Vibrant, Rootsy, and Vivid, Damn Tall Buildings Release 1st Single From ‘Sleeping Dogs’- Out 9/9

Vibrant, Rootsy, and Vivid, Damn Tall Buildings
Independently Release Their 3rd Album
Sleeping Dogs Sept 9

1st Single “Cold Rain” Out Today 
https://damntallbuildings.hearnow.com/cold-rain

Presave/ Preorder Sleeping Dogs

“Virtually unmatched energy and enthusiasm, underpinned by intelligent songs that don’t skimp on the infectiousness… The musicianship is smart and skilled, but still playful and groove savvy”
—Saving Country Music

“The Carter Family for the millennial generation” —The Boston Globe

“The natural groove made by a string band seriously happy with the music they are making speaks louder than words” —The Alternate Root

Brooklyn, NY — Acoustic Americana trio fed on bluegrass, roots rock, old time, and vintage swing, Damn Tall Buildings are excited to release their 3rd album, Sleeping Dogs, on September 9. Whether sharing lead vocals and instrumental solos or blending their voices into loose, joyous harmony, the three members of Damn Tall Buildings—multi-instrumentalist and primary lyricist Max Capistran (guitar and banjo), bassist Sasha Dubyk, and fiddler Avery Ballotta—delight in entertaining.

Witty and engaging, Damn Tall Buildings’ energizing music finds beauty and glory in the mundane workaday struggle of everyday life: time keeps passing and the seasons come and go, you scroll too much, you smoke too much, you lose yourself, only to sit with yourself and find yourself again, you laugh with your friends, and you look out the window and dream about what else might be out there. It all keeps coming around. You carry on, intent on flourishing and thriving. This is what Damn Tall Buildings sings about, what they seek to share with their audience.

Sleeping Dogs is a bop about looking things smack-dab-right-in-the-face and is essentially about how it has become almost impossible to not be constantly influenced by current events, media, and all of the other things that surround you in your day-to-day life.

Sleeping Dogs opener, “What A Nice Life,” has some extra pep to balance out the darker “I-don’t-know-who-I-am-anymore” lyrics. The old timey, swingin’ “Dark Window Panes” (which adds Garrett Eaton [Dana Williams, Gracie and Rachel] on trumpet) and “Podcast” see the band pondering a pending apocalypse.

1st Single “Cold Rain” Out Today 
damntallbuildings.hearnow.com/cold-rain

The velvety and rejuvenating “Cold Rain” is the album’s first single, and was premiered by AmericanaUK who calls it, “music that is determinedly of Now.” For the song, they are joined by mandolin wizard Dylan McCarthy (2019 Rockygrass Mandolin Champion) and rock-steady drummer Micah Cowher [STOMP in NYC]. Micah also lays down the beat on the catchy “Sweet Girl,” with its chorus, “I am not myself, I am everyone else,” which became what the band calls, “the motto for the record; It’s basically our new anthem.” 

Damn Tall Buildings calls Sleeping Dogs, “an exploration to the depths of oneself to discover who we truly are… maybe it really is as simple as buying some new shoes, and feeling really good wearing ‘em, while you cruise down the block on the sunny side of the street.” You can hear this cheery sentiment echoed in the deep groove and colorful melodies of “Lemons,” in which the virtuosic flute playing of Anh Phung [Twisted Pine] elevates the song to a new level. This fresh energy can also be felt as the sunshine slips in on “Patio.”

The mid-tempo shuffle “Painter” illustrates a re-emergence into the world; with Lars Thorson [Kane Brown] bringing the magic of the lap steel to this track. They slow things down a bit in a rainy day ode to waiting, “Quietly Heartbreaking,” and the gentle “My Baby.”

The album closes with the title track, “Sleeping Dogs,” pulling from the old proverb—“Don’t you let them sleeping dogs lie”—the song emphasizes the theme of the album: don’t ignore life, get out there and live it, take pleasure and meaning from the little things that keep us all connected and growing.

Self produced and recorded, the album was mixed & mastered by Dan Cardinal [Darlingside, Lula Wiles, Josh Ritter] at Dimension Sound Studios. Dan also played keyboard on the title track, adding to the texture of the song.

The trio is individually from all over the United States (New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Montana), but were born as a band while attending Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA in 2013. They started as buskers on Newbury Street in Boston, started touring nationally, and then moved the band to Brooklyn in 2017. Since their busking days, they’ve made two albums—Cure-All (2014) and Don’t Look Down (2019)—and released a self-titled EP in 2015. 

Sleeping Dogs Track Listing
1.) What A Nice Life – 3:02^
2.) Dark Window Panes – 1:56
3.) Podcast – 3:40
4.) Cold Rain – 3:31^
5.) Lemons – 2:3
6.) My Baby – 4:19
7.) Patio – 2:25 
8.) Painter – 2:27
9.) Quietly Heartbreaking – 3:40
10.) Sweet Girl – 2:56
11.) Sleeping Dogs – 2:58
^FCC Warning

www.damntallbuildings.com
www.facebook.com/DamnTallBuildings 
Twitter: @DamnTallTweets
Instagram: @gramtallbuildings
YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/damntallbuildings 

Damn Tall Buildings on Tour:

7/15 Fri – Towne Crier – Beacon, NY
7/16 Sat – The R Bar – Asbury Park, NJ
7/20 Wed – Rockwood Music Hall – New York, NY
7/23-24 Sat-Sun – Hiawatha Music Festival – Marquette, MI 
7/28-29 Thu-Fri – Ossipee Valley Music Festival – S. Hiram, ME
7/31 Sat – The Word Barn – Exeter, NH
8/4 Thu – Kent Summer Concert Series – Kent, WA
8/6 Sat – Hart House Concert – Beaverton, OR
8/7 Sun – Yachats Commons Building – Yachats, OR
8/10 Wed – The Royal Room (w/ Carly Ann Calbero) – Seattle, WA
8/12-14 Fri-Sun – Bear Creek Folk Festival – Grand Prairie, AB, Canada
9/3 Sat – Rettich Preserve @ Madison Land Trust – Madison, CT
9/9 Fri – Coppell Arts Center – Coppell, TX
9/10 Sat – Cactus Cafe – Austin, TX 
9/15-17 Thu-Sat – Walnut Valley Music Festival – Winfield, KS
9/27-29 Tue-Thu – IBMA Bluegrass Ramble – Raleigh, NC
9/30 Fri – Bourgie Nights – Wilmington, NC
10/1 Sat – IBMA Wide Open Bluegrass Festival – Martin St. Stage  – Raleigh, NC
10/13 Thu – Parlor Room – Northampton, MA
10/15 Sat – Glastonbury Apple Harvest & Music Festival – Glastonbury, CT
10/16 Sun – 118 North – Wayne, PA
11/10 Thu – Prius Hall-Ball State University – Muncie, IN
11/11 Fri – Thrasher Opera House – Green Lake, WI

