All three of us went to college in Seattle at a school tucked between Fremont and Queen Anne. At the time, pre-Amazon, we knew the city best for its bridges and sailor vibes and constant grey blanket of melancholy. When you’re driving around at night on top of Queen Anne Hill, thinking about your unrequited love (just me?) the city views of blinking lights are spectacular and the LiveJournal entry is brewing in your mind. These are the songs you’re listening to. – Joseph (Natalie Schepman, Allison and Meegan Closner)
Nick Drake – “From the Morning”
I chose the song with “morning” in the title as the first track of this Night Drive mixtape. Sequence is very important in a mix for a night drive. The first verse says “A day once dawned from the ground / Then the night she fell.” It sets the stage and delivers the opening monologue. — Natalie
Laura Veirs – “When You Give You Give Your Heart”
One of my favorite songwriters:
“My stampeding buffalo Stops in her tracks and watches the snow Falling through the old oak tree When you give your heart to me.” — Natalie
Blanco White – “Ollala”
I found this song on a curated Spotify playlist and I haven’t been able to stop listening to it. It’s become one of my partner’s and my favorite songs to listen to together. — Allie
Fleetwood Mac – “Sara”
My friend showed me this song and told me her Mom used to sing it to her as a kid while she was tucking her into bed. I’ve never been able to shake that childhood movie moment when I hear this song. I listen to it as though that were my own comforting memory. — Meegan
Iron & Wine – “Naked as We Came”
This is a mood, isn’t it? I bet anyone who loved this song gets taken back to where they listened to it. It’s the quintessential Night Drive feeling. — Natalie
John Moreland – “Hang Me in the Tulsa County Stars”
This song means 1,000 things to me, but mostly it’s always felt like coming home. In a lot of uncertain times I returned to this song over and over again to ground me. — Meegan
Death Cab for Cutie – “A Lack of Color”
When I was first curious about how to write songs, Death Cab was big for me. He starts the song with “and” like you’re already in a conversation and that wowed me. — Natalie
Bob Dylan – “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right”
I heard this song later on in life (within the last year) and fell in love with Bob Dylan’s voice. I know… took me a minute. I love the tongue-in-cheek feel of it and it has given me many special listening moments. — Allie
Sufjan Stevens – “Casimir Pulaski Day”
Sufjan. Mind blowing for me. I’m amazed by his matter-of-fact, deadpan delivery while singing about scenes that combine the horror of cancer right next to “the complications you could do without when I kissed you on the mouth.” It feels like acceptance. It’s devastating but it feels true in my chest. — Natalie
Nickel Creek – “Sabra Girl”
I listened to this song in headphones every night as I fell asleep in my dorm room freshman year. The acoustic guitar, the mandolin, the violin, Sara’s voice. Perfect. — Natalie
Artist:Chris Staples Hometown: Seattle, Washington Latest album:Holy Moly Personal nicknames (or rejected band names): Buns, Stapes
Which artist has influenced you the most … and how?
I would have to say Tom Petty. I fell in love with his albums as a youngster from Florida. His tunes were always about being dumped or being bummed. How did this guy from Gainesville, who probably grew up in a trailer park, make these great songs and become a rock and roll sensation? He was pretty dorky and genuine at the same time. He was from a few towns away from where I grew up and it always filled me with hope.
What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?
So many to choose from, geez. I played a show recently in San Francisco. It was in a top-floor apartment near Chinatown. There were 75 people crammed into this apartment so it was pretty cozy. I had just hurt my back really bad on tour; people helped me carry my gear and merch up four flights of stairs, which was really nice. Everyone was so excited to be there. I could hear a soft rain through the open windows of the apartment, as well as sounds from the city drifting by. It just felt magical for some reason.
What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc — inform your music?
I watch a lot of documentary film. I just watched a great doc called Los Angeles Plays Itself. It’s about the many filming locations in L.A. that have been used across decades of film and in different genres. The documentary makes the assertion that L.A. is a character in many films that does not mirror reality. It delves into some of the darker truths about the city. Great film, but it’s also a look into the mind of a director with a sort of twisted perspective.
What rituals do you have, either in the studio or before a show?
Usually before a show I try to find some time to walk around outside and get some fresh air. Sometimes I try to find someone at the show that reminds me of an old friend. Someone who makes me laugh or seems interesting. If I have a 20-minute conversation with a stranger at a show, I forget that I have to play and I’m not nervous at all about playing. For me, it’s the best antidote I’ve found to being nervous. A fun conversation with someone can take me from being almost crippled with nervous energy to being ultra chill. It still amazes me.
