Tag: sixpence none the richer

You Gotta Hear This: New Music From Amythyst Kiah, Jordie Lane, and More

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

The last Friday of July came up fast, didn’t it? To close out the month, we’ve got another excellent round up of bluegrass, country, and Americana premieres that you won’t want to miss.

In the bluegrass department, we’ve got a brand new track from bluegrass hitmaker Ashby Frank featuring his labelmate Jaelee Roberts, Dallas Moore gives an intimate solo performance of “Up On That Mountain,” and we close our DelFest Sessions series with IBMA Award nominees Sister Sadie.

Coming from Americana and country camps, don’t miss a hilarious video from Jordie Lane paying homage to an East Nashville favorite, Nashville Biscuit House, Cole Gallagher shares a track that dropped earlier this week entitled “Traveling Man’s Blues,” and Mike Montrey Band serve up a quintessentially country love song, “Holdin’ on to Nothin’.”

Plus, Amythyst Kiah has just announced her upcoming Butch Walker-produced album, Still + Bright, with a lead single that features S.G. Goodman entitled, “Play God and Destroy the World.”

It’s all right here on BGS and you know what we think – You Gotta Hear This!

Ashby Frank, “God Gave Me Horses”

Artist: Ashby Frank
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “God Gave Me Horses”
Release Date: July 26, 2024
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

In Their Words: “‘God Gave Me Horses’ was co-written by one of my favorite Nashville songwriters, the great Connie Harrington, along with Leigh Nash, who is well-known for her solo recording career as well as being the lead singer for the band Sixpence None The Richer. A mutual friend of mine and Leigh’s played me her original cut of this song when she released it and I was blown away by the lyrics and instantly knew I wanted to record it with a rootsy bluegrass treatment. There are a lot of classic ‘prison songs’ that are considered bluegrass standards that talk about despair, hopelessness, and regret, but this composition has a more contemporary and positive message that I think will resonate with listeners of every generation. I’m so pleased with how this track turned out, and especially grateful for my great friend and Mountain Home Music labelmate Jaelee Roberts for lending her voice to this track. I can’t wait for everyone to hear it.” – Ashby Frank

Track Credits:
Ashby Frank – Mandolin, vocals
Seth Taylor – Acoustic guitar
Travis Anderson – Bass
Matt Menefee – Banjo
Jaelee Roberts – Harmony vocals

Cole Gallagher, “Traveling Man’s Blues”

Artist: Cole Gallagher
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Traveling Man’s Blues”
Release Date: July 25, 2024
Label: Raggy & Balls

In Their Words: “In order to really understand what ‘Traveling Man’s Blues’ is about, you’ve got to understand that I spent almost two years on the road with my father a few years back. Earlier this year, I moved from LA to Nashville, so when I got back out on the road to shoot a video for this song, I had nothing but nostalgia shooting through every frame of this video. I wasn’t much older at the time than I was driving across with my dad. But it was enough time to have forgotten how beautiful the sun looks setting in Arizona or an amazing bright blue sky over the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, Texas. I felt like I was both discovering and re-discovering myself at the same time.” – Cole Gallagher

Track Credits:
Barry Billings – Guitar
Chad Gamble – Drums
Cole Gallagher – Guitar, vocals
Jimbo Hart – Bass
Jon Eldridge – Keys
Sadler Vaden – Guitar

Video Credits: Shot by Cole Gallagher.
Produced by Cole Gallagher.
Edited by Abe Barrington.

Amythyst Kiah, “Play God and Destroy the World” (Featuring S.G. Goodman)

Artist: Amythyst Kiah
Hometown: East Brainerd, Tennessee
Song: “Play God and Destroy the World” (Featuring S.G. Goodman)
Album: Still + Bright
Release Date: July 26, 2024 (single); October 25, 2024 (album)
Label: Rounder Records

In Their Words: “This song is about coming of age as a misfit in suburbia. At home, I was encouraged to be curious to and express myself, and pursue whatever interests I wanted to regardless of gender, race, sexuality, or beliefs. However, I was not always met with this same attitude out in the community I lived in and it was frustrating to feel like I couldn’t really be myself. Being a naive kid, I would sometimes fantasize about being all-powerful and changing things the way I saw fit, but it is not up to me, or anyone, to tell everyone else how to live their life. We are all from this green and blue dot in space and will return to it all the same. There’s enough suffering in life as it is, why make it worse by policing each other’s way of life?” – Amythyst Kiah