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Taylor Martin’s ‘Song Dogs,’ OUT TODAY – Ft. Members of The Honeycutters, Mountain Heart & More

Taylor Martin’s Song Dogs Out Today, November 16, on Little King Records
Produced by Amanda Anne Platt at Sound Temple Studios in Asheville, NC
Featuring Members of Amanda Anne Platt & The Honeycutters, Mountain Heart, and more

Available Now To Stream and Purchase → https://taylormartin.hearnow.com
(Please note that this link takes you to the correct album on Spotify; however, it currently
attributes the album to the wrong Taylor Martin, working with Spotify to correct this)

More about Taylor Martin at https://about.me/songdogs

ASHEVILLE, NC — Taylor Martin’s Song Dogs is out now on Little King Records (11/16/18). Spinning tales of the highway, homes, lost love, love regained, redemption, and the overuse of cell phones, Martin’s soulful, relatable lyrics and raspy, emotion filled voice is instantly recognizable. The Honeycutters’ Amanda Anne Platt took the lead as Music Producer (along with adding harmony vocals on a handful of songs) with the help of Co-Producer and Engineer, Robert George, and Martin’s visions for the album. The album was recorded at Sound Temple Studios in Asheville, North Carolina.

“Taylor Martin is a killer songwriter,” declares Platt. “He’s got a great sense of melody and an ability to write classic, accessible songs about things we all take for granted. It’s also to his credit that he hits all sides of the spectrum– there are toe tappers and tear jerkers on this album and everything in between. I’m a big fan of the saying, ‘Great songs produce themselves,’ I certainly found that to be true in working with Taylor.”

The album features a number of special guests including Platt, Mountain Heart’s Aaron Ramsey and Josh Shilling, GRAMMY winning Secret Agent 23 Skidoo’s Debrissa McKinney, and Jon Stickley Trio’s Lyndsay Pruett on fiddle, among others.

To celebrate the album’s release, Martin shares a video for the album’s title track “Song Dogs which is full of stunning imagery. Taylor says, ”when I heard that the filmmaker Aladin Aathmani, was heading to Morocco, I jumped at the opportunity to have my musical vision put in a distant landscape. His emotional video interpretation of ‘Song Dogs’ is very moving and like nothing I imagined (in a great way).”

The piano driven, haunting title song comes last, inspired in part by coyotes howling (per cover art) to find each other at night,” writes Country Standard Times’ Jim Hynes of the song. He continues, “It may seem that it stands apart from the others in tone and style, but several listens to Martin will have you hearing an array of styles and influences. That’s what makes it so infectious. Each song stands apart.”

A resident of Asheville since 2004, Martin has been creating music since 1994. He blends musical styles: the approach to music he grew up with in Richmond, Virginia; the western spirit he experienced living five years in Paradise, Utah; and the sounds of southern rock, country, and rhythm n’ blues.

Jeff Burger writes, “The North Carolina–based Taylor Martin, whose raspy vocals recall Levon Helm and, occasionally, Dr. John, features eight originals on this third album, along with three well-chosen covers: Bob Dylan’s ‘Sign on the Window,’ Neil Young’s ‘Music Arcade,’ and Merle Haggard’s ‘Kern River.’ Martin’s own lyrical subjects are all over the map: ‘Little Pictures,’ the funky opener, is about excessive cellphone use, for example, while ‘Hollywood’ references Marilyn Monroe, and the melancholy ‘Eden Colorado’ is about looking for a friend, a dream, and some hope. The music—sometimes funky, sometimes folky, sometimes poppy—is just as varied.”

Martin previously released a video for the album’s bluesy opener “Little Pictures,” which is a song that tips the brim to artists like Professor Longhair while having a contemporary social commentary. The song is what Martin calls his, “observation of people being lost to reality and the death of empathy and the human experience. People being on cell phones too much are missing out on the beauty of the world.” It also invites the listener to put down their electronics and sink further into the experience of the album. Americana Highways premiered the video and wrote “The song rings instantly familiar and simplifies a complex message in clear lyrical fashion, over catchy, punchy, piano-prominent rhythms.”

“Taylor Martin is a singer-songwriter who will remind you of everything good from Tom Waits to the Everly Brothers or the Avett Brothers with some surf rock thrown in. Well-sung, well-played, well-written and relevant…” writes Asheville Citizen Times.

Asheville’s veteran songwriter is just below the forty mark with a bright future as a songwriter and performer ahead of him. Although as jaded and bitter as some road worned heroes, Martin finds refuge in a good sense of humor. “I would have been a terrible dentist,” he laughs. “I’m here, music is why, this is Earth, let’s make more music.”

Taylor Martin – Song Dogs Track Listing

1. Little Pictures   3:34
2. Here Comes the Flood    2:59
3. Eden Colorado   3:17
4. Music Arcade [Neil Young] copyright Silver Fiddle Music   4:25
5. Second Sight   3:41
6. Hollywood   3:41
7. Our Memories   3:49
8. Kern River [Merle Haggard] copyright Mt. Shasta Music   4:00
9. Milk and Honey   3:22
10. Sign on the Window [Bob Dylan] copyright Big Sky Music   3:39
11. Song Dogs   4:49
     

     

MUSICIAN CREDITS
Taylor Martin – Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar (all)
Richie Jones – Drums, Aux Percussion (all)
Matthew Dufon – Bass (all) Harmony Vocals (2,10)
Aaron “Woody” Wood – Acoustic Guitar (3,8), Electric Guitar (5, 6,10)
Matthew Smith – Electric Guitar (1, 2), Pedal Steel (3,7,8,11)
Aaron Ramsey – Acoustic Guitar (2,4,7,9,10), Mandolin (9)
Josh Shilling – Piano (1,2, 6,7, 8,10,11), B3 (1,2,5,6,7,10), Wurlitzer (5)
Phil Alley – Telecaster (7)
Lyndsay Pruett – fiddle (4,5,7,8)
Amanda Anne Platt – harmony  vocals (2,4,7,9,10)
Debrissa McKinney – harmony vocals (6)

Recorded @ Sound Temple Studios in Asheville, NC
Recorded & Mixed by Robert George
Produced by Amanda Anne Platt
Co-Produced by Robert George & Taylor Martin

For more information and tour dates, please visit www.TaylorMartin.org and www.facebook.com/taylormartin.org and www.twitter.com/song_dogs.

