Mexico.

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Aside from music, activism and purpose remain very important to Rising Appalachia. Leah’s idea for “The Slow Music Movement” came out of the desire to sustain the troubadour lifestyle over participating in the traditional touring musician industrial complex. While touring, the band requests local food in their rider, invite tabling from non-profits, and work to create relationships with the local community. They also will seek out alternative methods of transportation: trains or smaller vehicles that use non-fossil fuels. Rising Appalachia has been known to do hub shows where they stay for a few days and create relationships with the community. This past July, they hosted Catalyst, their first annual music, art and education festival in Asheville. Leah and I dug into how being musicians helped them create a space where artists felt welcome and taken care of. We also talk about Chloe’s new baby and how touring might be looking different this fall. Check them out and their latest album, Live At Preservation Hall.

Photo Credit: Syd Woodward

Rising Appalachia Offer an Uplifting Anthem to the Power of Appreciation

Posted on by Editor

Rising Appalachia‘s “Thank You Very Much” is an uplifting anthem, an homage to gratitude, and an expression of human experience. Sisters Leah Song and Chloe Smith, the constituents of Rising Appalachia, released this song seemingly out of the blue, but that has only deepened its impact since release. The song swirls in a rhythmic, entrancing manner that feels like a manifestation of reflection and contentment. Their song comes on unassumingly and grows patiently before fading away, coming and going like an epiphany of comforting truth.

“It moved into a wider place of gratitude…into a song that speaks as an anthem for us, to the so many radical and wild humans who have stepped in and helped make this music soar, and to the long road that we all walk together towards home. It is a testimony to the simple power of appreciation,” Leah Song says about the song’s creation and development. Coupled with the new release is the announcement of a brief fall tour that will find the duo performing in Appalachia and Florida. Listen to “Thank You Very Much” below.

The BGS Radio Hour – Episode 211

Posted on by Amy Reitnouer

Welcome to the BGS Radio Hour! Since 2017, this weekly radio show and podcast has been a recap of all the great music, new and old, featured on the digital pages of BGS. This week, we bring you new music from our June Artist of the Month, Chris Thile, as well as Robert Finley, Oliver Wood, and much more! Remember to check back every week for a new episode of the BGS Radio Hour.

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Robert Finley – “Sharecropper’s Son”

Singer-songwriter Robert Finley first picked up a guitar at age 11. He was raised in Jim Crow-era Louisiana amongst a family of sharecroppers and knew from a young age that his dream was to sing. Now, at sixty-seven-years-old, that dream is alive and well with his newly-released, third solo album, Sharecropper’s Son, made in collaboration with Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys. BGS recently caught up with Finley to talk about the new album, and how his upbringing and vast life experiences have shaped his music.


DoomFolk StarterKit – “Look at Miss Ohio”

For David Swick of DoomFolk StarterKit, recording any of Gillian Welch’s work is an honor. His cover of “Look at Miss Ohio” has a balance of lightness and melancholy in its’ arrangement, which Swick says represents the song’s theme of “making peace with uncertainty.”

Zach Person – “Wanna Fly”

Zach Person was inspired to write “Wanna Fly” after reflecting upon the social and political intensity of 2020. He cites “Dylan-esque” protest songs and the openness of the western plains as the two main influences of this powerful track.

Lula Wiles – “Call Me Up”

“Call Me Up,” from Lula Wiles’ new album, Shame and Sedition, is a lighter track amongst an album that aims to transform listeners and enact change. Between tender harmonies and mellow piano chords, the trio describes meeting with an old acquaintance, singing, “I know you’ve been taking it rough / You gotta just call me up.”

Oliver Wood – “Face of Reason”

BGS spoke with Oliver Wood of The Wood Brothers for a 5+5 in support of his new solo record, Always Smilin’. He told us about his biggest influences — from Ray Charles to Levon Helm — as well as how hard times can be processed through songwriting. When asked to write a mission statement for his career, he stated: “Just be completely yourself, because that’s all you have, and that’s enough.”

Dana Sipos – “Breathing Barrel”

Dana Sipos’ “Breathing Barrel” is a meditation of being at peace with the present moment. Written immediately upon returning home to the city from a music residency at the Banff Centre for the Arts, deep in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies, this song is an attempt to integrate a very powerful experience into the more mundane, everyday life.