How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me”?
The opposite happens more often. I write a lot about other people a lot but I say “I.” Sometimes my friends text me and say “I didn’t know you went through a divorce??!!” I have to explain that it’s just a song. The names/places/events can be made up but the sentiment is all real, and universal. I think music listeners are conditioned to think that the singer is the person in the song. It’s just an aspect of this medium that is confusing. I think it’s good in a way for people to wonder but never really know. It’s different for screenwriters or authors. No one emails Stephen King asking if he broke someone’s legs with a sledgehammer. It’s a given that all of his stories are born out of his imagination.
Artist:Lizzie Weber Hometown: Seattle, Washington via St. Louis, Missouri Song: “When You Look at Me” Release Date: May 31, 2019 (single)
In Their Words: “This song is an intimate reflection on the physical and emotional feelings that arose when I found myself falling in love. When composing it, I wanted that intimacy to be palpable; for it to feel as though it were a poem written from one lover to another. I kept the arrangement simple, leaving space for the vocal to be surrounded by the warm tones of the open tuning on my acoustic guitar and melodic embellishments from piano, strings, and the electric. My hope is that it inspires the listener to reflect on a moment in time when they felt enraptured by another.” — Lizzie Weber
Give or take, it’s about 2,800 miles from Brandi Carlile’s native Seattle, Washington, to Wilkesboro, North Carolina, home to the renowned music gathering known as MerleFest. (See photos.) And as the Saturday night headliner this year, the award-winning singer-songwriter took to the Watson Stage during the 32nd annual MerleFest, surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains and an overzealous audience in the neighborhood of 30,000.
Backed by her rollicking Americana/indie-rock band, which includes founding members Phil and Tim Hanseroth (aka: “The Twins”), Carlile held court during an unforgettable performance that led to one of the festival’s finest moments — Carlile around a single microphone with North Carolinians Seth and Scott Avett for an encore of the Avett Brothers’ “Murder in the City.”
But a few hours before that performance, Carlile found herself standing backstage alone in the dressing room of the late Doc Watson, the guitar master who founded MerleFest. Gazing around the small square space, she looked at old photos of Watson and other legendary Americana and bluegrass performers that have played MerleFest over the years: Earl Scruggs, Alison Krauss, Peter Rowan, Rhonda Vincent, Tony Rice, and so forth.
Carlile smiled to herself in silence, truly feeling humbled in her craft and taking a moment to reflect on her wild and wondrous journey thus far, all while possessing a once-in-a-generation talent — something broadcasted across the world during her staggering performance of “The Joke” in February at the Grammys, and amid a standing ovation from the music industry. Remarkably she also picked up all three Grammys in the American Roots Music categories.
We met Carlile in Watson’s dressing room before the show for our interview and surveyed the steps she’s taken from Seattle to the MerleFest stage.
BGS: It seems as big as your career has gotten, the humble nature of where you came from still remains within you, as a headlining performer now.
Carlile: It does. Part of that reason why I feel that is part of who I am is because of the people that I’ve surrounded myself with — The Twins, our families, our kids, and our folks. They’re not going to let anybody get too heady or too ahead of themselves. Everybody puts you right back in your station if you’re getting there.
Growing up around Seattle, was Kurt Cobain’s songwriting or specifically the Unplugged in New York album by Nirvana ever a big influence on you as a performer?
It was later in life. It’s so funny, like when you live in the [Pacific] Northwest, the intensity that was directed towards country music for me was big because I didn’t have proximity to it. I was so far away from it. People in the South, I think so often they love country and western roots music, bluegrass, folk, and Americana music. It’s not that they take it for granted, but they don’t realize sometimes that they’re so close to it — it’s right here. And we don’t have that proximity, so I think we love it a little more intensely in the Northwest.
Because you’re seeking it out maybe?
Yeah. And [it’s] even more concentrated in the [United Kingdom]. I mean, if you want to meet some of the most potent country music fans, you go to the UK. And Seattle is kind of that same vibe. So, when I discovered grunge music and rock ‘n’ roll music, it was after it had already happened in my city, which had its own grief period with it, but also kind of an intense celebratory thing because I had missed it. I wanted to know everything about what happened in my city. And what I came away with was realizing we came up with something new. We didn’t repeat anything. We didn’t throw back to an era. We didn’t put on a Halloween costume. We did something brand new.
So, how does that apply to where you are today, in terms of what you want to create with your art?
I’m kind of a hybrid thinker, in general. I like putting ideas together and posing thoughts, things like that. I’ve never really been a great or very successful genre person.