 

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Out Today: Roy Schneider & Kim Mayfield’s ‘Reckless Saints’ Is Southern Folk, Blues & Country

Roy Schneider & Kim Mayfield Release Reckless Saints

Available Now On All Outlets → https://schneidermayfield.hearnow.com

What Folks Are Saying:

“This husband and wife team runs the gamut from engaging acoustic folk to driving bluesy tunes, with hints of twang sprinkled in… The ringing impression from this offering is the seamless blending of so many forms of roots music, combined with meaningful and often insightful lyrics. It works beautifully.”
—Making A Scene, Jim Hynes

“Enlisting Blaze Foley’s old musical partner Gurf Morlix for help, Schneider and Mayfield cover Foley’s classic ‘Election Day’ with rough passion, but the beautifully rendered ‘If I Die Tomorrow’ and ‘Poison Arrow’ swoon in their arms. All who cry out for salvation from Reckless Saints might experience the same effect.”
—Elmore Magazine, Peter Lindblad

“a bluesy-folk vibe and smooth harmonies”
—The Daily Country Song Premiere: Roy Schneider & Kim Mayfield “Election Day

“This duo is invariably fun and heartwarming and all their music reflects a musically celebratory cheer.  ‘Jump In’ is infectious with contagious fun-loving vibes, and nimble, expert, fast-paced instrumentation. We guarantee a listen to this is just exactly what the doctor ordered, today and every day.”
—Americana Highways Video Premiere of “Jump In”

“a harmonic convergence of fine songcraft” —Tallahassee Democrat, Kati Schardl

 

FORT MYERS, FL — Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Roy Schneider has been touring and performing full-time with musical partner Kim Mayfield since 2008. The duo is slowly working toward a new band name, with a collection of original songs on what will become an eponymous title, Reckless Saints. Released November 2, the 11-track album features songs by both Schneider and Mayfield.

The sole cover on the album was written by the late folk-singer, Blaze Foley entitled “Election Day” and with midterm elections just four days after this album’s release, the title seemed appropriate. Their gritty version features Blaze’s close friend and co-conspirator, Gurf Morlix, on lead guitar and contributing vocals.

Morlix says of them, “Their ‘Blue Twangled Folk ‘n’ Roll’ sound rides like a V8, firing on all cylinders.”

Along with Morlix, Reckless Saints features other specials guests including some stellar harmonica by GRAMMY-winner and Country Music Hall-of-Famer, Charlie McCoy, and great bass lines from Freebo [Bonnie Raitt] on the song “Walkin’ on a Wire.” Freebo also plays bass on the energetic kickoff for the record, “Jump In,” a fast-paced “day-in-the-life” of the duo as full-time traveling musicians.

This truly is a wonderful record. It is one of the finest singer/songwriter records to come across my mastering desk in a long time!” says esteemed producer, songwriter, and engineer, Mark Hallman [Carole King, Ani DiFranco and Eliza Gilkyson]. Self-produced, Reckless Saints was mostly recorded at Schneider’s studio, Shiny Gnu Records, in Fort Myers, FL.

Roy began playing and writing songs as a seventeen year old while recovering from a horrific, year-long incarceration in 1985 at the now defunct Straight, Inc. “No freedom, no dignity and no way to contact anyone, nobody even knows where you are,” says Schneider, “I didn’t talk about my experience at Straight for 30 years, I’m ready now.” “Angels Along the Road” tells the true story of his hard-knock survival.

Elmore Magazine’s Peter Lindblad calls the song, “a dramatic tale of survival with a brisk gait and a rolling topography of twirling mandolin and acoustic guitar strum that only serves to enhance Schneider’s gripping storytelling. Steve Earle couldn’t have done it better, and like the rest of Reckless Saints, the song’s well-oiled gears of traditional instrumentation turn with the precision of a fine clock.”

The experience has influenced his songwriting in surprising ways, resulting in a generally positive outlook in his lyrics, and gratitude for those who gave him shelter or other support after his escape from the facility. He’s been honing his craft ever since, and was making his living playing music when he met Kim Mayfield in 2003. Kim brought harmony vocals, and accompaniment on rhythm guitar, mandolin, and keyboard, as well as the idea to take the music on the road.

On Reckless Saints, Mayfield takes the lead on vocals on the haunting and contemplative “If I Die Tomorrow” and her harmonies with Schneider on “Poison Arrow” tug on the listeners heartstrings. Mayfield also sings lead on the two songs that she penned: the pensive ballad “Ring Around The Moon” and “Buddha Baby,” the story of her adopted baby boy.

Other tracks on the album include the Dylan-inspired, “Subjugated Love,” which is a fun little ditty about love gone wrong, “Runaway Train,” a song that addresses the frustrations and lack of peace of mind resulting from living in a society that – were it a train – might appear to be running rapidly off the rails without a knowledgeable engineer, and “After The Storm,” written in the aftermath of hurricane Irma in September 2017, touching on the coming-together of neighbors and friends in challenging times.

Schneider and Mayfield are excited to bring Reckless Saints into the world… Jump In and hang on!

Reckless Saints Track Listing:
1. Jump In   (3:00)
2. Walkin’ On A Wire   (3:21)
3. If I Die Tomorrow  (4:05)
4. Subjugated Love   (3:27)
5. Poison Arrow  (4:00)
6. Ring Around The Moon (3:27)
7. Angels Along the Road (4:47)
8. Buddha Baby   (3:40)
9. Runaway Train (3:37)
10. After the Storm (3:56)
11. Election Day  (3:41)

Roy Schneider – Vocals, resonator, acoustic, and electric guitars, harmonica, percussion, drums, banjo, bass
Kim Mayfield – Vocals, harmony vocals, acoustic guitar, baritone ukulele, mandolin
Freebo – Bass (1,2)
Charlie McCoy – Harmonica (2)
Keven Aland – Violin (2,3,7,10)
Dan Fidanze – Piano (4)
J. Robert Houghtaling – Violin (6,9)
Thomas Callahan – Bass (7)
Rob Pastore – Pedal steel guitar (8)
Tim Coletti – Bass (10,11)
Gurf Morlix – Vocals, electric lead guitar (11)

For more information and tour dates, please visit:
www.RecklessSaints.com,  www.facebook.com/RecklessSaintsMusic, and www.twitter.com/2RecklessSaints

 

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Roy Schneider & Kim Mayfield Release Reckless Saints 11/2 – Blue Twangled Folk & Roll

Roy Schneider & Kim Mayfield Release Reckless Saints November 2, 2018
Blue Twangled Folk & Rollers Firing on All Cylinders!

