OUT TODAY: THE ACCIDENTALS’ NEW EP TIME OUT SESSION #2 + ON TOUR NOW WITH SPECIAL GUESTS KIM RICHEY, BETH NIELSEN CHAPMAN, & MAIA SHARP

LISTEN: TIME OUT SESSION #2  

Nashville-based, female-fronted trio The Accidentals have released Time Out Session #2, the second installment of their “Time Out” series,  a project where the band seeks out the tunesmiths who inspire them, finding unifying stories through songwriting. Time Out Session #2 features co-writes with Gretchen Peters, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Gary Burr, Tom Paxton, Maia Sharp, Georgia Middleman, and Peter Mulvey.  

“Our first, Time Out Session #1, was about learning how to heal and grieve during isolation, and Time Out Session #2 is a way of continuing that healing through collaboration - repairing cracked foundations; letting hope out of its cage; sharing our burdens,” says bandmember Sav Buist.  Recorded and produced by the band in their Nashville home studio, Crooked Moon Studios, they found a way to tell these stories over the course of two months. This EP speaks to the cycle of travel and the ripple effect of the people we meet along the way - from the whispering hometown ghosts of the past to the farthest northern shores of America, to the call of the winding road - and the bridges and highways that connect us to each other.   

The Michigan-bred, indie-folk trio’s “Time Out” series has turned heads and warmed hearts by forging singular and striking collaborations with some of America’s most important, most celebrated songwriters, among them Dar Williams, Kim Richey, and Mary Gauthier.  

After the Time Out Session #1 single, “Wildfire,” co-written with Kim Richey, was named No. 1 song of the year by FAI Folk Radio Charts for 2021, The Accidentals – Sav Buist, Katie Larson, and Michael Dause – are poised to build on that success with Time Out Session #2 featuring ever more intoxicating collaborations with prominent tunesmiths.  

If Time Out Session #1 was “an anthem for how to fix a broken America” (Rolling Stone), then Time Out Session #2 is the manual. The message is clear that connection, collaboration, and community are at the heart of healing. The Accidentals are bridging differences in generations and backgrounds to create unforgettable musical alliances.   

“These songs are honest and vulnerable and they were written in a safe space with songwriters, that through this process of co-writing, we have come to call friends,” says Larson. “As producers and engineers on this project, Katie and I tried to stay out of our own way and just serve the songs, not overthink it–leave space for the story,” adds Buist. “I think we did that.”     

The Accidentals have kicked off a tour to celebrate the release, and are joined on some of the dates by special guests and collaborators like Hall of Fame writer Beth Nielsen Chapman, Yep Roc Artist Kim Richey, and celebrated songwriter, Maia Sharp. Be sure to follow The Accidentals via the links below for the latest news and updates.  

TOUR DATES:  

3/4 - Listening Room - Grand Rapids, MI^ 

3/5 - Bell's Brewery - Kalamazoo, MI^  

3/6 - Old Art Building - Leland, MI^      

3/9 - The Ark - Ann Arbor, MI^  

3/10 - Acorn Theater - Three Oaks, MI^  

3/12 - Six String - Columbus, OH^ 

3/13 - City Winery - Nashville, TN^ 

3/18 - The Peace Center - Greenville, SC* 

4/8 - Ramsdell Regional Center For The Arts - Manistee, MI 

4/22 - Village Theater At Cherry Hill - Canton, MI 

5/14 - Michigan Music Video Awards - Marshall, MI 

6/16 - Moccasin Creek Festival - Effingham, IL 

6/17 - Jump Into Summer Festival - Saugatuck, MI 

7/14 - Beaver Island Music Festival - Beaver Island, MI 

8/14 - Power Lake Park - Oconomowoc, WI 

9/30 - Sisters Folk Festival - Sisters, OR 

 ^ - w/ Kim Richey, Beth Nielsen Chapman, & Maia Sharp 

*- w/ Maia Sharp 

ALI SPERRY PREMIERES NEW SINGLE “CLIMBER” VIA THE BLUEGRASS SITUATION + FORTHCOMING LP IN FRONT OF US DUE OUT MARCH 11TH

LISTEN: “CLIMBER”  

Nashville-based singer/songwriter Ali Sperry has released “Climber,” the latest from her forthcoming LP In Front Of Us, due out on March 11th. “In March of 2018, my friend Becca Richardson was sitting across from me in my music room, and as co-writes often go, we got to talking at length about our lives, plans, the music we were both making, our thoughts on the current government administration, and a topic that was very much in the spotlight and on our minds at that moment, the #MeToo movement,” Sperry told The Bluegrass Situation in the premiere. “From these musings, ‘Climber’ took shape — not as a song specifically about a single person or story, but an archetype and universal experience we all know too well. It’s the age-old tale of the charming narcissist who commands the room, puts you on a pedestal until they no longer choose to shine their light on you, and the subsequent anger that fuels the recipient of this behavior to shut it down.” 

“Climber,” the first song on the album, signifies the ushering in of a new era — globally and personally — with a revitalized sense of empowerment and newly minted boundaries. Audley Freed’s electric guitar sounds like it’s having a conversation with Kristin Weber’s strings, building into this catharsis of the final chorus with Allison Russell and Weber’s harmony vocals lifting the melody.  

The track follows the release of “Excuses,” which explores the innate anger that comes from the human experience, “In Your Dreams,” about being your authentic self, and “Cool Under Pressure,” inspired by watching Kamala Harris in the 2020 Vice Presidential Debate. “I stirred with pride to be a woman, pride to witness such a woman demonstrating her ability for leadership,” Sperry recalls. “The way she elegantly fought for her time to speak, insisted upon it, was almost shocking to me, as it was an example too-seldom seen.” 

LISTEN: “EXCUSES” 

LISTEN: “IN YOUR DREAMS”  

LISTEN: “COOL UNDER PRESSURE” 

Sperry, a yogi who grew up in a small Iowa community built around the practice of Transcendental Meditation, moved to Nashville in 2009. Since then, she has become a beloved member of the Nashville creative community, frequently sought after for collaborations and co-writes due to her songwriting prowess. She has shared stages with the likes of Nicki Bluhm, Langhorne Slim, Andrew Combs, Mipso, Kelsey Waldon, Erin Rae, and more.  

In 2020, when faced with a year of trauma, racial reckoning, and downright worldwide existential crisis, Sperry did what she has always done–turned inward and wrote songs that channeled, mirrored, and ultimately distilled those cultural currents into what became In Front Of Us. The album was made in the thick of the pandemic and was produced by her husband, Jamie Dick. The restrictions of life compelled the couple to set up a home studio and create a safe place to make the record, remotely collaborating with friends like Allison Russell, Kyshona, Jill Andrews, Natalie Schlabs, Sadler Vaden, Jill Andrews, and more. 

With In Front Of Us, Sperry wisely avoids long-form folk indulgence for streamlined contours and razor hooks that feel more rock/pop than folk, and are fairly begging for a decent car stereo and an open road. In her singing and writing, she is the people’s champ of the “less is more" ethos. There is a slight echo of Laurel Canyon in the sonics of the record, and, always, the confident under-singing of a woman who knows her words and melodies will happily do the heavy lifting.   

SUSAN CATTANEO RELEASES NEW SINGLE “TIME + LOVE + GRAVITY” FORTHCOMING LP ALL IS QUIET DUE OUT APRIL 8TH

“The tenor of local singer-songwriter Susan Cattaneo’s new album, All Is Quiet, is captured perfectly by its title, and with the help of the twinned guitars of Duke Levine and Kevin Barry she wraps its lyrical reflections in a musical blanket of shimmering beauty.” - The Boston Globe

LISTEN TO “TIME + LOVE + GRAVITY” : SPOTIFY || BANDCAMP  

Boston-based award-winning singer/songwriter Susan Cattaneo has released “Time + Love + Gravity,” the latest from her forthcoming LP, All Is Quiet, due out on April 8th. "A physicist/friend once told me that time moves slower on earth than it does in space because of the earth’s gravity," Cattaneo explains of the track, which juxtaposes pulsing, insistent music with sparse lyrics. "I took that concept a step forward and imagined that when you’re caught in the pain of love’s gravity, time feels like it moves slower as well." 

“Time + Love + Gravity” follows the release of the album opener and title track, a song about all of us coming to terms with a changed world. “The concept of silence became my metaphor for being creatively muted,” she says. “The lyrics speak about 'an end.' For many of us in the music world, the year 2020 meant an end to many things: live performing, cowriting in person, and the tour life," she continues. “It is intentionally the first song on the album because it begins my journey from silence to song."  

LISTEN // WATCH: “ALL IS QUIET” 

With her powerful voice, captivating melodies, and finely-crafted lyrics, Susan Cattaneo is one of Boston’s most respected singer/songwriters. A compelling performer and vivid storyteller, her music blends folk, rock, and blues with a hint of country–call it New England Americana.   

