OUT TODAY: SAD DADDY’S NEW LP WAY UP IN THE HILLS

"Sad Daddy do what they do best: mine old-time string music for today's lessons" - The Boot

"Sad Daddy may be just what we need in these troubled times — the friendly foursome’s “down-home, back to the country” approach is sure to soothe your ragged soul." - KCRW 

"Way Up In the Hills is a marvelous collection of homegrown goodness that encompasses the spirit of the hills while showcasing avid musicianship and songwriting." - The Jamwich 

"An album that embeds itself in your soul" - Americana Highways 

“Sad Daddy might be onto something here" - Glide Magazine 

"As soon as you hear it, it makes sense that 'Cold Rain' was recorded in a studio out in the wilds of the Arkansas woods, looking out on a lake, breathing in the overwhelming depth and vastness of the American landscape." - Holler. 

“Sounds like sunshine” - The Bay Area Reporter

"Layered with jug band wit, boot heels, and the thrill of bacon, Way Up In The Hills eschews the madness and concrete of modernity for hardwood, harmony, and fine songs." - Sound and Soul

"You’re well advised to lose yourself for a brief period and indulge in this meticulously executed and absorbing suite of songs." - Lonesome Highway 

"Now, that's some blazing bluegrass!" - Last Day Deaf

"The record is a master class in old-timey, bluegrass sound, especially the vocal harmonies. The song themes cluster around escaping back to the country and living the simple life...Although all four members are certainly capable of laying down fast-paced licks, they left some nice white space on many of the tunes. That generated a laid-back feel that really reflects a few days spent with friends up in the hills."  - Twangville

"...a down-home rustic and raw kind of sound" - Americana-UK 

"...an old time Americana sound that is exactly what helped us fall in love with the genre years ago...a perfect blend" - Ear To The Ground

 "Classic American roots music that you're simply going to love" - If It’s Too Loud

LISTEN: WAY UP IN THE HILLS 

Today, Arkansas/Texas four-piece roots powerhouse Sad Daddy, comprised of Brian Martin, Joe Sundell, Rebecca Patek, and Melissa Carper, has released their new LP, Way Up In The Hills. The album, which debuted at #1 on the Alt-Country Specialty Chart, was featured at The Boot, Wide Open Country, The Bluegrass Situation, KCRW, and more. The four members of Sad Daddy, named one of 2022’s 12 Artists To Watch by The Nashville Scene, all conspired and united in the Arkansas woods during the sudden spare time of 2020 to create Way Up in the Hills, their third studio effort.

Over a couple of bottles of chocolate milk and a few jugs of whiskey they collaborated, writing and arranging the album’s 14 tracks. The collective decided on a down-home, back-to-the-country theme—a reflection on the state of the world and the desire to return to simpler ways and self-sufficiency–goin’ way up in the hills and letting the chaos settle. 

WATCH: “ARKANSAS BOUND”

WATCH: “CHARLIE PICKLE”

 Engineer Jordan Trotter brought his equipment into the cabin and the band recorded live and in a circle. The feeling of being at a lakeside "home" studio in the serene Arkansas woods was distilled into each verse and a genuine relaxed and good-time vibe purveys the recordings. Sad Daddy explored using unique sounds, recording stomps on the cabin’s porch, hamboning, capturing the natural sounds of insects buzzing and bacon sizzling, mouth didgeridoo, handclaps, double clawhammer banjo, and more, along with the foursome’s strong vocals and harmonies. 

From recounting the freedom of leaving the big city for life in the country on tracks like “Arkansas Bound,” extolling the virtues of the world’s best breakfast meat in “Bacon,” coming to terms with the world’s new normal in tracks like “Cold Rain,” raising their voices and using their bodies as percussion to make the daily grind more beautiful in “Hangin’ Them Clothes On The Line,” and more, the convergence of inspiration and interpretation of feeling into sound is a stylistic blend of the very best elements of American Roots Music. Borrowing from the styles of early blues, jazz, and jug bands to early country, folk, old-time, bluegrass, soul, and funk, they combine many influences, creating an indefinable genre of their own. 