Reckless Saints is available to pre-order now, with some additional fun perks, through Indiegogo:
https://igg.me/at/reckless-saints

FORT MYERS, FL — Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Roy Schneider has been touring and performing full-time with musical partner Kim Mayfield since 2008. The duo is slowly working toward a new band name, with a collection of original songs on what will become an eponymous title, Reckless Saints. Slated to be released November 2, the 11-track album features songs by both Schneider and Mayfield, as well as a gritty cover of Blaze Foley’s “Election Day,” which features Gurf Morlix on lead guitar and contributing vocals.

Morlix says, “Their ‘Blue Twangled Folk ‘n’ Roll’ sound rides like a V8, firing on all cylinders.”

Along with Morlix, Reckless Saints features other specials guests including some stellar harmonica by GRAMMY-winner and Country Music Hall-of-Famer, Charlie McCoy, and great bass lines from Freebo [Bonnie Raitt] on the song “Walkin’ on a Wire.” Freebo also plays bass on the energetic kickoff for the record, “Jump In,” a fast-paced “day-in-the-life” of the duo as full-time traveling musicians.

“This truly is a wonderful record. It is one of the finest singer/songwriter records to come across my mastering desk in a long time!” says esteemed producer, songwriter, and engineer, Mark Hallman [Carole King, Ani DiFranco and Eliza Gilkyson]. Self-produced, Reckless Saints was mostly recorded at Schneider’s studio, Shiny Gnu Records, in Fort Myers, FL.

Roy Schneider & Kim Mayfield

Roy began playing and writing songs as a seventeen year old while recovering from a horrific, year-long incarceration in 1985 at the now defunct Straight, Inc. “No freedom, no dignity and no way to contact anyone, nobody even knows where you are,” says Schneider, “I didn’t talk about my experience at Straight for 30 years, I’m ready now.”

“Angels Along the Road” tells the true story of his hard-knock survival following a challenging escape from a year of institutional confinement and attempted psychological reprogramming, under the guise of drug rehabilitation. Schneider, who became a touring Deadhead in the late 80s/early 90s, says the song was “written as a thank-you card for some very kind people who took a risk to help a well-intended, aimless waif find some direction.”

The experience has influenced his songwriting in surprising ways, resulting in a generally positive outlook in his lyrics, and gratitude for those who gave him shelter or other support after his escape from the facility. He’s been honing his craft ever since, and was making his living playing music when he met Kim Mayfield in 2003. Kim brought harmony vocals, and accompaniment on rhythm guitar, mandolin, and keyboard, as well as the idea to take the music on the road.

On Reckless Saints, Mayfield takes the lead on vocals on the haunting and contemplative “If I Die Tomorrow” and her harmonies with Schneider on “Poison Arrow” tug on the listeners heartstrings. Mayfield also sings lead on the two songs that she penned: the pensive ballad “Ring Around The Moon” and “Buddha Baby,” the story of her adopted baby boy… “ Siberia is harsh and cold… You won’t remember it I’m told… We both know the place we call home… It’s deep inside us wherever we roam.”

Other tracks on the album include the Dylan-inspired, “Subjugated Love,” which is a fun little ditty about love gone wrong, “Runaway Train,” a song that addresses the frustrations and lack of peace of mind resulting from living in a society that – were it a train – might appear to be running rapidly off the rails without a knowledgeable engineer, and “After The Storm,” written in the aftermath of hurricane Irma in September 2017, amidst downed trees and debris, flooding, unbearable heat and humidity, no power, mobs of the unprepared getting cranky and scary… touching on the coming-together of neighbors and friends in challenging times.

In their ten years of touring, the duo has played in 40 states, Canada, England, Belgium, and The Netherlands at hundreds of venues and festivals including 30A Songwriters Festival, Telluride Blues & Brews, the Kerrville Folk Festival’s New Folk competition, Nashville’s Bluebird Café, and Roy’s appearance on NBC’s The Voice in 2013. Prior to 2008, Schneider wrote and drew a syndicated comic strip that ran for over 3 years in newspapers (still in reruns on Comics.com), as well as working a corporate job in the 1990’s designing Happy Meal toys. Music, though, remains his true calling.

Schneider has raised over $20k through fan funding to produce and successfully promote his most recent albums (which also featured Mayfield): 2012’s Walls That Talk and 2015’s Ten From the Pen. Both received generous airplay and accolades from respected reviewers including No Depression calling him, “a singer-songwriter in the grandest tradition of Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams, Guy Clark and Lyle Lovett… His gift for blending Southern-influenced folk, blues, country, and rock into a seamless genre with his own signature sound demonstrates his connection to the best in the tradition of fine wake-me-up and kick-me-in-the-ass roots music”. The UK’s Maverick magazine wrote, “Sometimes he sounds like he’s auditioning for Little Feat (he’d get in, too), sometimes he’s light and jazzy and sometimes he’s a proper acoustic rocker. All the time he’s interesting, with the changes of pace keeping the listener on their toes…”

Schneider and Mayfield are excited to bring Reckless Saints into the world… Jump In and hang on!

Reckless Saints Track Listing:

 

1. Jump In   (3:00)
2. Walkin’ On A Wire   (3:21)
3. If I Die Tomorrow  (4:05)
4. Subjugated Love   (3:27)
5. Poison Arrow  (4:00)
6. Ring Around The Moon (3:27)
7. Angels Along the Road (4:47)
8. Buddha Baby   (3:40)
9. Runaway Train (3:37)
10. After the Storm (3:56)
11. Election Day  (3:41)

Roy Schneider – Vocals, resonator, acoustic, and electric guitars, harmonica, percussion, drums, banjo, bass
Kim Mayfield – Vocals, harmony vocals, acoustic guitar, baritone ukulele, mandolin
Freebo – Bass (1,2)
Charlie McCoy – Harmonica (2)
Keven Aland – Violin (2,3,7,10)
Dan Fidanze – Piano (4)
Robert Houghtaling – Violin (6,9)
Thomas Callahan – Bass (7)
Rob Pastore – Pedal steel guitar (8)
Tim Coletti – Bass (10,11)
Gurf Morlix – Vocals, electric lead guitar (11)

For more information and tour dates, please visit:
www.RecklessSaints.com,  www.facebook.com/RecklessSaintsMusic, and www.twitter.com/2RecklessSaints

 

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Edward David Anderson Shares Title Track Of New Muscle Shoals Recording ‘Chasing Butterflies’ – Out 10/19

Edward David Anderson Releases Chasing Butterflies
Out October 19 on Black Dirt Records
Recorded at The NuttHouse in Muscle Shoals with Producer Jimmy Nutt

“EDA has always been one of my favorite songwriters and singers, and on this record he has beautifully managed to capture the elusive dichotomy that is the American South- a combination of mystery, darkness and relaxed geniality. Great album.”
—Steve Berlin (Los Lobos)

“Ed has the rare ability to open his soul and unfold his stories in a natural style that is simultaneously guileless and universal, a direct hit to the heart.”
—Johnny Hickman (Cracker)

“An artist to the bone who is raw, open, gritty…a portal into the human condition.”
—Seth Walker

BLOOMINGTON, IL —  “The story of my life’s written on my skin,” sings Edward David Anderson on the devilishly sardonic “Bad Tattoos” from his soon to be released Chasing Butterflies (Black Dirt Records – Oct. 19, 2018). The song, like the artist, is brutally honest and has a worn feel; like it’s coming from someone that has been around and put in the miles. “I don’t think I could have written these tunes when I was 25,” Anderson explains. “Everything I’ve done, the people I’ve met, all the places I’ve been, have brought me to this moment.”