Following up on the success of her chart-topping double album The Hammer & The Heart, which charted #1 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart, yielded a #1 song on folk radio, and was a top 10 album of 2017, All is Quiet features her signature lyrical and melodic craft as she brings her mastery to a quieter place. Embracing simplicity and vulnerability, the nine songs on All is Quiet speak to the personal nature of loss, relationships, and hope for the future. The album was recorded remotely during 2020 and features the beautiful guitar work of national talents Kevin Barry and Duke Levine and was co-produced with Lorne Entress.   

Critics, audiences, and fellow artists have instantly connected with the personal nature of Cattaneo’s songs. She is a three-time Kerrville New Folk Finalist, a three-time nominee for Best Americana Artist at the Boston Music Awards, and she won the 2018 CT Folk Festival. Cattaneo has been a finalist or winner at some of the country’s most prestigious songwriting and music contests including the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, Philadelphia Songwriters Project,  the Wildflower Festival, the Independent Music Awards, the International Acoustic Music Awards, 5 Unsigned Only, the USA Songwriting Competition, the Mountain Stage New Song Contest, and the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest.   

She has opened for or shared the stage with Bill Kirchen, Mark Erelli, David Wilcox, Rose Cousins, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Livingston Taylor, Paula Cole, Huey Lewis and The News, Amy Grant, Travis Tritt, and more. Cattaneo is also an in-demand educator and collaborator. As a Songwriting Professor at the Berklee College of Music for the past 20 years, she has helped students work on over 15,000 songs in all musical genres and styles and mentored over 2,000 artists. She is also one half of the indie-folk duo called Honest Mechanik with Paul Hansen of The Grownup Noise. The duo launched their first album in July of 2020 and was nominated for Folk Act of The Year at the 2021 Boston Music Awards.  

*ALBUM RELEASE SHOW* 

  3/3 - The Burren - Somerville, MA 

PHILLIP-MICHAEL SCALES MAKES NATIONAL TELEVISION DEBUT WITH PERFORMANCE ON THE ELLEN DEGENERES SHOW

LAUNCHES “TROUBLED WATER” COFFEE BLEND   WITH ANODYNE COFFEE ROASTING CO.  

NEW LP SINNER-SONGWRITER   

OUT NOW VIA DIXIEFROG RECORDS 

Photo credit: Michael Rozman/Warner Bros.

WATCH: PHILLIP-MICHAEL SCALES’ PERFORMANCE ON THE ELLEN DEGENERES SHOW  

On February 23rd, Nashville-based artist Phillip-Michael Scales made his national television debut with a performance of his single “Find A Way” on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Scales has been touring in celebration of the release of his long-awaited LP Sinner-Songwriter, out now via DixieFrog Records. Scales was inspired by close family friend, “Uncle” BB King, to forge his own musical path; it wasn’t until his uncle passed away that Scales began incorporating more of King’s influence into his music. “These days I’m finding more of my story in the blues,” he explains. “A lot has led me here—between politics, my identity, and of course: Legacy.”   

LISTEN: “FIND A WAY” 

  The album, recorded in LA, Nashville, Chicago, and a remote cabin in Wisconsin during the pandemic, is about love, loss, and legacy, and features Scales’ unique blend of guitar-driven indie rock combined with the story-laden blues in his DNA, a style he calls “Dive Bar Soul.” 

Scales has also partnered with Milwaukee-based Anodyne Coffee Roasting Company to launch a signature blend called “Troubled Water.” The blend was curated by Scales himself, and is named after one of the tracks on Sinner-Songwriter. “Troubled Water” is available for purchase HERE.  

Sinner-Songwriter is available now on all streaming platforms, iTunes, and Amazon Music. CDs and vinyl are available for purchase/pre-order HERE, and a CD/vinyl bundle is available for pre-order HERE. Be sure to follow Phillip-Michael Scales at the links below for the latest news and updates. 

OLIVE VOX RELEASE DEBUT EP TODAY!

“…the pair effectively blend the thick distorted-guitar assault of Mudhoney with a trippy Ty Segall psychedelia, resulting in a sound that is simultaneously aged and ageless.” – FW Weekly

 OLIVE VOX EP - LISTEN

DALLAS/FORT WORTH, TX – Psychedelic, grunge rockers Olive Vox release their self-titled debut EP today!

The five-song set includes previously released singles “Bury Me Low,” “Sunflower,” and “Middle Name” as well as two new tracks “This Is My Home” and “Denial”. The duo has also released the stand alone single “Finger,” a Ty Segall cover released in October prior to their opening for Fuzz at Levitation Festival in Austin.

The creation of singer-songwriter, social media creator/influencer Parker James and his brother guitarist-songwriter Caden Shea, Olive Vox have created a sound well beyond their years with influence of Nirvana, Screaming Trees, Alice In Chains as well as psychedelic influence of veterans Pink Floyd, and more current Ty Segall.

BUZZ

“…a smooth groove machine of a rock ‘n’ roll tune, evoking the gloriously sludgy grunge psychedelia of Screaming Trees, Temple of the Dog and Stone Temple Pilots. Parker’s voice rings out like a young David Gilmour ‘standing by the Nile’ in 1969, while Caden’s guitars purr with the finesse of a freshly refurbished muscle car.” -Dallas Observer 

“…a sound that loves to let the distortion pedals go wild and light the feedback ablaze… nailing the thickness and rawness of what makes psych, blues and garage rock really sit well with young and older audiences alike, Olive Vox is showing plenty of promise in its early goings.” -Central Track

“For a couple of teenagers, this is pretty damn heady stuff as Olive Vox will have you thinking while you bang your head against the living room wall.” - Texas Music Monthly

“Though it’s a ridiculously overused quote pulled from a song Pete Townshend wrote for The Who, it’s applicable to say that the kids are, indeed, alright. Those of us who survived the ’90s will hear the familiar grungy warmth on the 5 songs on the band’s self-titled debut EP while Gen Z will be introduced to something that very few new bands are doing.” - The Big Takeover
“…a vintage rock n’ roll sound that’s more advanced and progressive than you’d expect from young musicians just beginning to find their traction.”  - V13

“…the pair effectively blend the thick distorted-guitar assault of Mudhoney with a trippy Ty Segall psychedelia, resulting in a sound that is simultaneously aged and ageless.” – FW Weekly

Featured on Sirius/XM “Volume West” and SPIN Magazine x Twitch takeover 

Olive Vox EP debuted at #17 on Submodern Radio Top 200 Album Chart

Specialty show radio airplay at: Q104.3 NYC, The Edge Buffalo, KROX Austin, The Point St. Louis, 91X San Diego, KJEE Santa Barbara, KRXP Colorado Springs and WCSF Joliet, IL.

ABOUT OLIVE VOX: Originally from Orange County, CA, Parker & Caden moved to Texas as pre-adolescent kids searching to fit into a new landlocked environment. During the COVID induced lockdown Parker and Caden developed their sound influenced by psychedelic indie rock, garage rock, 90s grunge and more. Their Gen Z perspective makes the music they play resonate to an audience searching for a new sound to embrace.

Photo Credit: Tati Bruening

 “BURY ME LOW” SINGLE

 OFFICIAL VIDEO || STREAM

“FINGER” (Ty Segal Cover) SINGLE

 OFFICIAL VIDEO || STREAM

“SUNFLOWER” SINGLE

 YOUTUBE || STREAM

“MIDDLE NAME” SINGLE

 YOUTUBE || PRE-SAVE

OLIVE VOX EP (OUT NOW)

KEEP UP WITH OLIVE VOX

WEBSITE || INSTAGRAM || FACEBOOK || SPOTIFY || YOUTUBE || TIKTOK ||  TWITTER

SINGER SONGWRITER NEW ZEALAND MUSIC AWARD WINNER JAMIE MCDELL’S NEW SELF-TITLED ALBUM OUT TODAY

“...but the true stunner is McDell’s unforced voice” - Rolling Stone

“The New Zealander enchants with airy vocals and confessional lyrics” - Billboard

  “Over incandescent instrumentation, McDell examines the price we’re willing to pay for power and possession. Her lyricism lays out devastating depictions of deceit and the rippling fallout from a false sense of security.”  - American Songwriter

“McDell’s voice carries such weight with you feeling every poignant word...honestly, she’s a modern-day Stevie Nicks” - New Music Collection

"McDell has the voice and talent to go huge, and you're going to want to start paying attention to her sooner than later.”  - If It’s Too Loud 

"It doesn’t take long to realize that McDell has a way with words. Not only that, but she manages to sing acid-tongued lyrics in a very sweet voice that almost makes it sound complimentary – to a point." - Americana Highways

“The song has McDell examining her flaws with sweet melodic vocal twirls and jangly guitars.” - Parade Magazine 
“The song is a poignant moment of self-awareness…” - The Boot (on “Worst Crime”)

Listen to Jamie McDell : HERE

Critically acclaimed  New Zealand born singer songwriter Jamie McDell releases her highly anticipated self-titled album today through ABC Music. 