Track Credits: Written by Amythyst Kiah, Sadler Vaden.
Produced by Butch Walker.
Amythyst Kiah –  Vocals, background vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar
S.G. Goodman – Vocals, background vocals
Butch Walker – Bass guitar
Ellen Angelico – Electric guitar, baritone guitar, mandolin
Matty Alger – Drums, percussion

Jordie Lane, “Biscuit House”

Artist: Jordie Lane
Hometown: Thornbury, Australia (Based in Nashville, Tennessee)
Song: “Biscuit House”
Album: Tropical Depression
Release Date: July 25, 2024 (single); August 16, 2024 (album)
Label: Blood Thinner Records, under exclusive license to ABC Music/The Orchard

In Their Words: “As with so many of my songs, I started out writing ‘Biscuit House’ with co-writer Clare ‘Lollies’ Reynolds about something external… somebody else. It’s a way to trick yourself into feeling less vulnerable. And it’s a way to observe the character in a more realistic and less biased way. But long story short, ‘Biscuit House’ is about imposter syndrome. Something so many people feel at some point in their lives, but especially creatives in the arts. And so the idea to dress up as this weatherman character, Tom Willing, to play in the video felt very fitting to explore being an imposter in a literal sense and get completely ridiculous and over the top.” – Jordie Lane

Track Credits:
Jon Radford –Drums, percussion
Jon Estes – Bass, pedal steel, keys
Jeremy Fetzer – Electric guitar
Clare ‘Lollies’ Reynolds – Backing vocals
Jordie Lane – Acoustic, tenor, piano, vocals

Video Credits: Directed by Mackenzie Brassfield & Jordie Lane.
Camera, editing & color by Mackenzie Brassfield.
Assistant Director of Photography, Mikey Haydon.

Mike Montrey Band, “Holdin’ on to Nothin'”

Artist: Mike Montrey Band
Hometown: Spotswood, New Jersey
Song: “Holdin’ on to Nothin'”
Album: Love, Time & Mortality
Release Date: August 2, 2024

In Their Words:“‘Holdin’ on to Nothin’ is about the process of love. It seems, more often than not, the story of love in songs is about the beautiful beginning, the tragic end, or the celebration of sustained love. However, it is often what we choose to hold on to or let go of in the most critical moments of a relationship that allows us to move forward or move on. Sometimes we just hold on to hope and sometimes we’re holdin’ on to nothin’.” – Mike Montrey

Dallas Moore, “Up On That Mountain”

Artist: Dallas Moore
Hometown: San Antonio, Texas
Song: “Up On That Mountain”
Album: Gems & Jams
Release Date: August 9, 2024
Label: Sol Records

In Their Words: “I’ve always loved bluegrass and really cut my teeth and learned guitar sitting in on countless bluegrass jam sessions back in Kentucky and southern Ohio when I was kid first starting out. My mama Madgelee played mountain dulcimer and she turned me on to a lot of bluegrass, Appalachian, and gospel music. Jimmy Martin, The Carter Family, John Hartford, The Osborne Brothers, and Flatt & Scruggs were some of my favorites to jam on and definitely influenced my style of playing and songwriting.

“‘Up On That Mountain’ is a song that I had written several years ago and that I have always called ‘a little bit of heathen preachin’.’ I even had a version of it that was recorded live in the Bullitt county jail but it’s been out of print for a while now. This song has been a staple of my live shows for many years and I’m always excited and proud that my 7 year-old daughter Victory Lee Moore joins us on stage for this one. I had a lot of fun with this solo acoustic arrangement and it felt like a perfect fit for the closing of this Gems & Jams album. Wherever I am this song always takes me back home.” – Dallas Moore

Track Credits:
Dallas Moore – Vocals, guitar
Brian DeBruler – Producer, engineer

DelFest Sessions: Sister Sadie

We are so excited to unveil the final installment of our DelFest Sessions, featuring Grammy-nominated bluegrass supergroup Sister Sadie. Over the course of the Memorial Day festival in Cumberland, Maryland, BGS contributors and videographers I Know We Should shot a half dozen superlative live performances on the gorgeous banks of the Potomac River. From festival hosts the Travelin’ McCourys, Big Richard, and Wood Belly to East Nash Grass, Mountain Grass Unit, and now the Sadies, each edition of our DelFest Sessions has been an audio swatch of the incredible national string band scene we all adore.