Americana Highways premieres the title track “Chasing Butterflies”, a song based on an old songwriter pal of EDAs, and writes of it, “With the clear vocals highlighted front and center on this song, and the music sustaining the suspense, we’re carried along in the tale of ‘chasing butterflies in the wind,’ a story on the run, in and out of relationships, in and out of prison, and in and out of sobriety, following life’s veering, restless paths just as butterflies do.”

Edward David Anderson

The gifted songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, who spent a decade fronting the revered Midwest rock band Backyard Tire Fire, broke away and released his ambitious debut Lies & Wishes in 2014. The album was lauded “a superb solo effort” by No Depression and David Dye (NPR World Cafe) praised the follow-up Lower Alabama: The Loxley Sessions as “a wonderfully soulful record.”

Both releases were significant steps forward for EDA, but on Chasing Butterflies there is a feeling of arrival. Absorbing and learning and growing through life experience has clearly refined his ability to write about the human condition. In “The Best Part,” he sings to his wife “You help me to understand/you make me a better man/I’m gonna do the best I can/to love you,” and you believe him. This kind of sincerity and honesty along with a candidly dry sense of humor recur throughout the album.

It was through a tip from a friend that Anderson connected with GRAMMY Award winner Jimmy Nutt (SteelDrivers) from the iconic Shoals region of north Alabama. During their first conversation it was clear the two had a natural rapport and he quickly set a course for Jimmy’s NuttHouse Recording Studio in Sheffield. Diverging from past albums EDA used local session musicians for his backing band. “I felt the way to get the most authentic Shoals sound was to play with people who live and work there,” he said. Nutt played bass and brought in Jon Davis (Dylan LeBlanc) on drums, Brad Kuhn on keys, Todd Beene (Lucero) on pedal steel and Kimi Samson on violin, and the chemistry was instant.

The core of the 10-track album was cut live in just a few short days with minimal overdubbing, making it feel both cohesive and human. “We brought in strings on a few and pedal steel on one, but didn’t want to get too carried away,” Anderson recalls. The result is a stunningly sublime, less-is-more snapshot of a writer in his prime.

The songs on Chasing Butterflies are as diverse as they are hooky. As thought-provoking as they are heartbreaking. They are simple yet complex and were thoughtfully produced and recorded. From the hopeful opening lyric, “It’s a beautiful thing/when two people sing/in harmony,” to the haunting title track’s “There’s a restlessness I guess/I’m uneasy I confess,” EDA takes you on a vast & colorful musical journey. You get the feeling he’s lived these songs. That the sleepless nights, the long drives, and the never ending search fuel the fire that keeps Edward David Anderson out there “Chasing Butterflies.”

Chasing Butterflies Track Listing:

1. Harmony (3:19)
2. The Ballad of Lemuel Penn (4:02)
3. The Best Part (3:23)
4. Bad Tattoos (4:19)
5. Crosses (4:03)
6. Only in My Dreams (4:49)
7. Dog Days (2:32)
8. Chasing Butterflies (4:19)
9. Sittin’ ‘Round at Home (2:23)
10. Seasons Turn (5:45)

Edward David Anderson – vocals, acoustic, electric & baritone guitars, banjo
Jimmy Nutt – Bass, Percussion
Jon Davis – Drums, Percussion
Brad Kuhn – Keys (Wurlitzer, Hammond A100, Yamaha C7 Grand, Rhodes)
Kimi Samson – Violin (2,6,9)
Todd Beene – Pedal Steel (8)

For more information, please visit www.edwarddavidanderson.com, facebook.com/edwarddavidandersonmusic, twitter.com/edanderson72, and instagram.com/edwarddavidanderson.

 

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Love Canon’s ‘Cover Story’ Out 7/13 w/ Guests Jerry Douglas, Aoife O’Donovan, Keller Williams – Track Premiere

Love Canon Releases Cover Story On Organic Records July 13
With Guest Artists Jerry Douglas, Aoife O’Donovan, Keller Williams,
Michael Cleveland, Eric Krasno, Alex Hargreaves, Mike Barnett, and more!

Cover Story is available to pre-order → https://clg.lnk.to/yNLcf

Bluegrass Today Premiered The First Single, a Mr. Mister Tune, “Kyrie Eleison”  Listen Here →  https://bluegrasstoday.com/kyrie-eleison-drops-from-love-canon/
“Kyrie Eleison” will be available on all digital platforms 6/8 → https://clg.lnk.to/x7xp9

 

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA — LOVE CANON brings their acoustic-roots sensibilities to the electronic-tinged pop hits of the 80s and 90s to create Cover Story, their 4th album, due out on Organic Records July 13, 2018. With Cover Story, LOVE CANON delivers a fresh set of classics, crossing genres to recount music of decades past from the likes of Peter Gabriel, Billy Joel, Depeche Mode, and Paul Simon. The self-produced album hosts a plethora of special guests, including Jerry Douglas, Aoife O’Donovan, Keller Williams, Michael Cleveland, and Eric Krasno, among others.

The band’s diehard fans are music lovers first and are drawn to the charismatic and wide-ranging vocal stylings of lead singer and guitarist Jesse Harper matched with banjo master Adam Larrabee, mandolin pickin’ by Andy Thacker, Darrell Muller holding down the low-end on standup bass, and the slick sounds of resonator guitar king Jay Starling on the Beard MA-6. It’s acoustic rock! Acclaimed fiddler Alex Hargreaves [Turtle Island Quartet, Sarah Jarosz] does all of the fiddling on this record with the exception of two tracks, and he occasionally joins the band on tour.

As seasoned virtuoso string players who have been touring the mid-Atlantic since 2010, LOVE CANON stays true to the approach, arrangements, and keen artistry of these nostalgic hits. Cover Story was engineered by Rob Evans at Dave Matthews Band’s Haunted Hollow Studio in LOVE CANON’s hometown of Charlottesville, Virginia and mixed by Wayne Pooley, Bruce Hornsby’s Engineer/Producer. Cover Story is a follow up to the band’s previous efforts, Greatest Hits Volumes 1-3.