The enchanting artist recorded her fourth studio album in Nashville, teaming up with Nash Chambers in his eastside studio and drawing on the amazing musical talents of Dan Dugmore, Jedd Hughes, Dennis Crouch, Shawn Fichter, Jerry Roe, Jimmy Wallace, Tony Lucido and Ross Holmes, along with guests such as the McCrary Sisters, Robert Ellis, Erin Rae and Tom Busby. 

Containing Jamie’s most brutally honest moments, in both writing and performance, this new long player features musicians and production that takes you on a modern journey through 70s folk and country, blended with a healthy dose of roots and rock.  

The 13 track album includes Jamie’s singles ‘Dream Team’, ‘Not Ready Yet’ and the stunning current release, ‘Poor Boy’. This track has debuted in the Countrytown Radio Airplay chart and features Tom Busby of Busby Marou fame.  It was written by Jamie to acknowledge the powerful influence of her father. Jamie says, “I hope that he knows what a wonderful father he has been, how much he’s taught us about what’s truly important.”  

Explaining how the partnership with Tom Busby came about, Jamie explains, “I had opened a show in Auckland, NZ for Busby Marou and that sparked the idea of me joining the boys on an Australian tour. Tom has been super supportive of my music ever since and I absolutely love the tone of his voice and how it elevates this track!   View acoustic video HERE

Born in New Zealand, at the age of 7 McDell’s father left his job at an Auckland law firm to shift her mother, younger sister and Jamie onto the high seas and began living aboard a yacht in the Mediterranean. It’s here Jamie wrote her first song, a sea shanty for the dolphins. Also on that yacht lived a small collection of her parents’ favorite cassette tapes, which luckily included albums by Jimmy Buffett, John Denver and James Taylor. The young artist quickly formed a particularly strong bond with these records and she fondly remembers watching her parents perform Buffett duets - and occasionally chiming in, learning how to harmonize with her mother. An eager learner, Jamie then picked up the guitar after studying her fathers’ John Denver chord book collection and has never looked back.

Though self-titled albums tend to be reserved for debuts, Jamie now at age 28, started in music as a teenager felt that this was the best representation of who she is, and is the sound of a woman who has found her voice. Her music pays tribute to traditional elements of country music while celebrating her  life story, that of her family, her unique perspective, and female narrative.  

Jamie achieved a prolific amount in her formative years. Being signed to EMI at age 16 sparked the beginning of a successful musical journey, making her a household name across New Zealand. With the release of her debut album Six Strings and a Sailboat, which was certified Gold, went on to receive three NZ Music Award nominations, winning Best Pop Album of 2013. Then her sophomore record Ask Me Anything gained global attention, seeing the album track “Moon Shines Red” featured on American TV series Pretty Little Liars. In March 2017 Jamie made a trip to Nashville, looking for a change of scenery and to connect with the environment that birthed much of the music throughout her youth. She met with producer expat Aria Nominee Nash Chambers for coffee one day and decided they shared the same musical values and have been collaborating ever since.

HEATHER BOND SHARES VIDEO FOR “THE MIRAGE” PREMIERING ON AUDIOFEMME TODAY!

COLLABORATES WITH VIKTOR KRAUSS FOR SOPHOMORE ALBUM THE MESS WE CREATED OUT FEBRUARY 25

Photo Credit: Meg Sagi

“THE MIRAGE” VIDEO || WATCH 

NASHVILLE, TN – Nashville singer/songwriter Heather Bond shares live performance video for “The Mirage” from her forthcoming album The Mess We Created available on all streaming platforms on 2/25/22.

The video features a mostly female band – with the exception of co-writer/producer Viktor Krauss (Lyle Lovett, Bill Frisell, James Taylor, Robert Plant, Alison Krauss) on bass – and is the first video from her visual release of The Mess We Created, out 3/25/22 and currently available for PRE-ORDER.

“What makes the video particularly unique is the way Bond allows each person their moment to shine, the camera capturing each performer’s gifts and the way they light up the room, whether [Melissa] Mattey is grooving to the melody on keys or [Elizabeth] Chan is transfixed on Bond, while [Devonne] Fowlkes and [Emoni]  Wilkins fall into a rhythm with the singer as they sway to the beat in synchronicity… Getting lost in the moment and overtaken by the music was one of Bond’s goals for the video, and it also reflects the ’70s and ’80s influences of her upcoming album, The Mess We Created… - AudioFemme

The Mess We Created is a refreshing, well-crafted, and unique collection featuring first-rate musicians. The songs reveal a maturity gained from years of experience in the music industry. With Krauss as the primarily instrumentalist, along with L.A. drummer Matt Chamberlain (Lorde, Tori Amos) and Jano Rix of The Wood Brothers, the album is vibrant, idiosyncratic, and rooted in rhythm. Each song showcases Bond’s effortlessly agile vocal delivery, shifting from the smooth purity of Sade (in “Resist”) to the cheeky sweetness of Kylie Minogue (in “Ich Weiss Nicht”) to the delicate depth of Parisian singer Keren Ann (in “Fountain of Youth” and “Fate”). The album closes in an energetic punch with the spritely, beat-driven single “Feel It.”

The Mess We Created is set for release on February 25, 2022.

ABOUT HEATHER BOND: Nashville artist Heather Bond makes radiant, cinematic indie-pop laced with elements of disco and R&B. Her lyrics reflect on everything from love, seduction, and heartbreak to social media, nostalgia, and politics, with an easy, modern intelligence enhanced by crystal-clear vocals and crisp harmonies. Her sound is both elegant and eclectic, evoking the breezy clarity of piano-pop artists like Norah Jones and Regina Spektor mixed with the jazzy, experimental range of Fiona Apple. The Mess We Created is her sophomore solo release. She is also part of the Nashville group The Daybreaks. 

KEEP UP WITH HEATHER BOND

WEBSITE || INSTAGRAM || TWITTER || FACEBOOK || SPOTIFY || YOUTUBE

INDIE-POP DUO OSHIMA BROTHERS “CASTING A COOL SPELL WITH VIBEY ATMOSPHERIC” (-POPMATTERS) VIDEO FOR SINGLE “DANCE WITH ME”

Credit: Oshima Brothers

"DANCE WITH ME" VIDEO: WATCH

PORTLAND, ME. – Today, Oshima Brothers share the video for the single “Dance With Me” –from their sophomore full length album Dark Nights Golden Days.

The video premiered on Popmatters: “Oshima Brothers are casting a cool spell with the vibey atmospheric of ‘Dance with Me.’ It’s a grooving, low-key tune that runs flush to their roots-pop moniker well, heavily influenced by R&B with a dash of their folksier origins. Oshima Brothers ride the song’s slinky, electric refrain with impressive, self-choreographed dancing in the music video. It features shots of the brothers at work on the tune, cleverly converged to showcase several takes on the same two guys at once. It’s breezy and charmingly vintage.”

For their sophomore album, Oshima Brothers could have taken the safe path and stuck to the "roots-based pop sound that is infectious" (-NPR) on their well-received, 2016 self-titled debut. Instead, Sean and Jamie Oshima conceived a more ambitious, more expansive project that reflects the brothers’ wide-ranging artistic interests. On Dark Nights Golden Days (due April 1, 2022) the brothers have crafted a richly layered, genre-splicing sound that is at once retro and metro, spacious and intimate, lush and graceful. It is a set of music that invites people to dance in grocery stores as well as get lost in the wilderness.

Oshima Brothers are eager to play to live crowds again and share their Dark Nights Golden Days album due April 1, 2022. Confirmed tour dates as follows.

U.S. TOUR DATES

MAR 11 / SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY @ Caffe Lena

MAR 12 / BUFFALO, NY @ Babeville

MAR 14 / GRAND RAPIDS, MI @ Listening Room

MAR 15 / MADISON, WI @ The Bur Oak

MAR 16 / CHICAGO, IL @ City Winery

MAR 17/ INDIANAPOLIS, IN @ Do317 Lounge & Gallery

MAR 18 / ANN ARBOR, MI @ The Ark

MAY 20 / SYRACUSE, NY @ Folkus Project

MORE DATES TBA….

KEEP UP WITH OSHIMA BROTHERS

WEBSITE || INSTAGRAM || FACEBOOK || YOUTUBE || SPOTIFY

“GUITAR HERO” (-Billboard) HAMISH ANDERSON DROPS OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR “EVERYTHING STARTS AGAIN”

Credit: Emma Gillett

“EVERYTHING STARTS AGAIN” : OFFICIAL VIDEO 

LOS ANGELES, CA. – On the heels of his latest single “Everything Starts Again”, Australian “singer, songwriter and guitar hero” (-Billboard) Hamish Anderson dropped the official video with two global media partners – Parade Magazine in the U.S. and Rolling Stone (AU) via Tone Deaf for their Video of the Week!