WAY UP IN THE HILLS TRACKLIST 

Arkansas Bound  

Bacon  

 Big River  

Live Real Lean 

 Cold Rain  

 Charlie Pickle  

 Hangin' Them Clothes on the Line  

Make it Roll  

Up in the Hills  

Sunday Evening 

Back in Arkansas  

Poor Man's Son  

Wild Road 

Arkansas Bound Reprise 

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SAD DADDY PREMIERES NEW SINGLE “ARKANSAS BOUND” VIA THE BLUEGRASS SITUATION

NEW LP WAY UP IN THE HILLS  DUE OUT JANUARY 28TH 

"Sad Daddy do what they do best: mine old-time string music for today's lessons" - The Boot  

"Way Up In the Hills is a marvelous collection of homegrown goodness that encompasses the spirit of the hills while showcasing avid musicianship and songwriting." - The Jamwich  

"...the album is a blanket of warmth in a season of tumbling temperatures, and even features the soothing sounds of bacon sizzling, the perfect accompaniment to round out that down-home feel." - Americana Highways 

“Sad Daddy might be onto something here with this authentic throwback cut" - Glide Magazine  

"Now, that's some blazing bluegrass!" - Last Day Deaf 

"The record is a master class in old-timey, bluegrass sound, especially the vocal harmonies. The song themes cluster around escaping back to the country and living the simple life...Although all four members are certainly capable of laying down fast-paced licks, they left some nice white space on many of the tunes. That generated a laid-back feel that really reflects a few days spent with friends up in the hills."  - Twangville 

"...a down-home rustic and raw kind of sound" - Americana-UK 

Photo: Melissa Brawner

LISTEN // WATCH: “ARKANSAS BOUND” 

Arkansas/Texas four-piece roots powerhouse Sad Daddy has released “Arkansas Bound,” the newest track and its accompanying performance video from their forthcoming LP, Way Up In The Hills, due out on January 28th. “‘Arkansas Bound’ was inspired by living in the big city and longing to go back to a slower pace of life in the country, surrounded by nature,” band bassist Melissa Carper, who wrote and sings lead on the track, explained to The Bluegrass Situation. “I was making a lot of trips from Austin, Texas, back to Arkansas at the time and once I would hit those winding country roads in the Ozark Mountains, a sense of relief would come over me. I’ve been drawn to cities to find the inspiration of various music communities but I really have never loved living in a city. I have spent a good deal of time in and around Eureka Springs, Arkansas, which is a tiny town in Northwest Arkansas, in the Ozarks. There is something about the country there that keeps drawing me back in.” 

“The video was filmed in Greers Ferry, Arkansas, on the boat dock at Brian’s cabin,” she continued. “We reunited at the cabin to make some videos and he had a couple friends visiting. Besides the band, the video features fisherman Madewell and dogs Georgia Peach and Rooster. Sadly, Rooster has passed away since we filmed.”  

“Arkansas Bound” follows “Cold Rain,” a yearning song about navigating our new normal which Holler. called a “simple and strangely uplifting song for simpler times that sounds like the soundtrack to the pre-apocalypse.” Both follow lead single “Charlie Pickle,” a foot-stomping tune about an old-timer who just wants to dance and doesn’t care what others think about it, and its accompanying hilariously heartwarming video made of band- and fan-sourced footage.  

LISTEN: “COLD RAIN” 

LISTEN // WATCH: “CHARLIE PICKLE” 

Since 2010, Sad Daddy has traveled down many a road--together and separately--at times focusing on their solo projects and then reuniting for a band project. The four members, Brian Martin, Joe Sundell, Rebecca Patek, and Melissa Carper, all conspired and united in the sudden spare time of 2020 to create their third album, Way Up in the Hills.  