Shannon McNally – “This Time”

Shannon McNally reimagines Waylon Jennings’ “This Time” by giving the lyrics a personal spin — singing not about a lover, but instead about her relationship with the music business as an artist and as a woman. For McNally, the song’s directness is a breath of fresh air, and it helped her get into the headspace that permitted her to sing the rest of the album.

Chris Thile – “Laysong”

The name Chris Thile is likely familiar to fans in any corner of roots music. Growing up in southern California, Thile rose to popularity with his childhood (and sometimes still adult) band Nickel Creek, and has since helped form the Punch Brothers, the Goat Rodeo Sessions, and other noteworthy collaborations. However, this summer Thile brings something special — a completely solo album entitled Laysongs. In celebration, he is our Artist of the Month, so be sure to stick around all month long for exclusive content from Chris Thile.

Mara Connor – “Old Man”

Mara Connor recorded “Old Man” at the same age Neil Young was when he wrote it about a caretaker who lived on his ranch. When she first heard the track, she was struck by the amount of empathy the songwriter exhibited at such a young age. Connor states that the song is an affirmation of how the world would be a better place if we took the time to see the humanity in each other’s eyes.

The Grascals – “Thankful”

2020 was a difficult year for us all, and it seems that we need uplifting music more now than ever before. “Thankful” is just that. The lyrics are a powerful reminder of the things we have to be grateful for and of the important things in life.

Rising Appalachia – “Catalyst”

Inspired by their recent release and the blooming of spring, Rising Appalachia’s Leah Song created a Mixtape for BGS, entitled Rising Appalachia’s Love Songs for Blooming Spring. The playlist features heartbreakers and heart-menders from John Prine to Hozier that are sure to make your heart bloom.

Eli Lev – “As It Is”

Eli Lev’s “As It Is” began to develop halfway through a 10-day meditation retreat he went on near the Florida coast at the beginning of the year. He states, “I experienced silent sunrises over the ocean and brilliant sunsets over the bay that brought on infinite color variations and led me to a unique insight that everything is changing while staying exactly ‘as it is’ in every moment.”

Kyle LaLone – “Learning How to Love”

Featuring the sweet sounds of classic country twang and harmonies by singer-songwriter Michaela Anne, Kyle Lalone’s “Learning How to Love” is a song that details the process of understanding how to be a good partner and showing up for someone in a relationship.

Photos: (L to R) Robert Finley by Alysse Gafjken; Shannon McNally by Alysse Gafjken; Chris Thile by Josh Goleman

The Show On The Road – Rising Appalachia

Posted on by Chris Jacobs
This week on the Show On The Road, a conversation with Chloe Smith of Rising Appalachia. In 2005 she founded this unique partnership with her sister Leah after their relentless world travels finally intersected in southern Mexico, where Leah had started mastering the banjo.

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Growing up in a musical family of traditional string-band players and contra-dance leaders near Atlanta, Rising Appalachia’s latest release, Leylines, mixes the rustic front porch sound of their childhood family jam sessions with a neon-tinted modern backbeat of dancehall electronics and mystical protest. That could have felt incongruous, but somehow these influences mix beautifully with their ethereal, intertwined vocals and darting fiddle-and-banjo runs.

While our host, Z. Lupetin, was able to catch up with Chloe for this cross-country conversation, Leah has been marooned in Costa Rica since the world shut down in March and continues to work from there. The sisters and their talented six-piece band have become a beloved fixture at music festivals throughout the United States, but have also played stages in Colombia, Costa Rica, India, Italy, Hungary, Bulgaria, The Czech Republic, Ireland, Scotland, and more. 

Always looking to challenge the traditional carbon-hungry touring routine, Leah dubbed their group as part of a growing “slow music movement”, and in this episode, Z. talks with Chloe about the time they toured remote Canadian farming islands via sailboat. It’s that kind of intimate and innovative traveling that Chloe would like to return to whenever the COVID-19 shutdown lifts in the coming years.

Stick around to the end of the episode for an acoustic version of “Harmonize” from Leylines, and check out Rising Appalachia’s newest single “Pulse,” featuring Dirtwire.