“Classic aerobics add to the fun and a tongue-in-cheek ending (wait for it!) make this one of the most enjoyable watches and listens so far this year. And, of course, it rocks!” - Parade Magazine

“an ode to fining the positive light in the darkness… the perfect song to get you feeling as refreshed and energised” – Rolling Stone/Tone Deaf (AU)

Regarding the making of the video, Hamish shared with Parade Magazine:

“For the ‘Everything Starts Again’ music video I knew I wanted something bright and colorful to match the song. I stumbled across a video of jazzercise and the BPM of what the dancers were dancing to in this video fit perfectly to the tempo of ‘Everything Starts Again’. It all started to gel. Everyone contributed so much to this video and it really shows the more playful side to my music, which I don’t get to show often.”

“Everything Starts Again” is about sliding doors, or the idea when one thing ends, another begins – a great mantra for the New Year.  An evolution from his signature blues/rock sound, Hamish delves into indie pop/rock beats with a nod towards influences of Badfinger, The Pretenders and Pete Townshend.

“…garnished with tasty guitar interludes and world-weary lyrics…Anderson continues to do right by the guitar gods who went before him.” – Buzzbands LA

“Everything Starts Again” is the follow up to 2021s “Morning Light” single, which marked some firsts in Hamish’s career - first time co-producing with David Davis (Miguel, The War on Drugs, Lauren Ruth Ward), and first time recording remotely in a pandemic.

“Everything Starts Again” showcases the deft guitar skills and musical prowess of an artist that All Things Go aptly states “clearly knows the path from nostalgia to the future.” “Everything Starts Again” is now available on all streaming platforms.

“EVERYTHING STARTS AGAIN” (OUT NOW)

LISTEN/SHARE

KEEP UP WITH HAMISH ANDERSON

Website |  Facebook |  Twitter | Instagram |  YouTube | Spotify |  

BUFFALO ROSE WINS GRAND PRIZE AT 18TH ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL ACOUSTIC MUSIC AWARDS + RABBIT EP WITH WITH TOM PAXTON VIA MISRA RECORDS OUT NOW

OFFICIAL SXSW SHOWCASE IN AUSTIN THIS MARCH

LISTEN: RABBIT EP  

Today, Pittsburgh-based sextet Buffalo Rose, recently awarded the Overall Grand Prize at the 18th Annual International Acoustic Music Awards, released their new EP, Rabbit, via Misra Records. The EP was made in collaboration with GRAMMY-winning artist and folk legend Tom Paxton.  

Rabbit, a perfect release for the last gasp of winter, combines Paxton’s honed writing skills with the instrumental prowess of Buffalo Rose. The songs encompass how sweet, wild, and precious the present is when it is all you have. The world is strange and dangerous for a rabbit, but even so, a rabbit knows how to take pleasure– in green grass, a safe burrow, or in the warmth of another body. Rabbit’s themes are derived from the hope of doing all we can do to find what we’re looking for. In this EP, these seven musicians explore answers to many questions and have some serious fun in the process. 

Buffalo Rose is a wildly charismatic six-piece modern folk/Americana band from Pittsburgh that will change your entire perspective on acoustic music. They take the singer-songwriter tradition to a new level by crafting original songs which are emotive, meticulously arranged, and inspired by a world of idiosyncratic influences that never let a dull or predictable moment creep in.[Text Wrapping Break][Text Wrapping Break]Buffalo Rose's lineup of Lucy Clabby (vocals), Margot Jezerc (vocals), Bryce Rabideau (mandolin), Malcolm Inglis (dobro), Jason Rafalak (upright bass), and Shane McLaughlin (guitar, vocals) pushes itself and each other far beyond their perceived limits and blends their diverse and atypical approach to songwriting with the desire to see how unique a song can get and still feel like home. They use powerful vocal harmonies, strong playing, and an original vision to operate at every possible emotional level and put on dynamic live shows that are unforgettable experiences. They go from up and moving to sad and sweet and back again, bringing the entire audience along. [Text Wrapping Break][Text Wrapping Break]This combination of artistry and enthusiasm makes Buffalo Rose one of the most vital and important groups working today. Rather than play the folk music of the past, the band gleefully combines genres and ideas together to move acoustic music forward to a new, contemporary place without ever losing sight of its roots. Fans of Lake Street Dive, Nickel Creek, and Punch Brothers will find much to like in this crew. Anyone seeking compelling new acoustic music needs to join Buffalo Rose in the future right now. 

Rabbit is available for streaming on your favorite platform(s) and is available for purchase HERE. Be sure to follow Buffalo Rose at the links below for the latest news and updates. 

TOUR DATES 

3/11-3/20 - SXSW (Official Showcase) 

4/2 - Amazing Things Arts Center - Framingham, MA 

5/7-5/8 - Central Ohio Folk Festival - Columbus, OH 

5/18-5/22 - Folk Alliance International Conference - Kansas City, MO 

6/16-6/18 - Smoked Country Jam - Cross Fork, PA 

6/18 - Solarfest - Pittsburgh, PA 

DOPAPOD RELEASE THEIR NEW SINGLE “GROW” NEW MUSIC COMING THIS SPRING

Artwork & Design: Tandem Media & Katie Reahl

LISTEN TO “GROW”: HERE 

Progressive journeymen Dopapod have released their new single “Grow,” riding an intergalactic groove punctuated by a head-nodding bassline, slick guitar, simmering cymbals, and smooth vocals. Soaring keys and synth lines crescendo as the song accelerates before returning to where it started, true to Dopapod’s palindromic existence. "The song could be about a character time traveling back to the Big Bang,” explains keyboardist and vocalist Eli Winderman. The lyric ‘big things have small beginnings’ is a fitting homage to a line from Ridley Scott’s movie Prometheus. “Microscopic particles are the start of life. This is how we evolve,” and evolve they have. 

“Grow” is additionally accompanied by an animated video, the second in an ongoing series by the group that ties together the sights, sonics, and lore of Dopapod. Each forthcoming chapter digs deeper into the group’s mythology and steps unflinchingly into the fantastic. Each entry is another turned corner in the labyrinth, and the group’s music is the guide to the center of it all.

The quartet—Eli Winderman [keys, vocals], Rob Compa [guitar, vocals], Chuck Jones [bass], and Neal “Fro” Evans [drums]—present albums as experiences meant to be shared out of your speakers and on stage. Their hypnotic hybrid of funk, rock, jazz, bluegrass, and electronica, with musical influences that range from metal to jazz and Americana, from Medeski Martin & Wood to Pink Floyd, access a heightened level of cosmic harmony in their music, all of which bloomed brilliantly on 2009’s Radar, and continued to blossom on the likes of Never Odd Or Even [2014] and Megagem [2017]. Along the way, fan favorites such as “Present Ghosts” reeled in 2.4 million Spotify streams and counting. 2019’s Emit Time arrived at acclaim from Guitar World, Relix, Glide, Jambase, and more. Simultaneously, they sold out headline gigs and graced the bills of Electric Forest, Summer Camp, High Sierra, and Bonnaroo, where Rolling Stone named them among the festival’s “best-kept secrets.” 

After a marathon near-decade run, they enjoyed a year-plus hiatus to realign and reenergize before reuniting with a new fire during 2019 and partaking in something of a “soft return," which was cut short by the pandemic. The forced time off ushered in a laser-sharp focus on new music, while picking up the threads of a “concept catalog” that was first introduced on Never Odd Or Even, and bringing the music full circle. While exploring some of the band's favorite recurring concepts of time travel, balance, and binary pairs, Dopapod brought their fascination with palindromes full circle. The spelling of Dopapod is itself a palindrome, and “Grow” was purposely released on 2/20/2022. It’s all in the balance.

The hiatus, followed by forced downtime of the pandemic, ushered in a period of deep creative reflection and personal growth. Both individually and collectively, the members of the band spent time absorbing and reprocessing their work and the conceptual through lines of their catalog, resulting in an imaginative outpouring of new ideas and materials, including a collaboration with Tandem Media on an accompanying animation project. As always, there’s more to Dopapod’s vision with the union of the physical and digital elements. “It does feel like we made all these albums and made a time machine,” says Compa, “And now we’re at the new frontier, wherever we're going.” 

“Grow” follows the single “Think,” which was released late last year as the first entry in the evolution of the group’s audio and visual offerings. The impetus of the song came to the band while the country was knee-deep in polarization, and the group felt a need to convey their feelings while witnessing others fall into a rabbit hole of dangerous binaries. "You can do no wrong, as long as you do everything right all of the time,” is a line the band imagined could come from a talking head, and as always Dopapod crafts nuance in their work through form and function.

In addition to the new music and animation project, 2022 will be filled with heavy touring, which will feature a mix of festivals and Dopapod dates. For their shows, the band has partnered with two incredible charities,  RAINN, the largest U.S. anti-sexual assault organization, and Camp Courageous, an organization that provides year-round recreational and respite care opportunities.  A dollar of each Dopapod ticket sold will go to these charities, and fans will have the option to choose which of the two charities to donate to. 