You don’t want to be pigeon-holed…
It’s not that I don’t want to be pigeon-holed, it’s just that I don’t know if I’m able to be. Unfortunately I’ve always wanted to fit in, but I don’t know if I ever will.
Well, to that point, this last year, at least from an outsider’s perspective, has seemed like a whirlwind in your career, with the trajectory it’s on now. Has it been a slow burn to this point or is this a whirlwind, and how are you dealing with all of that?
That’s a good question. It’s both. It’s been a slow burn to this point. I’ve been working for a long time. But it was a really big change. That Grammy moment changed my life, and in a really, really big way. I can’t even catch up to it yet — I don’t even know how to catch up to it yet.
Or if you even want to embrace it. I mean, how do even wrap your head around something like that?
No, dude, I want to embrace it — I love it. I’ve always loved everything about music and the music business since I was such a little girl. I sat in my room wanting the biggest and the best of opportunities for myself, my family, and my friends. And so I’ll find a way to embrace it. And I want to — I’m really insanely grateful for it.
What do you remember from that moment? I was thinking, the stunning way your voice and the energy was going up and down, any frustration, any love or sadness you’ve experienced was put out through that microphone at that moment…
Yeah. I think I’m going to live to be 100 because that is how I do it, you know? I just let it all out. And in that moment, I don’t know — I was just so ready for it. I’m 38. I’m not a kid anymore. I’m not going to get too nervous or too excited and come undone. But, I am going to enjoy it while it’s happening. Like so many big things in your life you don’t really get to enjoy it.
Or maybe in hindsight you realize how important it was…
Yeah, man. Like loving everything in retrospect, enjoying everything in retrospect. And I was just so right there, right in the moment at the time — more so than maybe ever before while performing.
So, does that mean you subscribe to the idea of “the now,” to learn to be present, rather than worry about what was and what could be?
Yeah, but I’m horrible at it. But for some reason, that day I was able to get there. And I think it’s because I had been so nervous and then I won those three [Grammys]. I was like, “What do I got to lose? I’m just going to do this. I’m just going to show everybody [who I am].”
What is the role of the songwriter in the digital age, in all this chaos that is the 21st century?
To try to be as permanent as you can in a temporary environment.
In all the years you’ve created and performed music, traveling the world and meeting people from all walks of life, what has it taught you about what it means to be a human being?
Well, it’s taught me so much. I think you need to travel, in general, in life. You cannot stay put and not see the way that people live and then try and create an assumption about the way the world works. Travel, in general, has taught me so much about social justice and empathy. It’s enhanced me spiritually as a person, and that’s the thing I think I’ve garnered the most out of it. But I’ve met some really wise and special people as well. And to get to meet your heroes, people that you’ve admired – to find out if you were completely wrong about how much you admire them or being completely right — has been so enlightening.
And what about being in Doc Watson’s dressing right now, being at Merlefest?
Being in Doc Watson’s dressing room is really moving. I’ve been looking around at the pictures and the gravity of it. And when you’re here at this festival, you feel the reverence and you understand what it’s all about. And it’s something I’m coming to later in life. Just like I missed the greatest rock ‘n’ roll genre of all-time — grunge — in my very own city, I missed this experience, too — and I’m looking forward to diving in with both feet.
Artist:Dravus House Hometown: Seattle, Washington Album:Dravus House Release Date: April 19, 2019
In Their Words: “We recorded this record on Bainbridge Island, just across Puget Sound from Seattle. In some of the songs you can hear the hints of the island forest. We would pause after recording each song, and we could hear the sounds of the rain and the wind in the trees. It’s in the spirit of the recording. This is our debut album, and it feels really special to share with the world. These songs are reflections on the lifelong journey of finding wholeness within yourself, of thinking of yourself as more than the sum of your parts. I feel closer to feeling whole when I get to play and sing the songs I’ve written on this record with Cooper. His sensitive tone and melodic style that weave through the songs compound the feelings of joy I feel when singing and playing. I hope that this record helps people find a sort of a self-acceptance from any perceived shortcomings or feelings of unworthiness, and that they’ll have a moment’s peace and reflection.” — Elena Loper
“There’s a melancholic feeling, and the sense of introspection on the record, yet is comes with a silver lining. I hope that people who meditate on the record will feel that and find it comforting.” — Cooper Stouli
Artist: Lonesome Shack Hometown: London via Seattle Latest Album:Desert Dreams (available March 1) Sounds Like: The Black Keys, The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band, Rayland Baxter
Why You Should Listen: Lonesome Shack moved to London from rainy Seattle, so you imagine they feel right at home with the British weather. Desert Dreams, their third album, is the kind of music that promises to warm you up from the inside out: the perfect thing to listen to when Storm Erik is battering at your door and the UK papers are predicting a snowbomb. If you like a bit of blues — of the hill country or desert variety – mixed with some backwoods boogie and a dash of psychedelia, then Desert Dreams is for you. (Check out the BGS premiere of the title track at the end of the story.)