LOVE CANON has taken many of the suggestions called out at their high-energy live shows as well as from their guest performers to offer ten invigorating tracks to bring it to the max! From the instrumental album opener, “Prelude (Angry Young Man)” by Billy Joel, to the unforgettable chorus of Howard Jones’ “Things Can Only Get Better” to the 7/4 timing of Peter Gabriel’s “Solsbury Hill / Icecaps Of Pentatonia” (with guest vocalist Mark Errelli [Lori McKenna, Paula Cole and Josh Ritter]), they run the gamut of songs from the cassette generation.

The songs in Cover Story become a vehicle for the band to demonstrate their prowess in translating the original pop production compositions into the modern day acoustic music framework to achieve a new and different, but satisfyingly similar, sonic effect. A great example of using bluegrass instrumentation to imitate the ambient electronic processed sounds is the very epic, cinematic version of Depeche Mode’s “Enjoy The Silence,” complete with a soaring string arrangement at the end by Trey Pollard of Richmond, Virginia’s Spacebomb Studios.

“Kyrie Eleison” will be available on all digital platforms 6/8 → https://clg.lnk.to/x7xp9

When LOVE CANON was first thinking of putting together a guest artist record Jerry Douglas was at the top of their list. He not only acquiesced, but proposed the great Mr. Mister tune, “Kyrie Eleison.” Mike Barnett [Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, Bryan Sutton Band] joins in on fiddle for this track. Aoife O’Donovan seamlessly blends her beautiful vocal harmonies with Harper on Paul Simon’s “Graceland,” and, with ten International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Fiddle Player of the Year awards under his belt, Michael Cleveland steps in blazing on fiddle.

Keller Williams brought “Driver 8” by R.E.M. to the band’s attention as a personal favorite; Keller wanted to do an uptempo bluegrass arrangement and LOVE CANON was envisioning a reggae/dub version, so they compromised and added the jaw-dropping classical fiddle work of Mike Barnett. Guitar hero Eric “Kraz” Krasno does a bang-up job with a fierce guitar solo on Squeeze’s “Tempted,” a song he recommended. LOVE CANON’s take on the Barry Gibb [Bee Gees] classic, “Islands In The Stream” features Lauren Balthrop [Dear Georgiana, Balthrop Alabama, The Bandana Splits], singing the tarnation out of the Dolly Parton part while Harper takes on Kenny Rogers complete with a saxophone and trumpet section at the end featuring Charlottesville Jazz legends Bobby Read and John D’earth [Bruce Hornsby and The Noisemakers].

LOVE CANON and its individual members have shared the stage and studio with many notable acts over the years including Josh Ritter, Keller Williams, The Infamous Stringdusters, KD Lang, Emmylou Harris, Sara Bareilles, Huey Lewis and The News, John C. Reilly, Madeleine Peyroux, and Colbie Caillat, among others. They were the backing band for Keb Mo and Jason Mraz at SPARC performance LIVE ART event in Richmond, and performed as the house band at the Warren Haynes Christmas Jam in Asheville a couple of years in a row with sits-ins from Bruce Hornsby and Haynes, among others. Harper and Muller were members of acoustic supergroup Old School Freight Train and they performed shows with David Grisman (who also produced one of their albums), Ricky Skaggs, and Merle Haggard. LOVE CANON has performed at various events across the country including LOCKN’, Jam Cruise, FloydFest, Bourbon and Beyond (as part of the Bluegrass Situation Stage), and Gathering of the Vibes. They have also performed overseas live on the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) and RTE radio (Raidió Teilifís Éirean – Irish Public-service Broadcasting).

With this adventurous chapter in their Cover Story, Love Canon proves they don’t just know music history but have a vision for where music can go.

Cover Story Track Listing:
1. Prelude (Angry Young Man)   2:22 [Billy Joel]
2. Things Can Only Get Better   5:01 [Howard Jones]
3. Kyrie Eleison   4:13 [Steven Park, John R Lang, Richard J Page]
4. Graceland   5:56 [Paul Simon]
5. Islands In The Stream   4:04 [Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Robin Gibb]
6. Enjoy The Silence   5:09 [Martin L Gore]
7. Solsbury Hill / Icecaps Of Pentatonia – Medley   5:29 [Peter Gabriel]
8. Tempted   5:21 [Christopher H Difford, Glenn M Tilbrook]
9. Driver 8   6:37 [Peter Buck, Bill Berry]

LOVE CANON is:
Jesse Harper – Guitar, Lead Vocals
Adam Larrabee – Banjo, Vocals
Andy Thacker – Mandolin, Vocals
Darrell Muller – Standup Bass, Vocals
Jay Starling – Resonator Guitar, Vocals

Guest Artists:
Alex Hargreaves – Fiddle – 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8
Sam Wilson – Backing Vocals – 2
Jerry Douglas – Dobro – 3
Mike Barnett – Fiddle – 3, 9
Michael Cleveland – Fiddle – 4
Aoife O’Donovan – Vocals – 4
John D’earth – Trumpet – 5
Bobby Read – Tenor Sax – 5
Lauren Balthrop – Vocals – 5
Trey Pollard – String Arrangement – 6
Colin Killalea – Nylon String Guitar and Backing Vocals – 6
Mark Erelli – Lead Vocals – 7
Erik Krasno – Lead and Backing Vocals and Electric Guitar Solo – 8
Daniel Clarke – Wurlitzer Piano – 7
Keller Williams – Lead Vocals – 9

Cover Story is available to pre-order → https://clg.lnk.to/yNLcf
Find out more about LOVE CANON at www.lovecanonmusic.com.

 

 

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Hot Buttered Rum New Album ‘Lonesome Panoramic’ Due Out July 20 / Track Premiere

Hot Buttered Rum Independently Release Lonesome Panoramic on July 20
Recorded at Panoramic House Studio in Stinson Beach, CA

Live For Live Music Debuted The Song  “Country Tunes & Love Songs
Featuring Cameo Collaborations With The Coffis Brothers →
https://liveforlivemusic.com/features/premiere-hot-buttered-rum-country-tunes/  

Other Special Guests Include
ALO’s Zach Gill and Dan “Lebo” Lebowitz and Rainbow Girls

SAN FRANCISCO, CA– For nearly two decades, Hot Buttered Rum has attracted a truly multi-generational audience across the States with their high energy and fun-loving performances that showcase their stunning instrumental and vocal ingenuity. Hot Buttered Rum is excited to independently release Lonesome Panoramic, their sixth studio album, on July 20, 2018.