“At the end of the day, we hope we represent being yourself, being unique, and trying to do something new,” exclaims Winderman. “If everyone does that, I think the world would be a much more interesting place all around.”

TOUR DATES

3/2  Fox Theatre  Boulder, CO 

3/3  Aggie Theatre Ft. Collins, CO

3/4   10 Mile Music Hall Frisco, CO

3/5   Schmiggitys Steamboat Springs, CO

4/30  SOME KIND OF JAM 16 Kempton, PA

5/13  HOOKAHVILLE 2022 NEWARK, OH

 5/27   Summer Camp Chillicothe, IL 

5/28 Arise Music Festival  Boone, CO 

6/24  Northlands Festival Swanzey, NH

6/25 Beanstalk Music Festival Bond, CO

KEEP UP WITH DOPAPOD

Website |Facebook |Instagram |Twitter |YouTube |Twitch

PHILLIP-MICHAEL SCALES SET TO MAKE NATIONAL TELEVISION DEBUT WITH PERFORMANCE ON THE ELLEN DEGENERES SHOW

NEW LP SINNER-SONGWRITER  

OUT NOW VIA DIXIEFROG RECORDS 

LISTEN: “FIND A WAY”   

On February 23rd, Nashville-based artist Phillip-Michael Scales will make his national television debut with a performance of his single “Find A Way” on The Ellen DeGeneres Show (check your local listings HERE for airing information). Scales has been touring in celebration of the release of his long-awaited LP Sinner-Songwriter, out now via DixieFrog Records. Scales was inspired by close family friend, “Uncle” BB King, to forge his own musical path; it wasn’t until his uncle passed away that Scales began incorporating more of King’s influence into his music. “These days I’m finding more of my story in the blues,” he explains. “A lot has led me here—between politics, my identity, and of course: Legacy.”     

LISTEN: SINNER-SONGWRITER   

The album, recorded in LA, Nashville, Chicago, and a remote cabin in Wisconsin during the pandemic, is about love, loss, and legacy, and features Scales’ unique blend of guitar-driven indie rock combined with the story-laden blues in his DNA, a style he calls “Dive Bar Soul.”   

Sinner-Songwriter is available now on all streaming platforms, iTunes, and Amazon Music. CDs and vinyl are available for purchase/pre-order HERE, and a CD/vinyl bundle is available for pre-order HERE. Be sure to tune in on Wednesday, February 23rd to watch Scales perform his song “Find A Way,” and follow Phillip-Michael Scales at the links below for the latest news and updates. 

ERIKA LEWIS PREMIERES NEW SINGLE “LOSER” VIA HOLLER.

A WALK AROUND THE SUN LP 

SET FOR RELEASE APRIL 29TH 

Photo credit: Sarrah Danziger

LISTEN: “LOSER” 

Asheville-based singer-songwriter Erika Lewis has unveiled “Loser,” the first single from her forthcoming album A Walk Around The Sun, set for release on April 29th. “Like the rest of the songs on A Walk Around The Sun, ‘Loser’ is somehow able to sweep up all the sadness and pain of the human condition and bundle it up into something sweet and strangely uplifting,” said Holler. “Taking the clear-eyed charm of Gillian Welch or Laura Cantrell and adding a cheeky twist of girl group sass and a ‘Be My Baby’ backbeat behind its pedal steel and a sighing baritone guitar.” 

“I wrote 'Loser' soon after moving away from New Orleans some years ago,” Lewis told Holler. in their premiere. “I was feeling confused about romantic relationships and the push and pull that seemed to come with them - thinking a lot about dedication and loyalty, heartbreak and broken promises, and the feeling that you would do anything in order to make it work - yet not really knowing what to do. In essence, I was feeling that way about New Orleans too, like I had done my best, and despite all the love, I had to move on, or at least try to." 

~ 

A Walk Around The Sun is a series of lyrical vignettes that examine the margins between love and loss, joy and grief, and longing and contentment. Lewis deepens her sonic palette across classic country, cosmic Americana, and dreamy indie-folk, while enveloping a wide scope of roots music styles. Whether it’s through sweeping strings, pedal steel, a hybridized psych-rock guitar, or Lewis’ soaring vocals, A Walk Around The Sun takes a closer look at the connections between lovers and friends, and the effect of these relationships on the self. 

Produced by John James Tourville (The Deslondes) and recorded in Nashville at Andrija Tokic’s analog paradise The Bomb Shelter, A Walk Around the Sun features 11 all-original songs that reflect Lewis’s songwriting power across narrative and textures. 

After a health scare in 2020 that required a surgery that could damage her vocal cords and effectively end Lewis’ career, friend Lani Tourville inspired her to push through and record an  album before the surgery. A Walk Around The Sun is another chapter in Lewis’ expansive songwriting, and a testament to her fortitude in the face of near-overwhelming pain and doubt. Lewis proves that to overcome the odds, you need to plow right through them.   

Songs like “A Thousand Miles” and “If You Were Mine,” showcase the romanticism that runs through Lewis’ writing, while ​​“First Love” examines young love lost in the rearview. Lewis excels at bottling sweeping, deeply relatable themes, and unraveling the human experience, all while pinpointing her place in these stories and within the world at large.  

Her approach as an artist and performer is informed by the years she spent cutting her teeth busking in the streets of New Orleans’ French Quarter and in Berlin. After relocating to New Orleans in 2007, she started a band with jazz artist Meschiya Lake called The Magnolia Beacon. After honing in on their sound in New Orleans, the two eventually crossed the Atlantic to the Kreuzberg neighborhood of Berlin. Busking on the bridge or in Turkish markets in the daytime and hitting the local bars at night, the two quickly developed their writing and improvisational skills by playing for listeners and travelers of all walks of life. 

Upon returning to New Orleans, Lewis joined a team of fellow street performers and friends, making traditional jazz and swing music as Tuba Skinny. Eventually, she built up the momentum to record her own material outside of the group, finding inspiration in fellow New Orleans-based musicians, and songwriters including Alynda Segarra, Kiki Cavazos, Sam Doores, Riley Downing, Meschiya Lake, and more.  

A Walk Around The Sun is available for pre-save and pre-order on February 15th. Be sure to follow Erika Lewis at the links below for the latest news. 

TRACKLIST   

A Thousand Miles 

If You Were Mine 

First Love 

Loser 

Running Wild 

A Walk Around The Sun 

Hearts 

Unsatisfied 

Wild Thing 

Love Song 

Thief and a Liar 

THE LOYAL SEAS (TANYA DONELLY AND BRIAN SULLIVAN) SET TO RELEASE DEBUT ALBUM STRANGE MORNINGS IN THE GARDEN 5/20/22 ON AMERICAN LAUNDROMAT RECORDS

DEBUT ALBUM STRANGE MORNINGS IN THE GARDEN AVAILBLE 5/20/22 ON AMERICAN LAUNDROMAT RECORDS

Credit: Ann Sullivan-Cross

"(SO FAR FROM) SILVERLAKE" SINGLE (OUT TODAY) LISTEN || WATCH

MYSTIC, CONN – The Loyal Seas - the creative partnership of Tanya Donelly (Belly, Throwing Muses, The Breeders) and Brian Sullivan (Dylan in the Movies) – has swelled from covers, and a split single to a debut album with the release of Strange Mornings In The Garden, available May 20 through American Laundromat Records.

The single “(So Far From) Silverlake” is available today on most streaming platforms, as is the official video directed by Orrin Anderson (Kristin Hersh, Throwing Muses, 50 Foot Wave and +/-) on YouTube. The album will be available for pre-orders exclusively through Bandcamp on March 4th. PRE-ORDER

Donelly and Sullivan first met in the mid ’90s at Fort Apache Studios, the famed New England recording studio that has produced legions of beloved albums. “Tanya is one of my favorite singers,” explains Brian. “Her voice is an instrument and sounds like an angel - or what I think an angel would sound like. And she's a poet; her words and stories slay me. It’s always a thrill to hear what she comes up with.”

They were friends almost instantly and have collaborated over the years, appearing on two of American Laundromat’s most popular tribute compilations. The pair contributed a sparkling cover of “The Lovecats” for Just Like Heaven: A Tribute to The Cure (2009), where Donelly’s honeyed rasp is brightened by the contrast of Sullivan’s lower-register growls. Their take on “Shoplifters of the World Unite,” from Please, Please, Please: A Tribute to the Smiths (2011), glimmers with melancholic wonder, with Donelly’s silken lead vocals textured by an orchestral scythe and Sullivan’s backing anchor. 

These covers led to a formal partnership on a whim. Tanya remembers, “Brian was over my house, playing this beautiful piece he’d written on piano and I called dibs on it. It grew from there.”

Brian confirms, “I think Tanya said, ‘Can I have that?’  - she was working on her Swan Song Series at the time. It was at that moment I blurted out, ‘Let's make an album together!’”

