Tag: Song Premiere

LISTEN: Patrick Dethlefs, “If You Listen”

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Artist: Patrick Dethlefs
Hometown: Kittredge, Colorado
Song: “If You Listen”
Album: If You Listen
Release Date: October 1, 2021

In Their Words: “This song explores the idea of still feeling connected to loved ones who have passed on. Feeling their presence even though they are no longer physically here. Maybe even asking the question, ‘Is this person with me now more than they have ever been?’ This theme carries on throughout the rest of the record but on this song particularly that connection feels truly realized and known.” — Patrick Dethlefs

Photo credit: Brooke Svitak

LISTEN: Haunted Like Human, “Ohio”

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Artist: Haunted Like Human
Hometown: Nashville, TN; originally Fayetteville, Georgia (Dale Chapman) and Milton-Freewater, Oregon (Cody Clark)
Song: “Ohio”
Album: Tall Tales & Fables
Release Date: October 15, 2021

In Their Words: “‘Ohio’ is a special song for us. It started in the fall of 2018 when we were touring off of our EP Folklore and stopped to spend time with some of Cody’s family in Ohio. In chatting with his grandmother, she was telling the story of falling in love with her husband when he was in her native South Carolina, and how when she was pregnant he sent her up to Ohio to live with his family while he worked and sent money back. Things kept keeping him in South Carolina and she said offhand, ‘You know, he was just trying to get back to Ohio.’ I remember in that moment thinking that there was a song in that one statement and I sat with it for about a year until we really started writing again for this record. The end result is a story told through letters back home of a man wanting to do right by his family while also wanting to get back home to them.” — Dale Chapman, Haunted Like Human

Photo credit: Caroline Voisine

LISTEN: Moot Davis, “Hey Hey”

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Artist: Moot Davis
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Song: “Hey Hey”
Album: Seven Cities of Gold
Release Date: October 22, 2021
Label: Boot Knife Records

In Their Words: “I wrote this song in Nashville in 2002 just before I got signed to Pete Anderson’s Little Dog Records label. It’s a song that I’ve had in my back pocket for a long time, but when I was gathering tunes for this album I took it back out. The song was pretty close to being done, but the chorus needed to be reworked. My girlfriend Katie actually came up with the chorus while she was busy painting one of the large pictures that hangs in our little house.

“The making of the Seven Cities of Gold album was the most fun I’ve ever had in the studio and I think it really comes across on tracks like ‘Hey Hey.’ I was making music with my friends who I’ve known and worked with for years, with no pressure or financial constraints. We recorded it at my drummer Blake Oswald’s home studio and it was very relaxed and heavy on the vodka. I think we were all shocked when it turned out so well, because it was the first time we had ever produced anything on our own. Along with Oswald and myself, we had our past tour manager and studio engineer, Jody Sappington, help us produce and play bass. My longtime guitarist Bill Corvino really gave the album some sharp teeth with his playing while Skip Edwards and Gary Morse added beautiful parts on B3 and pedal steel. Our buddy Al Backstrom (Angela’s husband) did an awesome job mixing the album and laying down some killer harmonies.

“Sometimes projects just come together and it would be really hard to recreate it at any other time. We decided to put the album out now because we are already starting pre-production on the next album, so we felt it was time to get it out of the gate and share it. It’s hard to move forward with a brand new project until the current one is released. Like bullets in a sonic gun, baby!” — Moot Davis

Photo credit: David McClister

LISTEN: Madeline Hawthorne, “Riverbank” (Feat. Mimi Naja)

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Artist: Madeline Hawthorne
Hometown: Bozeman, Montana
Song: “Riverbank” (featuring Mimi Naja)
Album: Boots
Release Date: October 1, 2021

In Their Words: “I wrote ‘Riverbank’ after my first overnight rafting trip down the Smith River in Montana. This was early on in the pandemic, May of 2020. I was in a dark place emotionally after having to cancel my tour and say goodbye to bandmates, who decided to move on from music to pursue other careers. This river trip brought me back to life and that’s when I decided to write my entire album, Boots. I hold a very special place in my heart for our rivers. They foster beautiful and healthy ecosystems that open your heart and your mind. Floating down a river allows us to witness a part of this earth untainted, serene and powerful. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to explore rivers in the West and I hope that this song brings listeners the feeling that I have when I’m in my happy place hanging out on the Yellowstone River or the beautiful Salmon River in Idaho. There’s just nothing like floating down the line with the one you love, cold beer in hand, warm sun on your skin and good tunes in the background — pure bliss.” — Madeline Hawthorne

Photo credit: Dan Bradner

LISTEN: Jeremy Pinnell, “Goodbye L.A.”