“Lonesome Panoramic is the result of different thematic and stylistic threads that Butter has been chasing over the years: driving uptempo stringband tunes, layers of dark lonesome drum grooves, letting things go, and embracing what we have,” says HBR’s Nat Keefe.

The band’s two vocalists and songwriters, guitarist Nat Keefe and multi-instrumentalist Erik Yates (mainly 5-string banjo, also resonator and acoustic guitars), take turns leading each of the 13 well-crafted originals on the album. Rounding out the band, Bryan Horne delivers, in true athletic form, his talents on upright bass along with charismatic fiddler and harmony vocalist Zebulon Bowles and drummer/percussionist/mandolinist James Stafford, providing a warm and solid rhythmic foundation.

Hot Buttered Rum is (left to right): Erik Yates, James Stafford, Nat Keefe, Bryan Horne, and Zebulon Bowles. Photo by Matt Sharkey

Rooted in the trajectory of west coast bluegrass, Hot Buttered Rum began in San Francisco in 1999 after Keefe, Yates, and Horne connected through backcountry trip in the High Sierras; they added drums in 2008 and have since progressed into upbeat improvisational mix of song-oriented string music with a groove that interplays between bluegrass, folk, rock, and country. Their years of touring have given the band the chance to work and play with an extensive cross-section of musicians including Phil Lesh, Chris Thile, Kyle Hollingsworth, Brett Dennen, and Robert Earl Keen, to name a few, as well as being named “The Official Bluegrass Band of the San Francisco Giants.”

Self-produced, Lonesome Panoramic was recorded at Panoramic House Studio in Stinson Beach, CA, along the Panoramic Highway. With majestic views of the western Marin County coastline, it is a landmark destination studio built with recycled materials in the‘60s and renovated and upgraded into a studio in 2013. The studio has been host to several big-name indie bands, including My Morning Jacket, Band of Horses, and Thee Oh Sees. Lonesome Panoramic was engineered by Robert Cheek (Band of Horses, The Chris Robinson Brotherhood), mixed by Zebulon Bowles, and mastered by David Little.

Yates says, “Making music on the Panoramic Highway carried a lot with it for me. It’s one of the roads I grew up driving, towards the ocean, the mountain, the woods, and, eventually, back home again. I hope some of these tunes can do the same for the listener.”

Much of Hot Buttered Rum’s music is inspired by the northern California landscape which can be heard in the lyrics, felt through the music, and known from the backstory. Lonesome Panoramic conveys a broad range of what Hot Buttered Rum offers.

The album kicks off with a pair of buoyant bluegrass tunes, opening with their more traditional lineup of guitar, fiddle, banjo, bass, with Stafford forgoing the drums for mandolin. The opening track, “You Can Tell,” written by Yates while pickin’ on one of the East Bay’s many trails, has a tinge of old-tyme to it. It is followed by “Sittin’ Here Alone,” written by Keefe about the time he built himself a cabin in the woods.

They change the pace a bit on the third track, “Country Tunes & Love Songs,” adding in drums for this mid-tempo Americana rocker which was was co-written by Keefe along with Kellen and Jamie Coffis (of The Coffis Brothers), who also sing vocal harmonies with Keefe. It is one of a few songs on the album where Yates trades his banjo for the Dobro; another is “Treasure Island Blues,” which Erik thought up while sitting on the manmade island halfway between San Francisco and Oakland.

“How Short the Song” is performed as a trio with velvety string arrangements making it peaceful and reflective, just like Oakland’s Lake Merritt where Yates wrote it, while “When that Lonesome Feeling Comes” is a more lively ragtime boogie gospel.

Keefe says in a recent interview with Marin Magazine, “There are some songs I’ve been keeping in my back pocket for a long time, like ‘Leaving Dallas’ and ‘Spirits Still Come.’ They’ve been the shy kids hiding in their mother’s skirts but I’m glad they’re seeing the light of day. ‘Spirits’ is a heavy one, about my aunt passing away. I wasn’t sure I’d share it with the world but it’s feeling good to sing it out.” “Spirits” features special guests, Rainbow Girls (Erin Chapin, Caitlin Gowdey, Vanessa May) with their haunting backup vocals to Keefe’s lyrics.

Some songs on the album are more lighthearted such as “Mighty Fine” and “Never Got Married,” while songs like “Sleeping Giants” and the intricate 8-minute “The One that Everybody Knows” have a deeper, slow burn. The closing track of the album, “The Deep End” is one that is dear to the band’s heart and was co-written by Keefe and Yates along with old friends ALO’s Zach Gill and Dan “Lebo” Lebowitz (who also added electric guitar to the mix) as a theme song for a festival the two bands co-host called Camp Deep End.

It’s an undeniably hip and fresh sound that has found its way to the most prestigious festivals in the country including Telluride Bluegrass, Newport Folk Festival, Jam Cruise, Bonnaroo, Strawberry, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, Kate Wolf, Northwest String Summit, Grey Fox, WinterWonderGass, The Bender Jamboree, Summer Camp, and High Sierra, among others.

With Lonesome Panoramic, Hot Buttered Rum wades the full width of the river from the shoals to the deep waters with a passionate, laid back attitude and they are thrilled to share this new album with the world.

 

Lonesome Panoramic Track Listing
1. You Can Tell   2:11 (Yates)
2. Sittin’ Here Alone   3:14 (Keefe)
3. Country Tunes & Love Songs (ft. The Coffis Bros.)  4:29 (Keefe, K Coffis, J Coffis)
4. How Short the Song   3:27 (Yates)
5. Treasure Island Blues   4:46 (Yates)
6. Never Got Married   2:50  (Keefe)
7. Spirits Still Come (ft. Rainbow Girls)   4:54 (Keefe)
8. Sleeping Giants   5:04  (Yates)
9. Leaving Dallas   4:31 (Keefe)
10. When that Lonesome Feeling Comes 4:07 (Yates)
11. Mighty Fine   4:25 (Keefe)
12. The One that Everybody Knows   8:04  (Yates)
13. The Deep End (ft. ALO)   4:55 (Keefe, Yates, Lebowitz, Gill)

For more information and updates from the road, please visit www.hotbutteredrum.net, www.facebook.com/hotbutteredrum, www.twitter.com/hotbutteredrum, and www.instagram.com/hot.buttered.rum.band.