That song became “Last of the Great Machines” – the seed that germinated into their dynamic debut split single, “Strange Mornings in the Garden” b/w “Last of the Great Machines,” released in December 2020 as a label exclusive that sold-out instantly. Each side was an individualistic statement showcasing a particular side of the pair’s personality. One a luxuriant, sweeping ballad, and the other tightly knit, kinetic alt-pop.

To solidify this new partnership, the duo needed a name. “Band names are tricky. We came up with some interesting names,” recalls Brian. “Our relationship is very 'brother and sister' - that's where the ‘loyal’ part comes in. To me, family means loyalty.” Adds Tanya, “Brian and I are ocean animals, so that had to be in there somewhere.”

And so, the Loyal Seas bloomed. The group’s full-length debut Strange Mornings In the Garden will be released on May 20, 2022.

ABOUT THE LOYAL SEAS

For the last decade, trailblazing alternative rock figurehead Tanya Donelly has pursued meaningful collaborations with favorite artists and friends. The resulting work is by turns poignant, delightful and entirely surprising, melding folk, rock, pop and orchestral sounds. Her latest, The Loyal Seas, pairs Donelly with New England cult-favorite Brian Sullivan, who’s worked under the moniker Dylan in the Movies since the mid ’00s. A skilled singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Sullivan’s debut, Feel the Pull (2005), and follow-up full-length, Sweet Rebel Thee (2014), are each teeming with a lush, discrete form of alt-pop, Sullivan’s private mind garden translated as cinematic vignettes. 

KEEP UP WITH THE LOYAL SEAS

WEBSITE || INSTAGRAM || BANDCAMP

Alt-Country darlings, The Weeping Willows celebrate the release of long-anticipated third studio album You Reap What You Sow with brand new single ‘House Of Sin’ out TODAY!

Photo Credit: Ian Laidlaw

“HOUSE OF SIN” OUT TODAY

STREAM || WATCH VIDEO 

MELBOURNE, AUS. – Australian Golden Guitar-winning folk/Americana duo The Weeping Willows have long burned brightest in the shadows. True to form, with earthy new single and cautionary tale, “House of Sin”, (out today!) the pair considers the irresistible flame of temptation and the wages of iniquity that follow in its train. With its sinuous fingerpicking and ominous note of warning, “House of Sin” finds The Weeping Willows at the peak of their songwriting and vocal powers. 

“This song takes on the sin of temptation against vows. The flinty vocals of Coates and Wrigglesworth create a chilly dark feel. The video leaves no doubt about the fallen conscience. You’ll listen for the adept playing too, which is truly first rate.” – Americana Highways

Helmed by Laura Coates and Andrew Wrigglesworth, The Weeping Willows are a couple of old souls steeped in bluegrass tradition and draped in gothic Americana imagery.

Recorded, engineered and mixed by Ryan Freeland (Ramblin' Jack Elliott, The Carolina Chocolate Drops, Ray LaMontagne, Bonnie Raitt, Aimee Mann) at Los Angeles’ world-beating Stampede Origin Studio and drawing from the same shadowy thematic wellspring as the duo’s critically-acclaimed sophomore studio album Before Darkness Comes A-Callin’ (2016), “House of Sin” is a thrilling meditation on the darker underbelly of a fallen world and offers a glimpse into the Weeping Willows’ much anticipated third studio album, You Reap What You Sow available March 4, 2022.

As Laura explains, “We’ve always been drawn to the more sinister, ‘gothic’ side of Americana music that harkens back to the early blues as well as bluegrass and ‘mountain music’ traditions.”

“House of Sin” is available on all music services today. You Reap What You Sow will be available on March 4, 2022.

KEEP UP WITH WEEPING WILLOWS

Website | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Spotify

THE SULLY BAND RELEASES NEW SINGLE “IF I COULD ONLY BE SURE” + DEBUT LP LET’S STRAIGHTEN IT OUT! SET FOR RELEASE ON MARCH 11TH VIA BELLY UP RECORDS

"Tight rhythm section, soulful outstanding vocals, horn section and superb musicians. This band sounds like they’ve been together for years…. Soulful and sparkling." - Rock and Blues Muse  

"If you’re looking for a party in your ears, look no further than The Sully Band’s take on Aretha Franklin’s 1970 cut 'When The Battle Is Over (ft. Rebecca Jade)'...'When the battle is over, who will wear the crown?' the lyrics inquire, and we’re pretty sure The Sully Band will walk away with that prize." - Mother Church Pew 

"A fresh twist" - Soul&Jazz&Funk 

PHOTO CREDIT: STEVE SHERMAN

 LISTEN: “IF I COULD ONLY BE SURE” 

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, San Diego’s “Best Live Band,” The Sully Band, is back with their latest single “If I Could Only Be Sure,” a new take on Nolan Porter’s soulful 1972 love song. Porter, who was born in Los Angeles, became a prominent figure in the UK’s northern soul movement in the 1970s, but struggled to gain notoriety in the US and sadly passed away in February of 2021 without much fanfare.  In tribute, Sully dusts off this hidden gem and gives his take on Porter’s lyrics, growling “I’d do anything at all, if you’d just let me love you, baby." 

"When I set out to make this album, which is a journey through songs about love by soul, funk, and blues icons, I was blown away to discover this tune, and even more blown away that no one else had ever covered it. Lyrically, this song is a simple yet heart-wrenching plea, and musically it has a sweet guitar riff but also a melancholy tension that makes it stand out from most other love songs, so I was excited to give it a go.  As we approach one-year anniversary of his passing, I do hope our version is a fitting tribute that also draws some attention to his brilliant original." 

In step with the spirit of the St. Valentine’s holiday, “If I Could Only Be Sure” follows two other love songs from The Sully Band’s upcoming release:  “If You Love Me Like You Say,” a New Orleans-style take on an “Iceman” Albert Collins classic, and lead single “When The Battle Is Over (ft. Rebecca Jade),” a rocking reimagining of a Dr. John-penned gem originally recorded as a one-sided boast by Delaney & Bonnie, and later by Aretha Franklin.  Together, the three songs are part of a story arc of love and it’s trials and triumphs, with the rest of the songs due out on March 11th on the Sully Band’s debut album Let’s Straighten It Out! 

LISTEN: “IF YOU LOVE ME LIKE YOU SAY” 

LISTEN: “WHEN THE BATTLE IS OVER (ft. REBECCA JADE)”  

Let’s Straighten It Out! was conceived in the hallowed halls of Henson Recording Studio in Hollywood, California (formerly A&M Studios). With it, Sully and his bluesy, nine-piece beast of a band take us on a journey through the ups, downs, and all-arounds of love by way of 10 classic ‘60s and ‘70s soul, blues, and R&B tunes.  

The album was recorded in only five jam-packed days, with “mostly-live” versions of carefully curated love-themed songs that made a mark when they were originally released and yet also feel relevant today. Sully’s soulful, heartfelt vocals cut across layers of horns and guitars that take the listener on an emotional arc of joy, disappointment, struggle, and redemption. 

Multiple Grammy Award-winning producer Chris Goldsmith (Blind Boys of Alabama, Ben Harper, Charlie Musselwhite, Big Head Todd) provided the musical curation that makes up Let’s Straighten It Out!. Anchored by Grammy Award-winning slayer of the bass, James East (Eric Clapton, Elton John, Michael Jackson, and many others), The Sully Band is composed of seasoned, accomplished players who hail from diverse locales like Japan, Panama, and the island of Lemon Grove. The horn section features sax-flute-harp-man Tripp Sprague (Kenny Loggins, The Little River Band, Smokey Robinson, The Temptations, The Four Tops) and trumpet and flugelhorn player Steve Dillard (The Righteous Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd). 

Sully caught the music bug at age six after picking up a nylon-string guitar and playing the first few chords of “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay” with his dad. In high school, the barrel-chested, all-American football player rocked out to Boston and Foreigner with his buddies, starred in every show-tune-laden musical theatre production through college, and ended each day with James Brown or Stevie Wonder on his Pioneer receiver.   

In his 20’s, after pounding the unforgiving Los Angeles pavement trying to cut a record deal, he embarked on a 35-year detour, traveling a storied path from Price Club cashier to self-made entrepreneur and national radio/TV personality, ultimately finding his way back to his first true love: music.  

Now, after years away from the stage, he is back in full force. He and the band have been playing regional and national shows to small but mighty crowds, from Southern California’s legendary Belly Up Tavern to Austin’s illustrious Antone’s Nightclub, making his mark as a compelling musician and live performer ready to “Straighten it Out.” 

UPCOMING ALBUM RELEASE  SHOWS: 

3/10 - The Mint - Los Angeles, CA  

3/17 - Belly Up Tavern - Solana Beach, CA 

ABOUT BELLY UP RECORDS 

Belly Up Records is the recording component of the legendary Belly Up concert venue, located in Solana Beach, California. Opened in 1974 with only a couple of mics and no stage, it soon became a frequent stop for legends like John Lee Hooker, Etta James, and BB King and hosted classic performances by Curtis Mayfield, George Clinton, The Neville Brothers, and Toots and The Maytals. Since then, many artists have stopped by on their way up the ladder, including No Doubt, Black Eyed Peas, Mumford and Sons, and Childish Gambino, while artist underplays at the venue in recent years include The Killers, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jimmy Buffett, Willie Nelson, Ben Harper, Damian Marley, and even Tom Jones. And, perhaps most famously, the Rolling Stones played a private event in 2015. With over 100 live recordings in the Belly Up catalogue, The Sully Band’s Let’s Straighten It Out! is the label’s first studio release. 