Ben Todd (the fingerpicking frontman of the trio) was clearly dreaming of warmer climes when he wrote these songs last winter. Perhaps he was thinking back to the early 2000s, when he spent four years living in a shack he’d built himself in the Gila wilderness in New Mexico. It was there he taught himself to play blues tunes from old recordings while living off the land. In the years since he’s honed his unique sound with the help of drummer (and graphic designer) Kristian Garrard and bassist Luke Bergman.
It should be said that, while honouring the past, this record sounds as bright as a new penny. That about sums up the feel of this recording: planted in yesteryear but cultivated firmly in the now. I for one will have it on standby to see me through the inevitable four months of winter we still have to come, before the London sunshine shows up for about a week. The album doesn’t drop until the 1st of March – but I can’t see springtime reaching us before then.
Speaking about the title track, Ben Todd says, “I wrote this album in sequence and ‘Desert Dreams’ was the last song I wrote. I see it as a postscript to the album, with a different feel, a dreamy lightheartedness. In the studio we had never played this song before as a band and after we ran through it a few times we recorded this live, first take. It tells the story of a dream sequence that touches on fears of ‘desertification’ that you hear about in the Southwest US where fertile land becomes useless after human impact plays its course, but in this case it’s an imagined city that fills up with sand. I worked at an adobe brick manufacturer in New Mexico and most of my job entailed shoveling sand and clay proportionately into a cement mixer to be poured into brick forms. Memories of this show up in the song: ‘I dreamed I was digging clay’ and ‘It takes sand and clay to begin to build the city up again.’ The chorus is an adapted quote from the book The Quick and the Dead by the great southwestern writer Joy Williams.”
As a radio and TV host, Baylen Leonard has presented country and Americana shows, specials, and commentary for BBC Radio 2, Chris Country Radio, BBC Radio London, BBC Radio 2 Country, BBC Radio 4, BBC Scotland, Monocle 24, and British Airways, as well as promoting artists through his work with the Americana Music Association UK, the Nashville Meets London Festival, and the Long Road (the UK’s newest outdoor country, Americana, and roots festival). Follow him on Twitter: @HeyBaylen
Artist:Alex Dunn Hometown: Seattle, Washington Song: “Will You Be” Album:Scattered Poems Release Date: November 16, 2018
In Their Words: “I wrote this song a couple years ago, when I had just met and fallen in love with someone far, far away. It was an unrequited love. But the song isn’t really about that person. It is more about the feeling itself. The feeling of falling. A feeling so good. I was living in the little town of Saratoga, Wyoming, at the time and had just come back alone from the Rustic Bar, where a honky-tonk band was playing — so naturally, the two-step rhythm was coursing through my veins. I came dancing through the door, grabbed my guitar and wrote this tune in one go.” — Alex Dunn
Bellevue, Washington, is a quick commute outside of Seattle and a gateway to the beauty of the Puget Sound region. With a compact and walkable downtown, Bellevue is a culture-filled day trip for when you have an extra day in the Seattle area or want to soak up a rich bluegrass fest. The 25-year-old Wintergrass Music Festival is a compelling reason to plan a trip to Bellevue every February, boasting OG bluegrassers like Del McCoury, the Seldom Scene, and Peter Rowan.
Getting There
Just nine miles south of Seattle, Bellevue offers a quick getaway from big city life. Take a half-hour bus ride or drive from Seattle to reach Bellevue. The Seattle-Tacoma airport is a 16-mile drive from Bellevue, making Bellevue and Seattle a convenient two-for-one trip. Once in Bellevue, you won’t need a car much because the city is quite walkable, unless you want to venture to nearby attractions.
Where to Stay
Wintergrass festival-goers will want to stay at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue, since it’s centrally located downtown and close to the music. Silver Cloud Inn Bellevue is also walking distance to the festival and a more budget-friendly basecamp, offering discounts to Wintergrass attendees. For a more boutique hotel experience, the Europe-inspired AC Hotel’s design marries modern with classic, serving a hearty European-style breakfast each morning.
What to Do
Bellevue Arts Museum. Photo credit: Scott Harder.