With a raucous “WOO!” shouted to the festival-goers floating by in their inner tubes and kayaks on the river, Sister Sadie stepped up to the mics to deliver two gentle, burning, emotive tracks pulled from their critically-acclaimed album, No Fear, which was released earlier this year. The first, “Blue As My Broken Heart,” was written by Dani Flowers – who sings lead on the number – with co-writers Victoria Banks and Rachel Proctor. Evocative imagery and detailed text painting here feel more than appropriate for the setting, in the verdant foothills of Appalachia on the cusp of spring and summer. You can almost feel the blue sky above and you can certainly grasp, immediately, why this group is up for eight IBMA Awards this year – including Entertainer of the Year and Vocal Group of the Year…

Watch the full session here.

Photo Credit: Amythyst Kiah by Kevin & King; Jordie Lane as “Tom Willing” by Mackenzie Brassfield.

Getting Better with Age: An Interview with Leigh Nash

Posted on by Editor

Singer/songwriter Leigh Nash grew up in rural Texas with country music and mariachi bands filling her ears and her heart. Though those influences are hardly evident in her pop work with Sixpence None the Richer, Nash's new album, The State I'm In, puts them center stage. The set is a mix-and-match collection of original tunes that harken back to days gone by. Some ring right out of Tennessee, while others echo back to Texas or point west toward Southern California. But all of them reflect Nash.

A lot of different eras and styles are on this new record of yours. “Cruel Heart” is about as close to a Patsy Cline melody and vibe as I've heard, but then “What's Behind Me” heads straight for Southern California. Were you wary of putting all those elements side-by-side on one record?

A little bit, and I don't think I really thought that I was going to be mixing it up as much as it turned out that we did. But it was inevitable. I think a record full of “Cruel Hearts” would have been kind of boring, so I'm glad there are a lot of styles represented, because it represents my history. I've been around making records for a long time, so I think it was bound to happen.

One of my favorite topics is exploring how geography affects artistry. I know that's playing a big part here. Talk to me about Texas Hill Country. How did growing up there make you who you are as an artist?

That is such an interesting subject because it informs my family's musical taste, as well. My parents and my grandparents are all from this tiny town in east Texas called Carthage. Jim Reeves was from around that area. I think he might've been from Shreveport, LA, or somewhere like that. So Jim Reeves ended up being one of my favorite artists because … my grandmother had these eight-tracks. She had Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn, Patsy Cline, Jim Reeves … and I was just obsessed with those artists. That just kind of continued with the records that my parents had around.

Then, on the trips we would make into San Antonio pretty often to go walk on the Riverwalk or eat at the restaurants there, I constantly was able to hear mariachi music. I loved it and associate that with home. Just the sound of it makes me homesick. So, absolutely, geography informed so much about this record.

The other thing that stands out for me, here … the lilt in your voice is still there, for the most part, but it also feels heftier on the new record, at least compared to the big Sixpence hits. Is the new musical setting to credit for that? Or just, you know, life?

I think it's life and age. I'm coming into my own, probably more so than ever. I'm in my late 30s, as a vocalist. I listen to records — from the very first one that we ever put out which came out in '92 or '93 — and, yeah, I sound like a different person to myself. It was kind of terrible. [Laughs] I can't believe anybody wanted to hear more of some of that stuff … because of me and not the songs. My voice was so puny. I'm definitely a better singer than I've ever been. I'm not saying it sounds better, but to me it does. It sounds better and fuller and, yeah, just more experienced because I am all those things.

Just don't lose part of your range, like Joni Mitchell did, from chain smoking and Corona drinking.

Oh, right. Exactly. Well, luckily I haven't picked up smoking yet, so I probably won't. [Laughs]

It's always bizarre to me when I see singers who smoke. I don't understand that.

I know. I think it's … if it's something you start young and they must just think, “Well, this is the way I'm going to sound because I've already started.” But, yeah, if I were to start smoking now … [Laughs] To get that kind of effect on my voice would be kind of sad, I think.