ABOUT BLUE ÉLAN RECORDS 

At Blue Élan Records it’s about the Music, it’s about the Artist, it’s about Collaboration. Blue Élan Records is a young and fresh independent label headquartered in Los Angeles. Founded in 2014 by veteran entertainment attorney and music lover Kirk Pasich, his son and musician Connor Pasich, and an experienced label team, Blue Élan believes in doing things differently.  

Blue Élan is the happy home of more than 20 artists, including 2-time Grammy® winner Rita Coolidge, the late Rusty Young, Soul Asylum, Grammy® nominated Colin Devlin (The Devlins), Gerry Beckley (America), outlaw country's Jesse Dayton, LA’s own Ozomatli, and self-assured newcomers like Chelsea Williams and Rod Melancon, who contribute to a full house of exciting and diverse talent across all genres. Blue Élan embraces a self-starting ingenuity and offers our artists a creative and nurturing music haven where they can continue to grow and flourish.  

OUT TODAY: JESSE CORRELL - INNER SHIBORI

"Lyrical..dreamscape" - PopWrapped  

"...a fine showcase of Correll’s soul, jazz and folk roots" - JAZZIZ  

"Over the past few years we’ve enjoyed the emergence of a number of American singer/songwriters who cleverly meld elements of country, Americana, jazz and soul into a soothing aural cocktail. Add to that soundscape mature lyrics that regularly question various status quos and you have some proper adult music – a music suited to the complex nuances of the 21st century. So, we’re thinking of people like Isaac Aragon, Jacob Collier and Gideon King. Now we can factor in Nashville-based musician Jesse Correll" - Soul&Jazz&Funk  

Equal parts Rufus Wainwright and Frank Sinatra in his more brooding moments, Correll is a modern-day torch singer drawing on a variety of influences from jazz and pop to classic soul. - Americana Highways  

"...minimalist instrumentation which allows the listener to focus on Correll’s smooth voice. However, it’s still bold enough to appeal to the fans of rousing pop performances in the vein of Rufus Wainwright or Ray LaMontagne." - East of 8th  

"Beautiful, artful masterwork." - Ear To The Ground 

"An instant good mood creator" - Music Injection  

"Deeply beautiful and intriguing" - American Pancake 

“Beautiful allegory” - Renegade Soul 

"Each melody attracts the listeners to listen further, begging for more...oozing with deliciousness in both the vocals and instrumentation." - ai love music 

LISTEN: INNER SHIBORI 

Today, Nashville-based singer/songwriter Jesse Correll has released his new LP Inner Shibori, produced by Correll and Anne McCue and featuring contributions from artists like Anna Tivel, Kyshona, Jason Eskridge, Freddy & Francine’s Bianca Caruso and Lee Ferris, and more. Inner Shibori is his fourth record since 1994, and his second release after a 15-year hiatus from music.  

Oozing luxury and longing, the album brims with sophisticated and tastefully sentimental songs, its smooth musicianship recalls the lonely balladeering of Frank Sinatra and Chet Baker – the type of recordings made at Capitol Studios in Hollywood during the 1950s and 1960s. The songs are also interwoven with threads of Americana, R&B, soul, and folk, recalling contemporary artists such as Ray LaMontagne, Jacob Collier, and Madison Cunningham.   

Shibori is a traditional Japanese resist-dyeing technique wherein a pattern is made by binding, folding, or compressing a natural fabric, dyeing it, and then releasing the bind and pressure to reveal its pattern. When the fabric is returned to its flat form after dyeing, the design that emerges is the result of the bound and tied three-dimensional shape. The cloth sensitively records both the form and the pressure; the “memory” of the tied shape remains imprinted in the cloth.  

“The technique spoke to me. We endure a lifelong process of unfolding, unbinding, unstitching, and unblocking. Little by little, we see that what we thought were stains, are intricate patterns; the design of unseen hands,” Correll shares. He explores this parable on his latest album, Inner Shibori, a timeless and elegantly expressive record that feels like a singer-songwriter album draped in torch-song finery.   

WATCH: “ONE MORE TIME” 

WATCH: “AN ICY COLD” 

A Berklee graduate and a lifelong musician, Correll was based in New York, then followed his muse to Music City, where he blossomed as a songwriter, a member of the Nashville music community, and a popular podcaster. In parallel, Correll endured personal hardships that seemed and felt like a bottom–yet became a turning point of self-reflection, acceptance, and even a love rebirth. This journey became an inner Shibori experience for him, and he processes it on his album.  “It was like a breakup with my former self. I had been running from old stuff – like early abandonment – and I needed to address them to move on. There is definitely a story of the greatest love ever followed by the worst pain ever,” he says.   

Reflective, redemptive, and triumphant, Inner Shibori simmers with classic R&B, heavenly harmonies, and jazz-tinged soul-pop. “This album felt like a homecoming,” Correll explains. “I needed all of those years of being lost to be able to fully express myself as a musician; as a human being. Making this record, and finding my home in the Nashville music community, has been a peak experience that I will never forget.”  

Inner Shibori is available at iTunes, Amazon Music, and Bandcamp. Jesse Correll’s album release show is tonight at Nashville’s City Winery Lounge. Click HERE for tickets and show information. Be sure to follow him at the links below for the latest news and updates.  

INNER SHIBORI TRACKLIST 

Go Deeper   

 One More Time  

 Begin Again, Again   

Life  

 An Icy Cold   

 Backyard Thursday   

 Fetch The Water   

Inner Shibori   

I’ll Just Keep Tryin’   

Dusty Sweetness  

Hope Like Adrenaline   

Slow Accepting   

Worst Of Both Worlds  

THE ACCIDENTALS ANNOUNCE TIME OUT SESSION #2 DUE MARCH 4TH

NEW EP FEATURES SONGWRITING COLLABORATIONS WITH  

GRETCHEN PETERS, BETH NIELSEN CHAPMAN, GARY BURR, MAIA SHARP, GEORGIA MIDDLEMAN, & PETER MULVEY   

SINGLE “EASTERN STANDARD TIME” OUT NOW 

LISTEN: “EASTERN STANDARD TIME”   

Nashville-based, female-fronted trio The Accidentals have announced their forthcoming EP Time Out Session #2, the second installment of their “Time Out” project, which features co-writes with Gretchen Peters, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Gary Burr, Tom Paxton, Maia Sharp, Georgia Middleman, and Peter Mulvey. The EP’s first  single “Eastern Standard Time,” co-written with Mulvey, was inspired by Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.   

“A Wisconsin native, Peter is known for riding his bike across the country with his guitar on his back, sharing stories and provocative wisdom in song form,” says Sav Buist (who met Mulvey at a festival in Michigan). “After watching his set we knew someday we would write a song with him.” Five minutes into the co-writing session, the band discovered they and Mulvey were all avid nature lovers. “When you’re co-writing with people you look for the commons, things you can both write about. We spent the first forty minutes talking about plants and fungi and discovered we both had an affinity for the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  It’s where our home state meets Peter’s home state.  “The UP is one of the most beautiful places on earth and we plan a tour there every year when the leaves are changing. We decided to write a song about that.   

“The line ‘Three fires burn from the old bloodlines’ pays homage to the Three Fires Council and the lineage of Native Americans that inhabited Mackinac Island dating back to 796 AD, later known as the Great Lakes Confederacy.  The descriptions of northern beauty are underscored by the dangerous oil pipeline threatening our remaining freshwater resources, and the looming concern over climate change” she explains. “We were thinking about all those things as we wrote this song.” 

The Michigan-bred, indie-folk trio’s “Time Out” series has turned heads and warmed hearts by forging singular and striking collaborations with some of America’s most important, most celebrated songwriters, among them Dar Williams, Kim Richey, and Mary Gauthier.  

After the Time Out Session #1 single, “Wildfire,” co-written with Kim Richey, was named No. 1 song of the year by FAI Folk Radio Charts for 2021, The Accidentals – Sav Buist, Katie Larson, and Michael Dause – are poised to build on that success by unfurling follow-up EP Time Out Session #2 featuring ever more intoxicating collaborations with prominent tunesmiths.  

If Time Out Session #1 was “an anthem for how to fix a broken America” (Rolling Stone), then Time Out Session #2 is the manual. The message is clear that connection, collaboration, and community are at the heart of healing.  The Accidentals are bridging differences in generations and backgrounds to create unforgettable musical alliances.   