WATCH: Rising Appalachia, “Stand Like an Oak”

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Rising Appalachia
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia
Song: “Stand Like an Oak”
Release Date: April 22, 2020 (Earth Day)

In Their Words: “I wrote this song for a loved one going through the wave and arc of depression and anxiety, someone whom I wanted to sing a reminder to to find her roots and footing when the wind blows strong. Mental health is a gripping mountain for so many people to climb, and this song honors that journey as well as the people who pull us up out of it. Now, in the time of corona, we are seeing the necessary roles of music and healing practices in our abilities to see through this pandemic and stay steady on our course of compassion and strength. This song sings, like the mighty oaks, of claiming your little piece of earth fiercely when the storms pass through.” — Chloe Smith, Rising Appalachia

“‘Stand Like an Oak’ is a song to remind us of our innate sturdiness and deep roots in this vital dark soil of earth, the innate presence and stability of the oak tree as our model and muse of calmness in the great storms. In a time of so much unknown and anxiety around what is to come we must remember that we always have the tools of the deep ground beneath us, and the ritual for rushing waters to wash away that which does not serve us. Lean into this quiet, earthly realm to fortify and strengthen. ‘Leave it by the angels of the water…'” — Leah Smith, Rising Appalachia

Photo credit: Hemmie Lindholm

WATCH: Rising Appalachia Are Familiar and Fresh on NPR’s Tiny Desk

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Atlanta-based, globally-influenced string band Rising Appalachia bring a unique flavor to American roots music. Drawing on modern styles and traditional sentiments, they craft an original take on folk. Fronted by sisters Leah and Chloe Smith, the band has a sound that is at once familiar and fresh, incorporating various world percussion instruments, reggae-esque grooves, and fluttery melodies that deliver the songs’ meanings with clarity and precision. Like many folk artists before them, Rising Appalachia are no strangers to building art around their activism. One action the band prides itself on is the Slow Music Movement, an idea aimed at creating sustainable practices for touring entertainment acts and re-framing performance as a public service. Watch Rising Appalachia on NPR’s Tiny Desk.

Rising Appalachia Tie Worlds Together with ‘Leylines’

Posted on by Editor

Just weeks ago Leah Smith of Rising Appalachia, the harmonizing duo with her sister Chloe, stood on a high peak and sang the old traditional tune “Across the Blue Ridge Mountains.” She was at the end of a stay in a remote village, and some local women surrounded her for a send-off.

“They circled us up and did traditional music with drums and flute,” she says.

Smith’s song was in appreciative answer, a thank-you for their hospitality. It was a perfect encapsulation of Rising Appalachia, connecting through music with people and the land that nourishes them.

This mountaintop, though, was in the Andes, not the Appalachians, perched above Peru’s Sacred Valley. Leah, Chloe and the four musicians of their band had just finished a six-week concert tour in South America. The others had gone back to the U.S., but Leah stayed behind for a little extra experience. And what an experience it was.

“To close my eyes and receive this absolutely magnificent mountain range in front of me, and these women who are community weavers and medicine keepers around me, and singing this song from my mountains to them in their mountains was a deep offering,” she says, speaking from the Atlanta house in which she and Chloe grew up.

This chat comes on the eve of the release of Rising Appalachia’s seventh album, Leylines. The title is a word for perceived connections and alignments of natural features around the globe, often used in a mystical sense. And that’s exactly what the album, and Rising Appalachia itself, are about.

Here they illuminate lines connecting gospel, fiddle tunes (some learned from their mom, Jan), African and Irish roots and interpolations of contemporary urban folk and soul. Joining the sisters are their regular colleagues David Brown (stand-up bass) and Biko Cassini (percussion and the West African stringed n’goni), plus two new members, West African native Arouna Diarra (also n’goni) and Irish musician Duncan Wickel (fiddle, cello).

The South America jaunt has already sparked “Agua de la Madre,” a new song that Leah wrote in Spanish, inspired by water-rights concerns of the region. But the focus now is on Leylines, made in a seaside studio in Northern California with producer Joe Henry. Leylines marks the first time the sisters have put their art in the trust of an outside producer, but it resulted in mutual appreciation.

“Leah and Chloe are fearless artists, as well as fierce activists,” he says. “They arrived with a sharp and committed point-of-view, yet were wildly open to what might otherwise transpire. I felt the same when I worked with Baez and [Harry] Belafonte — as well as when I produced their hero, Ani DiFranco, many years ago.”