The Bellevue Arts Museum is nationally renowned for their art, craft, and design. The museum started from an art fair in the 1940s and has become a staple in the city. During Wintergrass 2018, the museum welcomes a Pakistan-born artist named Humaira Abid, well-known for her symbolically rich wood sculptures and mini paintings.
Woodinville Wine Country. Photo credit: Novelty Hill Januik Winer.
Woodinville Wine Country’s climate is ripe for grapes, boasting more than 115 wineries and tasting rooms. It’s a quick drive from Bellevue into the scenic valley of Woodinville, and it’s not just for wine lovers: Their microbreweries, distilleries, cideries, and robust farm-to-table scene are all impressive.
Bellevue Skyline. Photo credit: Visit Bellevue Washington by Merrill Images.
The 36-acre Bellevue Botanical Garden is stunning, featuring a rhododendron glen, Japanese Yao garden, and a stone garden, plus admission is free.
We recommend the punny Puget Sounds record shop and Silver Platters for your vinyl fix. Bake’s Place is Bellevue’s answer to “dinner and a show,” and the Showbox hosts gigs by indie rockers to singer/songwriters to country artists and more.
Eats and Drinks
The Lakehouse Bellevue
Bellevue is quickly becoming a foodie hotspot, drawing award-winning talent to the scene, like James Beard Award winner Chef Jason Wilson’s the Lakehouse. Japonessa fuses Japanese and Latin American flavors and is known for their extensive happy hour and traditional sushi. Locals love Lot No. 3 where the cocktail and spirits program has been recognized as one of the strongest in the Puget Sound. For breakfast goods, head to Belle Pastry on Main Street for exceptional French croissants.
Wintergrass Tips
Wintergrass originated in Tacoma and has made its home Bellevue for nearly 10 years. Home to many IBMA- and Grammy Award-winning artists, the festival takes place in the Hyatt Hotel every February and offers 70+ performances throughout the weekend. Always have your instrument on you for the various, spontaneous jam session which break out at any given moment. Don’t overlook the educational component at this fest, because who knows when you’ll be able to learn to clog at a music festival.
Ballrooms and bars in the Hyatt are turned into venues, making seating at popular shows competitive. Don’t feel pressured to buy food and drinks at bars while watching shows, which has been a point of contention in the past. The festival is laid out nicely indoors — so you barely have to leave — and the surrounding restaurants are easily walkable.
Lede: Lede Photo courtesy of Visit Bellevue Washington, by Merrill Images
Thanksgiving is about to rear its tiny, turkey-shaped head, and you know what that means: It's time to tackle that nagging holiday gift list. While it might be tempting to say, "Screw it, you're getting a gift card and you're getting a gift card!" like a maniacal, Scrooged-out Oprah, there's no denying that folks love a unique, thoughtful gift. Luckily, the growing popularity of holiday "maker markets (the Artist Formerly Known as "Craft Markets") makes finding one-of-a-kind gifts for everyone on your list far easier than actually sitting through a holiday meal with them, especially with that big, orange elephant currently taking up residence in all of our families' dining rooms.
To help you out, we've rounded up a few of our favorite upcoming markets. Now get to shopping!
This free event at Austin's Fair Market features over 125 makers. Go for the holiday shopping, stay for live music, local food and drink, and a photo booth.
The fourth installment of Brooklyn's free, annual Holiday Bazaar is its biggest yet, with 40+ makers on site at 501 Union. Sip a craft beverage while you browse handmade jewlery and home decor and, if you have little ones, be sure to stop by the Kids Craft Corner.
As if a free event with dozens of makers, local food, and local drinks weren't enough, this holiday market at Chicago's Plumbers Hall also allows guests (while supplies last) to create their own free terrarium ornaments.
A $10 admission gets you unlimited re-entry into this weekend-long event at Los Angeles's CMC Penthouse. More than 150 makers will be on-hand, with 30+ opportunities for attendees to indulge in little on-site DIY of their own.
This holiday market at Louisville's Frazier History Museum is free, but if you want to check out all the goods before the general public, you can buy a ticket to a special preview event the evening before the big day. And, with vendors like BGS pals 1767 Designs in attendance, getting there early may not be a bad idea!
Nashville's Porter Flea gets bigger and bigger each year, and the holiday market is not to be missed. Held at Skyway Studios this year, admission is free, although, as with Louisville's market, there is a ticketed preview market the night prior.
Seattle has a strong maker community, with markets popping up across town throughout the year. This particular holiday market happens later in the season than most, so it's perfect for all your last-minute shopping needs.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.AcceptRead More
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