They all met at Brian’s cabin in Greers Ferry, Arkansas, and over a couple of bottles of chocolate milk and a few jugs of whiskey they collaborated, writing and arranging songs specifically for the new album. A first for Sad Daddy, they took the brand-new bones of each other’s ideas and worked on them as a band to construct and finish the songs. The collective decided on a down-home, back-to-the-country theme—a reflection on the state of the world and the desire to go back to simpler ways and self-sufficiency, goin’ way up in the hills and letting the chaos settle.   

Engineer Jordan Trotter brought his equipment into the cabin and the band recorded 14 original tunes live and in a circle. The feeling of being at a lakeside "home" studio in the serene Arkansas woods was distilled into sound and a genuine relaxed and good time vibe purveys the recordings. Sad Daddy explored using unique sounds, recording stomps on the cabin’s porch, hamboning, using the natural sounds of insects buzzing and bacon sizzling, mouth didgeridoo, handclaps, double clawhammer banjo, and more, along with the foursome’s strong vocals and harmonies.  

Unique to Sad Daddy, all of the members sing lead and write original tunes--the convergence of influences and interpretation of feeling into sound is a stylistic blend of the very best elements of American Roots Music. From the sounds of early blues, jazz, and jug bands to early country, folk, old-time, bluegrass, soul, and funk, they combine many influences, creating an indefinable genre of their own.   

SAD DADDY PREMIERES NEW SINGLE “COLD RAIN” VIA HOLLER

NEW LP WAY UP IN THE HILLS  DUE OUT JANUARY 28TH 

"Sad Daddy do what they do best: mine old-time string music for today's lessons" - The Boot  

"Way Up In the Hills is a marvelous collection of homegrown goodness that encompasses the spirit of the hills while showcasing avid musicianship and songwriting." - The Jamwich  

"...the album is a blanket of warmth in a season of tumbling temperatures, and even features the soothing sounds of bacon sizzling, the perfect accompaniment to round out that down-home feel." - Americana Highways  

“Sad Daddy might be onto something here with this authentic throwback cut" - Glide Magazine  

"Now, that's some blazing bluegrass!" - Last Day Deaf 

"The record is a master class in old-timey, bluegrass sound, especially the vocal harmonies. The song themes cluster around escaping back to the country and living the simple life...Although all four members are certainly capable of laying down fast-paced licks, they left some nice white space on many of the tunes. That generated a laid-back feel that really reflects a few days spent with friends up in the hills."  - Twangville 

"...a down-home rustic and raw kind of sound" - Americana-UK 

Photo by Annemarie Sundell

LISTEN: “COLD RAIN”  

Arkansas/Texas four-piece roots powerhouse Sad Daddy has released “Cold Rain,” the latest track from their forthcoming LP, Way Up In The Hills, due out on January 28th. “As soon as you hear it, it makes sense that 'Cold Rain' was recorded in a studio out in the wilds of the Arkansas woods, looking out on a lake, breathing in the overwhelming depth and vastness of the American landscape,” says Holler. in their premiere. “'Cold Rain' blends [Joe] Sundell's scratchy box-banjo sound with Rebecca Patek's yearning fiddle in this simple and strangely uplifting song for simpler times that sounds like the soundtrack to the pre-apocalypse.” 

"I thought about the loss of control we were all going through, both as individuals and as a society, and how it made some of us feel like the walls were closing in,” bandmember Joe Sundell tools Holler. of the song’s inspiration. "In trying to come up with some imagery that depicted that in some form, I imagined the last two verses – first a guy whose life is turned upside down and finds himself in a hole at the bottom of a lake, and then the idea that if things keep progressing the way they are, we all have to jump into this new reality and learn to swim." 

“Cold Rain” follows lead single “Charlie Pickle,” about an old-timer who just wants to dance and doesn’t care what others think about it, and its accompanying hilariously heartwarming video made of band- and fan-sourced footage.  