“These songs are honest and vulnerable and they were written in a safe space with songwriters, that through this process of co-writing, we have come to call friends,” says Larson.“ As producers and engineers on this project, Katie and I tried to stay out of our own way and just serve the songs, not over think it–leave space for the story,” adds Buist. “I think we did that.”    

Set for release on March 4th, the self-produced EP will also launch a Midwest tour, kicking off March 2nd at 3300 Event Center in Peoria Heights, Illinois, and wrapping up on March 13th at City Winery in Nashville. Joining The Accidentals on that run are Hall of Fame writer Beth Nielsen Chapman, Yep Roc Artist Kim Richey, and celebrated songwriter, Maia Sharp. Be sure to follow The Accidentals via the links below for the latest news and updates.  

TOUR DATES:  

3/2 - 3300 Event Center - Peoria, IL 

3/3 - Old Town School of Folk - Chicago, IL  

3/4 - Listening Room - Grand Rapids, MI  

3/5 - Bell's Brewery - Kalamazoo, MI  

3/6 - Old Art Building - Leland, MI      

3/9 - The Ark - Ann Arbor, MI  

3/10 - Acorn Theater - Three Oaks, MI  

NATALIA M. KING PREMIERES GEORGE MICHAEL TRIBUTE “ONE MORE TRY” VIA THE BLUEGRASS SITUATION

NEW LP WOMAN MIND OF MY OWN 

DUE OUT FEBRUARY 18TH VIA DIXIEFROG RECORDS 

Photo credit: Philip Ducap

LISTEN: “ONE MORE TRY”  

Brooklyn-bred, Paris-based singer-songcrafter Natalia M. King premiered “One More Try,” a tribute to George Michael, via The Bluegrass Situation. The song appears on her latest LP, Woman Mind Of My Own, due out February 18th via Dixiefrog Records.  

“When ‘One More Try’ by George Michael came out back in 1988 I was an itty bitty youngster who could relate to the emotion of the song but not the experience,” King told The Bluegrass Situation. “All I knew in listening to him and feeling him was that something hurt, and it hurt bad…I was moved by his sadness and his necessity to be released, to be ‘let go’ from a love that was no longer serving his life or his heart. It was later on in life that his words were given sense and meaning with the different births of intense experiences of loves lost and found and lost again. The fact that I was also searching to define my sexuality at the time was a plus! His interpretation was so feminine! I was sure he was gay! With all that said and done, and to simply boil it down: ‘One More Try’ felt right! The timing, the knowing, the experience,” she continued. “Today, as a liberated, experienced, sexual, and quite emotional woman, it was almost commonsensical, logical for me to interpret this song! On this album! In my bluesy-folk way!” 

On Woman Mind Of My Own, King searches her soul and bares it all. With songs like “AKA Chosen,” a foot-stomping, vibrant manifesto to honoring strong personal choices and acceptance of her sexuality, she declares, “What I am was meant to be,” She also offers a hard look at American reality with her reimagination of John Mellencamp’s “Pink Houses,” featuring Elliot Murphy--its accompanying video receiving a “thumbs up” from Mellencamp himself. 

LISTEN // WATCH: “PINK HOUSES” 

LISTEN: “AKA CHOSEN” 

King’s is the story of a pioneering musician with a powerful impact and a captivating voice who enters, for the first time, the ancient—almost sacred—territory of the blues, R&B, and American roots music. Through its nine tracks, all either composed by King or borrowed from others, there is a marvelous feeling of rediscovery of that magical style, unaffected by the wear and tear of time. 

“One of the most interesting things about this album is that we really expect to hear and believe that this type of music can only be homegrown in the United States because it’s truly got that blues/Americana/pop feel, but amazingly, it was all done by French men all from Paris!” she explains. “Goes to show that the blues is not a land, or a race, or a place…but a Spirit, an existential feeling.” 

Carefully orchestrated by guitarist and producer, Fabien Squillante, Woman Mind Of My Own is no exercise in retro-mania. On the contrary, it’s very much a contemporary oeuvre, a holistic record that doesn’t stop celebrating Love with a capital L, ever seducing like a magic potion. It’s not just a self-portrait of an incredibly intense artist who has always presented herself exactly as she is, no-frills attached, but of a courageous, larger-than-life lady.   

Born and raised in Brooklyn by a strong Dominican mother, King finished her studies and set off across the US in true beatnik style, hitching rides and taking Greyhounds, her sole baggage consisting of a notebook and overflowing courage. She got by doing different jobs; everything from delivering pizzas and working as a mechanic, to trying her hand as a trawler on an Alaskan fishing boat. Her vagabond life lead her to Paris, where, energized by the writings of James Baldwin, she arrived with her Ovation guitar, destined to become a blues singer. 

King, who had begun her musical career wanting to take everything apart, found herself rebuilding on foundations established by the legendary players. “First, there was a Revelation, then a time of adapting, followed by the belonging which was through feeling. I didn’t want to imitate,” she explains. “I wanted to live this music in body and soul. The truth is, you don’t get the blues; it’s the blues that either gets you or not” 

WOMAN MIND OF MY OWN TRACK LIST 

Woman Mind Of My Own 

AKA Chosen 

Forget Yourself 

Pink Houses (ft. Elliot Murphy) 

So Far Away 

(Lover) You Don’t Treat Me No Good (ft. Grant Haua) 

Sunrise To Sunset 

Play On 

One More Try 

BUFFALO ROSE RELEASES SINGLE “I GIVE YOU THE MORNING (ft. TOM PAXTON)” + ANNOUNCE RABBIT EP WITH TOM PAXTON

 RABBIT EP COLLABORATION WITH TOM PAXTON  

DUE OUT FEBRUARY 22ND VIA MISRA RECORDS  

OFFICIAL SXSW SHOWCASE IN AUSTIN THIS MARCH

Photo credit: Zian Meng

LISTEN: “I GIVE YOU THE MORNING (ft. TOM PAXTON)”  

Pittsburgh-based collective Buffalo Rose, recently chosen as a 2022 SXSW Official Showcase band, has released “I Give You The Morning,” written by and featuring GRAMMY-winning artist Tom Paxton. The classic love song radiates tenderness and warmth like gentle beams of morning sunlight through goosebump-inducing harmonies and delicate instrumentation. The single is the latest from their forthcoming EP Rabbit, due out on February 22nd via Misra Records. 

The band joined forces with Paxton to write and record the Rabbit EP’s four tracks. “I Give You The Morning” follows the release of the EP’s lead single, “Runaway,” a song with all the energy and anxiety of new love, fear and excitement of the unknown, and the electric push and pull of hope and hesitation. 

LISTEN: “RUNAWAY” 

Rabbit, a perfect release for the last gasp of winter, combines Paxton’s honed writing skills with the instrumental prowess of Buffalo Rose. The songs encompass how sweet, wild, and precious the present is when it is all you have. The world is strange and dangerous for a rabbit, but even so, a rabbit knows how to take pleasure– in green grass, a safe burrow, or the warmth of another body. Rabbit’s themes are derived from the hope of doing all we can do to find what we’re looking for. In this EP, these seven musicians explore answers to many questions and have some serious fun in the process. 

Buffalo Rose is a wildly charismatic six-piece modern folk/Americana band from Pittsburgh that will change your entire perspective on acoustic music. They take the singer-songwriter tradition to a new level by crafting original songs which are emotive, meticulously arranged, and inspired by a world of idiosyncratic influences that never let a dull or predictable moment creep in. 

Buffalo Rose's lineup of Lucy Clabby (vocals), Margot Jezerc (vocals), Bryce Rabideau (mandolin), Malcolm Inglis (dobro), Jason Rafalak (upright bass), and Shane McLaughlin (guitar, vocals) pushes itself and each other far beyond their perceived limits and blends their diverse and atypical approach to songwriting with the desire to see how unique a song can get and still feel like home. They use powerful vocal harmonies, strong playing, and an original vision to operate at every possible emotional level and put on dynamic live shows that are unforgettable experiences. They go from up and moving to sad and sweet and back again, bringing the entire audience along.  

This combination of artistry and enthusiasm makes Buffalo Rose one of the most vital and important groups working today. Rather than play the folk music of the past, the band gleefully combines genres and ideas together to move acoustic music forward to a new, contemporary place without ever losing sight of its roots. Fans of Lake Street Dive, Nickel Creek, and Punch Brothers will find much to like in this crew. Anyone seeking compelling new acoustic music needs to join Buffalo Rose in the future right now. 

TOUR DATES  

2/17 - Isis Music Hall - Asheville, NC 

2/18 - Focal Point Traditional Arts Center - St. Louis, MO 

3/11-3/20 - SXSW (Official Showcase) 

4/2 - Amazing Things Arts Center - Framingham, MA 

5/7-5/8 - Central Ohio Folk Festival - Columbus, OH 

5/18-5/22 - Folk Alliance International Conference - Kansas City, MO 

6/16-6/18 - Smoked Country Jam - Cross Fork, PA 

6/18 - Solarfest - Pittsburgh, PA