In this BGS interview, Leah Smith explores a multitude of musical influences from around the globe and close to home.

BGS: Before we talk about the new album, tell us about South America.

Leah Smith: It was the band’s first time touring there. We’ve always preferred that our music is a vehicle of cultural exchanges. That’s the primary goal of Rising Appalachia. We’re building bridges and learning other people’s traditions and showcasing ours, and using that as a language. I lived for six years in Latin America — not consecutively. I moved to Mexico when I was 18. We have a really amazing fan base in South America and went to some places none of us had been. We learned about the music traditions and farming traditions, a lot of sustainability practices. We did our due diligence of what we think of as troubadours — musical ambassadors and students of the world.

Leylines was made before this trip, but will certainly impact your music to come, as other travels have before.

The name of the band really indicates what we do. It’s called Rising Appalachia. Appalachia is the foundations roots and culture we were born into. Rising out of it, using that foundation to grow wide branches. I always say about our work that we will never run out of material to study, to learn, to be influenced by. It’s impossible to run out. Every conversation on every trip adds to the fabric of our songwriting and goes into the lens that we view music through.

You start the album with traditional gospel in “I Believe in Being Ready.” Was that a big part of your musical life?

We grew up with so much of the Southern music in our home. Everything from jazz to gospel to old-time Appalachian roots music — and everything in between. This album is such a journey and departs in so many directions from the real simplicity that started our project 15 years ago. But we felt it was important for us to get the first breath of the album in the foundation of where our music came from. It’s got that old, archaic sound, very simple sister harmonies and a bit of the apocalyptic sense of the world coming to the end, in the gospel sense.

That’s a thread that runs through the rest of the album?

That’s what we wanted to do. I feel like every album is a chapter in our story, in a book of our lives. This to me is really exciting. Whether you’re remotely interested in the roots of music or not, this album holds all the roots of Appalachian music. We’ve always been influenced by that — the African roots of it, the Irish roots, the urban presence of Southern music, all the ways a very diverse and broad community has influenced Southern music. But we’ve never really presented it like this.

There are a couple of fiddle-tune pieces on this one, drawing on some of your first music experiences.

“Cuckoo” is one of my favorite songs on the album. We learned it from our mother and I just love that. Her version of this old traditional Appalachian song. I feel like we’ve probably known versions of “Cuckoo” since we were little kids. She has a beautiful trio, the Rosin Sisters. They recorded this version a few years ago and we said, “We’re gonna learn that version.”

Your dad is a musician too?

He’s primarily a [visual] folk artist, but also plays blues guitar.

Do you all still play and sing as a family?

We do all the time! Every now and then we get them up on stage, but they are reluctant. I don’t know why. I would love for them to join us more often. I think they don’t want to be assuming that it’s okay.

On the song “Sadjuna” you explore African sounds.

That’s a song that Arouna Diarra brought to us, a traditional West African song. We do several different songs that are Arouna’s. This one had an incredible surreal dreamlike state to it. The song in its origin is very much about people that leave the world too young — when families lose young people in war or strife, or when parents see the passing of their children. So Chloe and I wanted to write two verses to accompany it that held the same space. I don’t like to be over-literal. But we wanted to bring that to people, a balm for people who had that passing in their lives.

For “Make Magic” you cite Erykah Badu and André 3000 of Outkast as influences. It still sounds like folk music, though with some different aspects. How does their impact figure into it?

That is our folk tradition, as young women growing up in the ‘90s in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. That’s where the genre [labels] don’t serve us. Hip-hop and soul are urban folk music, storytelling music.

More expected is the influence of Ani DiFranco, particularly on “Speak Out,” on which she guests.

Ani had such a potent influence on me as a young woman from the urban South. My folk traditions were a lot of underground hip-hop and blues and soul, and the folk music our parents were playing felt very distant to me. Ani was a bridge, this young, folk-rock, righteous babe, but she was playing Woody Guthrie songs and had a banjo in her hands. I was so inspired to see a radical young woman carrying these traditions that I did not have access to. And to top that off, using the stage, using her platform to be talking about really important issues — voting, women’s rights — with no apologies. Wasn’t polite, wasn’t tidy, was in your face and made you think.