It would be a whole other record you'd have to make. [Laughs]

Exactly. Exactly. [Laughs]

So, loss is a recurring theme here, in various incarnations. Have you found that grief is grief no matter what it is that goes missing? Or have there been wildly different experiences of loss for you?

No, not wildly different. And, yes, I do think grief is grief, to a certain extent. There are probably certain things in life that maybe surpass the average grieving experience. But loss is loss — that's a really good way to put it. I've had my share over the years of heartache and loss, so these songs came out of it. But I don't think they came out of that in a gratuitous way. As I reflect on the writing and everything, it's all definitely what I was feeling, and it feels really good to finally be putting this out. But I don't look at it as a record that's just entrenched in all my sad experiences. It is sad, though. But …

But it's not heavy.

It's not heavy. No. I don't think so.

Pouring all that into the songs must have felt pretty good.

It definitely did. Yes.

So how's it going to be, going back and playing them live? Will that be a different level of cathartic?

I think so. I'm so excited. And I have played them live quite a few times now. My favorite setting, live, is to do it with a full band, and we've only gotten to do that one time. So we'll be able to do that a little bit more as we go into the Fall. But a lot of times, it's just my husband and me playing them acoustically. Even that has been really fun and I keep hearing from people … and I don't know, because I'm paranoid that it's not enough, just him and me … but people keep saying, “It is. There's nothing missing. It sounds so great. The song is represented. I can hear the lyrics well …” And that makes me really happy. But, yeah, it's been wonderful getting to play them.

When they were brand new, I had a hard time getting through them. I would cry in some of the songs. Now, that's not happening anymore, so there's no risk of an emotional breakdown on stage. So that's positive. [Laughs]

[Laughs] Phew!

Things are looking up! [Laughs]

And that's the test of great songwriting … if it can stand up in an acoustic setting.

Right. Yeah. I hope so. I think so. There was a wonderful morning show at the Country Music Hall of Fame [recently] with Suzy Bogguss. I was thinking that about her, about how wonderful her songs sounded just with her, her guitar, and her lovely voice. So I agree.

To write real country songs … and I agree with you on this … you feel like you had to live some life first. Do you think that's part of mainstream country's shift toward pop? Because nobody would buy a 20-year-old singing “Stand by Your Man” or “Crazy.”

Right.

They kind of have to make it a little bit fluffier.

That's a really good point. Last year, I was having a day where I was like, “This is just pointless. I'm too old to be starting this entire new career course. This is silly.” My husband and a couple of friends made the point, “Who are your favorite singers?” Everybody that I mentioned were all up there in age and writing some of their best stuff. The point was quickly made that the bulk of the music that I pay attention to and listen to is because the person has more life experience and something to write about. So, yeah, I definitely agree with that. It takes getting some dirt on your clothes to really come out with a good story. [Laughs]

And it is a musical shift for you, but I don't think anyone should accuse you of being a carpetbagger. You come by this music honestly.

I definitely have. I appreciate that. I know. I had a guy, somebody doing an interview, roll his eyes. [Laughs] He said, “When I first heard you were doing this …” He rolled his eyes and said he thought, “Oh, Lord. Here we go.” But he said, “After I heard it, I was like, 'no, no, I totally get this.'” And hearing me talk about it a little bit.

Since you love both Willie and Patsy, is it safe to say that “Crazy” is in your Top 10 all-time favorite songs?

Absolutely. Yes. I mean “Walking after Midnight” … everything Patsy ever did. “Back in Baby's Arms” … I just obsessed over it as a kid and tried to sound just like her. That's how I first started singing in the first place because my dad was very entertained by me just mimicking her.

I love it when I hear … Brandi Carlile has a similar story of mimicking Patsy Cline as a kid. It's a funny image to think of — a little kid mimicking Patsy Cline, who has one of the most womanly voices we've had.

[Laughs] That is interesting. There are a lot of things about her voice that make it worthy of imitating. The inflections she used … there's so much. It's so rich. I think it probably made it a challenging landscape, vocally, to try to go and try to copy. But my dad thought it was hilarious. That's why I did it. [Laughs]

[Laughs] No Madonna. Patsy Cline!

Right. Right! [Laughs] Exactly!

Photo credit: Alysse Gafkjen