LISTEN // WATCH: “CHARLIE PICKLE” 

Since 2010, Sad Daddy has traveled down many a road--together and separately--at times focusing on their solo projects and then reuniting for a band project. The four members, Brian Martin, Joe Sundell, Rebecca Patek, and Melissa Carper, all conspired and united in the sudden spare time of 2020 to create their third album, Way Up in the Hills.  

They all met up at Brian’s cabin in Greers Ferry, Arkansas, and over a couple of bottles of chocolate milk and a few jugs of whiskey they collaborated, writing and arranging songs specifically for the new album. A first for Sad Daddy, they took the brand-new bones of each other’s ideas and worked on them as a band to construct and finish the songs. The collective decided on a down-home, back-to-the-country theme—a reflection on the state of the world and the desire to go back to simpler ways and self-sufficiency, goin’ way up in the hills and letting the chaos settle.  

Engineer Jordan Trotter brought his equipment into the cabin and the band recorded 14 original tunes live and in a circle. The feeling of being at a lakeside "home" studio in the serene Arkansas woods was distilled into sound and a genuine relaxed and good time vibe purveys the recordings. Sad Daddy explored using unique sounds, recording stomps on the cabin’s porch, hamboning, using the natural sounds of insects buzzing and bacon sizzling, mouth didgeridoo, handclaps, double clawhammer banjo, and more, along with the foursome’s strong vocals and harmonies.  

With a long and dedicated history of making their audiences happy, Sad Daddy is emerging rejuvenated with Way Up in the Hills. With a more down-home and old-timey feel than their previous albums, they all stretched themselves a bit to create a common theme and new songs together. Unique to Sad Daddy, all of the members sing lead and write original tunes--the convergence of influences and interpretation of feeling into sound is a stylistic blend of the very best elements of American Roots Music. From the sounds of early blues, jazz, and jug bands to early country, folk, old-time, bluegrass, soul, and funk, they combine many influences, creating an indefinable genre of their own.   

SAD DADDY RELEASES HILARIOUSLY HEARTWARMING VIDEO FOR "CHARLIE PICKLE"

SAD DADDY’S NEW VIDEO “CHARLIE PICKLE” PREMIERES VIA TWANGVILLE

 NEW LP WAY UP IN THE HILLS DUE OUT JANUARY 28TH

Photo: Annemarie Sundell

WATCH: “CHARLIE PICKLE”

 Arkansas/Texas four-piece roots powerhouse Sad Daddy has unveiled their hilariously heartwarming new video for “Charlie Pickle,” the lead single from their forthcoming LP, Way Up In The Hills, due out on January 28th. “It’s about an old-timer who just doesn’t care what other people think and is frequently spurred to dance,” says Twangville in the video’s premiere. “It always reminded the band how friends and fans dance at shows. Fiddler Rebecca Patek came up with the idea of having friends send clips of themselves dancing, and as luck would have it Halloween was upon them. The clips were edited together to create the video for Charlie Pickle...If this doesn’t leave you with a smile, you need some serious therapy.”

LISTEN: “CHARLIE PICKLE”

Since 2010, Sad Daddy has traveled down many a road--together and separately--at times focusing on their solo projects and then reuniting for a band project. The four members, Brian Martin, Joe Sundell, Rebecca Patek, and Melissa Carper, all conspired and united in the sudden spare time of 2020 to create their third album, Way Up in the Hills. 

They all met up at Brian’s cabin in Greers Ferry, Arkansas, and over a couple of bottles of chocolate milk and a few jugs of whiskey they collaborated, writing and arranging songs specifically for the new album. A first for Sad Daddy, they took the brand-new bones of each other’s ideas and worked on them as a band to construct and finish the songs. The collective decided on a down-home, back-to-the-country theme—a reflection on the state of the world and the desire to go back to simpler ways and self-sufficiency, goin’ way up in the hills and letting the chaos settle. 