What would you consider your mission?

What’s our signature mission? We don’t have one, really. We believe our roles are as public servants. It’s a public service job. We are collecting the joys and sorrows and struggles of ours and of our community. We want to know what the community is talking about and that has to be part of our show. Different every night. Water rights and human rights. Our role is to provide the stage for the people who show up night after night. We have to listen. That is an important thing.

Photo credit: Chad Hess

Op-ed: Song of the Times

Posted on by Editor

“The holiest place on earth is where an ancient hatred has become a current love.” –– A Course in Miracles

“Resilient” was written after the election, during Standing Rock, and while on tour. It came out like a wild horse from our mouths, the kind of song that responds to the times itself before you have much to say about it. I had to get out of its way, really. Song catching, some folks say. To be resilient means to come back to your original shape after being bent, broken, or compressed. I believe everyone can relate to that word in their own way right now, and my prayer is that the song somehow finds the people who need to hear it most. Songs always do that on their own. They live such broad lives, once they leave your throat.

I relate both the word and the song, “Resilient,” to many things — to my time spent in New Orleans after Katrina; to the #MeToo Movement; to my own resurgence after difficult times in our family; to a time in my career when I wasn’t feeling much like singing in the public eye. Right after the 2016 U.S. presidential election, there was so much animosity in the air, from all sides of the spectrum, that most folks I knew wanted to hide out and regroup privately — turning inward to seek quiet amidst all the yelling and celebration. However, we had a tour booked for an entire month — the Resilient Tour — that put us in venues, community centers, and public spaces to share our songs with the people. What happened throughout that month was an incredible weaving of national stories and personal triumph, and it put me right back on track with what my work is meant to serve.

As an artist, sometimes you have to get out of the way of your craft … let it live and breath on its own … being careful not to confine its girth. The Resilient Tour reminded us of the original essence of the troubadour, the griot, the traveling wordsmith. It’s a great honor, service, and privilege to play music for a living, and we have never taken that lightly. The stage is a gathering tool of energy and bodies, of power and communication. It’s like a radio tower emitting information across the world through melody and rhythm. I’ve witnessed songs change the air in a stagnant room and breathe life into a tightened face. In writing “Resilient,” I wanted to speak to that beautiful mystery.

As the song released to the public, we had the great honor to join a 250-mile Ancestral Healing prayer walk that spanned from Rosebud, South Dakota, to Fort Laramie, Wyoming, commemorating the 150th year of the signing of the Fort Laramie treaty. The walk culminated a four-year journey between the direct descendants of both sides of the Blue Water Massacre, retracing the steps of a brutal history in a peaceful way. As allies to our friends (the descendants Paul Soderman and Phil Little Thunder), my sister, our drummer Biko, about 20 other walkers, and I embarked upon this resilient walk to pay homage to the indigenous people of America, as well as witness the destructive legacy of promises unkept by governments both then and now. We joined the final four days of the walk, putting our feet on the pavement for 50 miles and listening to so many beautiful stories along the way from elders in the communities we were passing and other allies throughout our walk. At our sides were horses, prayer bundles, endless jokes and laughter, historical markers, children, old folks wizened by the journey, countless songs to sing, and stories to share. The land was vast in its dryness and enchanting in its huge sky. It took your breath away without much effort, and you could feel the history that has taken place there deep inside your bones.

When we walked our final day into Fort Laramie, there was a palpable emotion in the air. Anger. Resentment. Healing. Connection. Celebration. Commemoration. Protection. Family. In a time of so much national negative discourse and noise, it was our great honor to listen and lean in there. “Resilient” came that much more alive for us.

This song is for the times, for anyone who needs to be reminded of that word right now. It’s not about sides or favorable politics. It’s not about preaching to the choir. Its written to remind ourselves, first and foremost, that our bodies are resilient. Our families are resilient. Our work is resilient. Our pain and our pasts are resilient and, when we come together honestly and with a sense of willingness to listen, barriers break down all across the board.