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Artist: Jeremy Pinnell
Hometown: Southgate, Kentucky
Song: “Goodbye L.A.”
Album: Goodbye L.A.
Release Date: October 1, 2021
Label: SofaBurn Records

In Their Words: “Goodbye L.A. was a special situation. I was introduced to Jonathan Tyler through a mutual friend and I was a little nervous about making a record with Jonathan. But we took a leap of faith and and found out it was the best thing we could’ve done. The feeling of excitement was present in the studio. New songs, new ideas flowing in and then hearing the playback was such a positive experience. I’m excited for people to hear these songs we wrote mostly from being on the road and I hope they enjoy it as much as we enjoyed making it. We’ve worked really hard to make this album. Long hours, hardly any pay, and many nights away from home make this album what it is.” — Jeremy Pinnell

Photo credit: Melissa Fields

WATCH: Digging Roots, “Cut My Hair”

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Artist: Digging Roots
Hometown: Barrie, Ontario, Canada
Song: “Cut My Hair”
Album: Zhawenim
Release Date: 2022
Label: Ishkōdé Records

In Their Words: “‘Cut My Hair’ is a mishkiki (medicine) song about the Indian Residential School experience which is directly linked to genocide, colonialism, oppression, and the actions that this country is built upon. While our families were taken from their homes and sent to these horrible Canadian institutions, we were the last generation to not attend, but consequently suffer from over 100 years of generational effects. With the growing present findings of over 6,000 buried children at Residential Schools across Canada this song was written as an attempt to focus our energies in a positive and grounded direction. Where does one go when one’s people have suffered this much? It gets funnelled into belting out lyrics that feel meaningful and playing slide guitar until my bellbottoms quiver because the amplifier is cranked. We believe in the transformative power of music and its healing effects, this is our offering.” — Raven Kanatakta, Digging Roots

Photo credit: Ratul Debnath

LISTEN: Fireside Collective, “And the Rain Came Down”

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Artist: Fireside Collective
Hometown: Asheville, North Carolina
Song: “And the Rain Came Down”
Release Date: September 24, 2021
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

In Their Words: “A few years back, I was listening to a story on NPR about some of the intensifying storms that had been hitting the coastal regions of the Southeast. At one point, the host said ‘the rain came down, and the rain came down…’ and for some reason it stuck with me. I jotted it down in my notebook and started thinking of ways to use it in a song. It didn’t hit me until about a month into COVID, when there was still so much uncertainty and nobody really knew what was going to happen. It just so happened that I had recently begun reading the Old Testament from a historical/analytical perspective and the story of the Great Flood in Genesis seemed to resonate with our current times. I started thinking of the whole experience as a paradigm shifting event, much like the events of Genesis. There were so many parallels between the never-ending storms of Noah’s time and the sociopolitical events that took place during the first few months of the pandemic.

“Despite the song’s somber overtones and the uncertainty of the story, there is still a message of hope. The sailor in the song seems to understand that despite the endless storms and the rising waters, behind the clouds the light still shines. He keeps pushing on despite the challenges he faces with hopes of a brighter day. Many people in the music industry were forced to find silver linings and to push through the storms in the last year and a half. Fireside Collective has found many ways to reinvent ourselves and to use the situation to better ourselves. Even though we still face unprecedented challenges, we are fortunate to be able to still create music and find ways to share our art with the world. We are beyond thrilled to release ‘And the Rain Came Down’ and we are so delighted to be able to record new music. We know there are brighter days ahead and we have never appreciated the ability to play music for a living as much as we do right now.” — Jesse Iaquinto, Fireside Collective

Photo credit: Jace Kartye

LISTEN: Tammy Rogers & Thomm Jutz, “I Surely Will Be Singing”

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Artist: Tammy Rogers & Thomm Jutz
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “I Surely Will Be Singing”
Album: Surely Will Be Singing
Release Date: September 21, 2021
Label: Mountain Fever Records

In their Words: “We wrote this song at the beginning of the pandemic. We both noticed how much more we paid attention to bird life when everything slowed down. We also talked about the fact that while music is a career choice, it is important to continuously find joy in making music, without the need for outside approval — like a bird that sings to himself, with no regard for applause. This is a hymn to nature, and to the spirit of human resilience in the face of adversity.” — Tammy Rogers & Thomm Jutz

Photo credit: Anthony Scarlatti

LISTEN: Rod Gator, “Out Here in Echo Park”

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Artist: Rod Gator (aka Rod Melancon)
Hometown: Wright, Louisiana
Song: “Out Here in Echo Park”
Album: For Louisiana
Release Date: September 17, 2021
Label: Blue Élan Records

In Their Words: “I wrote ‘Out Here in Echo Park’ during my last year living in Echo Park. Every evening I’d walk five miles down to the L.A. River and sit along the bank. It was one of the most peaceful times of my life. During the walk I’d hear Spanish music playing from windows and watch the sun slowly set. East L.A. means a lot to me. It’s where I go in my mind when I feel overwhelmed. I picture myself sitting along the L.A. River. I miss Echo Park everyday. It’s the place where I finally began to feel comfortable in my own skin.” — Rod Gator

Photo credit: David McClister

LISTEN: Tommy Castro, “I Caught a Break”

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Artist: Tommy Castro
Hometown: San Jose, California
Song: “I Caught a Break”
Album: Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came To Town
Release Date: September 17, 2021
Label: Alligator Records

In Their Words: “‘I Caught a Break’ is part of the story that is A Bluesman Came to Town. It came out of a writing session with Tom Hambridge and Richard Fleming. After much hard work and few setbacks the young man in the story finally has some success. It’s a classic rock ‘n’ roll tune. I can hear the influence of cats like Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, and maybe even a little Jimmy Vaughan on this. This was a fun track to play guitar and sing. It comes along in the story right when we needed a shift in tempo and groove.” — Tommy Castro

Photo credit: Victoria Smith