Engineer Jordan Trotter brought his equipment into the cabin and the band recorded 14 original tunes live and in a circle. The feeling of being at a lakeside "home" studio in the serene Arkansas woods was distilled into sound and a genuine relaxed and good time vibe purveys the recordings. Sad Daddy explored using unique sounds, recording stomps on the cabin’s porch, hamboning, using the natural sounds of insects buzzing and bacon sizzling, mouth didgeridoo, handclaps, double clawhammer banjo, and more, along with the foursome’s strong vocals and harmonies. 

 With a long and dedicated history of making their audiences happy, Sad Daddy is emerging rejuvenated with Way Up in the Hills. With a more down-home and old-timey feel than their previous albums, they all stretched themselves a bit to create a common theme and new songs together. Unique to Sad Daddy, all of the members sing lead and write original tunes--the convergence of influences and interpretation of feeling into sound is a stylistic blend of the very best elements of American Roots Music. From the sounds of early blues, jazz, and jug bands to early country, folk, old-time, bluegrass, soul, and funk, they combine many influences, creating an indefinable genre of their own.  

SAD DADDY RELEASES SINGLE “CHARLIE PICKLE”

NEW LP WAY UP IN THE HILLS 
 DUE OUT JANUARY 28TH

LISTEN: “CHARLIE PICKLE”  

Today, with the release of lead single “Charlie Pickle,” roots powerhouse Sad Daddy announces their forthcoming LP, Way Up In The Hills, due out on January 28th. “It's about a conceptualized character, an ol’ timer named Charlie Pickle,” says Sad Daddy’s Brian Martin. “Charlie’s a man who’s lived it all, seen it all, and done it all. He’s not interested in fitting in or impressing anyone. He just wants to cut loose on a dance floor and let the music take him wherever it’s going to take him.” 

Since 2010, Sad Daddy, whose members are based in Arkansas and in Texas, has traveled down many a road--together and separately--at times focusing on their solo projects and then reuniting for a band project. The four members, Brian Martin, Joe Sundell, Rebecca Patek, and Melissa Carper, all conspired and united in the sudden spare time of 2020 to create their third album, Way Up in the Hills.  

They all met up at Brian’s cabin in Greers Ferry, Arkansas, and over a couple of bottles of chocolate milk and a few jugs of whiskey they collaborated, writing and arranging songs specifically for the new album. A first for Sad Daddy, they took the brand-new bones of each other’s ideas and worked on them as a band to construct and finish the songs. The collective decided on a down-home, back-to-the-country theme—a reflection on the state of the world and the desire to go back to simpler ways and self-sufficiency, goin’ way up in the hills and letting the chaos settle.  

Engineer Jordan Trotter brought his equipment into the cabin and the band recorded 14 original tunes live and in a circle. The feeling of being at a lakeside "home" studio in the serene Arkansas woods was distilled into sound and a genuine relaxed and good time vibe purveys the recordings. Sad Daddy explored using unique sounds, recording stomps on the cabin’s porch, hamboning, using the natural sounds of insects buzzing and bacon sizzling, mouth didgeridoo, handclaps, double clawhammer banjo, and more, along with the foursome’s strong vocals and harmonies.  

With a long and dedicated history of making their audiences happy, Sad Daddy is emerging rejuvenated with Way Up in the Hills.  With a more down-home and old-timey feel than their previous albums, they all stretched themselves a bit to create a common theme and new songs together. Unique to Sad Daddy, all of the members sing lead and write original tunes--the convergence of influences and interpretation of feeling into sound is a stylistic blend of the very best elements of American Roots Music. From the sounds of early blues, jazz, and jug bands to early country, folk, old-time, bluegrass, soul, and funk, they combine many influences, creating an indefinable genre of their own.   

WAY UP IN THE HILLS TRACK LIST 

Arkansas Bound  
Bacon  
 Big River  
Live Real Lean 
Cold Rain  
Charlie Pickle  
 Hangin' Them Clothes on the Line  
Make it Roll  
Up in the Hills  
Sunday Evening 
Back in Arkansas  
Poor Man's Son  
Wild Road 
Arkansas Bound Reprise