I am resilient
I trust the movement
I negate the chaos
Uplift the negative
I’ll show up at the table, again and again and again
I’ll close my mouth and learn to listen

These times are poignant
The winds have shifted
It’s all we can do
to stay uplifted
Pipelines through backyards
Wolves howlin’ out front
Yeah I got my crew, but truth is what I want
Realigned and on point
Power to the peaceful
Prayers to the waters
Women at the center
All vessels open, to give and receive
Let’s see this system brought down to its knees

I’m made of thunder, I’m made of lightning
I’m made of dirt, yeah
Made of the fine things
My father taught me that I’m a speck of dust
And this world was made for me
so let’s go and try our luck
I’ve got my roots down down down down down deep

So what are we doing here
What has been done ?
What are you going to do about it?
When the world comes undone ?
My voice feels tiny and im sure so does yours
Put us all together we’ll make a mighty roar

— Chloe Smith of Rising Appalachia

3×3: Rising Appalachia on Latin America, Lucky Ages, and Leonard Cohen

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Artist: Rising Appalachia
Hometown: Atlanta, GA. The dirty South.
Latest Album: ALIVE
Personal Nicknames (or Rejected Band Names): The band considered the Grassy RootHeads, Squalor, RISE, but Rising Appalachia was the name of our first album and it stuck as the band name 12 years ago.
Leah: L-Dogg, Snake Eyes, Leo, Leah the Lip, Sito, Wakes Talking, chief meteorologist
Chloe: Chlo-Bo, Bo, Boskers, Trisket Biscuit, The Dark Queen, Sito, Pumkin, Pum Pum

 

Take me to your ocean. Take me to your sea… #FloydFest #risingappalachia #ilovemyfilthydirtysouth Photo @leahsongmusic

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What song do you wish you had written?

Leah: “When Doves Cry” by Prince.

Chloe: “Hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen (Doesn’t everyone wish they wrote that damn song?!)

Who would be in your dream songwriter round?

Leah: Gillian Welch, Outkast, Bob Dylan, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Ani Difranco, Robert Johnson, the Buena Vista Social Club, Lila Downs, Bonnie Rait, Prince.

Chloe: Ani Difranco, Hosier. Nahko. Mos Def. Erykah Badu. Bob Marley. Joni Mitchell.

If you could only listen to one artist’s discography for the rest of your life, whose would you choose?

Leah: Bruce Molsky. Makes me feel home.

Chloe: Ohhhhhhh. That’s a hard one! Probably Bob Marley.

 

As one of our elders put it last night, We want to put the U.S in a chair in the middle of the room Surrounded by healers, activists, grandmothers, lovers, and children And tell it how good it could be. How it could rise to the occasion of its full potential in the face of white supremacy, the dismantling of Standing Rock, of distasteful leaders and embarrassing media, of capitalism over culture. All these hard working people from all corners of the globe. This land and all its beauty. We have so much more work to do And I know folks are tired. What else is there to do but show up again and again and again and again ? In solidarity with the people of Charlottesville and all others whom work to uplift the story of the south (and this country) May love triumph. . . . #notmysouth #blacklivesmatter #notoursouth #standup #speakout #showup #solidarity #alternateroots

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How often do you do laundry?

Leah: What a weird question. Um , whenever the duty is called for. Depends on the show night.

Chloe: All the time. Randomly on the road and we string it all up to dry in the back of the bus, which gets pretty intimate and funny.

What was the last movie that you really loved?

Leah: I almost NEVER watch movies. But I watched an amazing South American film on the plane the other day called Vengo Olviendo that was a beautifully filmed, slow and delicate story about the complexity of human migration. It was excellent.

Chloe: I loved the movie LION that just came out about the boy who got lost in India and found his way back home via Google Maps. Crazy wild true story. Reminded me that technology can be a good thing (I can get a little anti).

If you could re-live one year of your life, which would it be and why?

Leah: Hmmm, I would probably go back to my early 20s, when I was traveling out of a backpack across Latin America learning to play banjo and studying folk music from all over the place. It was such a free and inspired time in my life. Not nearly as weighted as this whole “professional musician” thing. 

Chloe: Year 7. Lucky number, lucky age, the mind is so open and spongey at that time. I’d go hang with my grandparents some more and pick their brains … especially my father’s mother who was a poet.

What’s your go-to comfort food?

Chloe: Thai food all day every day.

Kombucha — love it or hate it?

Leah and Chloe: LOVE ! Although once we got sponsored by a kombucha company and things got a little too fermenty in the van. It has to be handled in the right dosages.

Mustard or mayo?

Dijon