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Tellico’s Relics and Roses Hit the Streets This Week – Storytelling with Roots

Tellico’s Relics and Roses Hit the Streets This Week- Storytelling with Roots

Tellico takes you on a journey through the modern Appalachian soundscape, with masterful storytelling and memorable instrumental and vocal performances that wed tradition with a contemporary Americana sensibility

Now available at:
CD Baby,  iTunes, & Amazon

ASHEVILLE, NC — Tellico independently released their debut album, Relics and Roses, this week on June 2, 2015. The album features the singing and songwriting of Anya Hinkle (guitar, fiddle) and Stig Stiglets (bass), and showcases Aaron Ballance on dobro and pedal and lap steel and Jed Willis on mandolin and clawhammer banjo. Guitar virtuoso Jon Stickley (Jon Stickley Trio) produced the album and makes a few guest appearances with drums and guitar. The album was recorded at Sound Temple Studios in Asheville, NC.

“Relics and Roses is a record that you be will be drawn to not to simply listen, but to actively listen. While timeless and authentic are words you hear describing music quite often, here they both ring true,” writes The Daily Country.

Storytelling is at the helm of Tellico’s music. “Throughout the set, they touch on issues ranging from natural disasters to foreign adventures. One tune, though, hits especially close to home. Inspired by Asheville author Thomas Wolfe’s book of the same name, ‘Can’t Go Home Again’ tugs at the loose threads of that notion,” writes The Bluegrass Situation.

The leading track, “Backstep Blues” [Hinkle] has a “backstep”, a rhythmic hiccup that is typical of old time music, telling the story of a man’s successive retreat from his wife (with the refrain “hey where did your daddy go wrong?”), leaving her with the “backstep blues.”  “Calamity”, written by Stiglets, is a tale of disaster sparked by a combination of Hurricane Katrina and Japan’s 2011 tsunami, and the destructive and terrifying images of those events. “Forsaken Winds” is poetry unto itself with the ethereal sounds of Ballance’s pedal steel filling in the spirit of the lyrics; while “Hawkeye Pierce and Honeycutt Blues” is a tongue and cheek raggy romp in an Asheville street busker’s shoes.

“Mexico 1995” is a coming-of-age story penned by Hinkle after a solo four month journey, mostly by bus, from Nogales, Arizona through Guatemala and back. It was before the internet, before cell phones, and after a grisly war and genocide in southern Mexico and Guatemala, a real eye opener for a kid, all during the winter after Jerry Garcia died. Hinkle says, “That early morning that I walked back, on foot, into my post-college privileged American life after crossing the border at Nogales was like a dream, I was a ghost in my own shoes, my idea of who I was as porous as the haze that seemed to linger that entire day that I re-emerged.” The song uses samples from iconic songs that set up the general feeling that it’s all been done before. Hinkle reflects, “Where does a kid go with that? What’s ahead that’s worth anything?”

All of the songs on Relics and Roses were penned by Hinkle and Stiglets with the exception “White Line-River of Pride,” a Neil Young and Crazy Horse medley of two dirty electric rock tunes buttoned up bluegrass-style.

Relics and Roses is the first since Anya, Stig, and Aaron formed Tellico after recording four records with the Asheville-based bluegrass band Dehlia Low, whose final album Ravens and Crows was released on the Rebel Records label in 2011.

Find out more about Tellico & Relics and Roses at at Tellicoband.com, facebook.com/Tellico & twitter.com/TellicoBand.

Tellico. Photo by Jennifer Calllahan

What Folks are Saying About Relics and Roses:

“Fresh from the fertile roots music scene in Asheville, NC, comes bluegrass foursome Tellico, who make a remarkable first impression with splendid debut album Relics and Roses. If you’re a fan of mountain music, I urge you to check out this up-and-coming outfit… four first-rate musicians… This one’s a winner, y’all” —Jeffrey Sisk, Pittsburgh in Tune

“With deep warm tones, intimate vocals, vivid lyrics, natural arrangements, and emotional solos Tellico masterfully draws the listener into the center of their original songs. Relics and Roses paints a cinematic picture, continually stirring feelings of nostalgia. Through their wonderful musicianship they never fail to create an atmosphere that perfectly enhances their storytelling.  I love this CD!”
—Chad Manning of the David Grisman Bluegrass Experience

“….wonderfully original mountain music. Sometimes they sound like what Kate Wolf would sound like had she come from the Southern Appalachians – a beloved image if you ask me.”
—Martin Anderson, Music Director & Morning Host WNCW-FM

“The album of mostly original songs is superbly orchestrated and delivered taking the listener on an auditory odyssey that ranges from soulful and deep to upbeat and euphoric. Anya, Aaron, Stig, and Jed have woven a tapestry that is timeless and authentic and deserving of your attention.”
—Steve Johnson, Event Producer/Artist Relations Manager, Wilkesboro, NC

“Tellico picks up where Dehlia Low left off, focusing and refining their sound. Relics and Roses is… step forward in songwriting, with Anya Hinkle and Greg ‘Stig’ Stiglets crafting an acoustic soundscape of Appalachian daydreams that stack up to the works of John Hartford, Emmylou Harris and the Avett Brothers. Songs like ‘I Want To Know’ reach out and grab you immediately… a captivating album.”
–Joe Kendrick, WNCW Program Director 88.7 FM

“The bluegrass influence is as bright as the playing in the music of Tellico.” — The Alternate Root “Backstep Blues” listed in Top Ten Songs of the Week

“Asheville, NC has produced some of the most interesting new sounds in the modern bluegrass and old time music scene of late. Something about the community there is drawing creative people, and clumping them together to make string band music that pushes boundaries while holding on to tradition. Tellico is such a group —John Lawless, Bluegrass Today

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The Honeycutters Announce Tour Dates, New Album ‘Me Oh My’ Out April 21 via Organic Records

The Honeycutters. Photo by Sandlin Gaither

Asheville-based American Country Roots Band, The Honeycutters,
Set to Release 3rd Studio Album, Me Oh My, on Tue, April 21, 2015 With Organic Record Company

“… just superb, with a sweet toned and melodious aura… Today’s Smoky Mountain area modern folk thing does have a certain vibe, and these guys are among its finest purveyors.” –Music City Roots’ Craig Havighurst

“Their music embodies a very catchy, accessible, optimistic sort of spirit so frequently lacking in folk circles (where brooding, hyper-analytical music reigns supreme). What’s more, like Carolina Story, they’re a great band replete with tasty harmonies.” –Folk Music About.com’s Kim Ruehl

Announcing Spring and Summer Tour
Throughout the Southeast and Into the Northeast

The Honeycutters, an Asheville, NC-based original country roots band, is set to release their third studio album, Me Oh My, on April 21, 2015 with Organic Records®. Fueled by the powerful songwriting and vocals of founder Amanda Platt, Me Oh My moves her into the spotlight as producer, band leader, and principal creative force behind the band. With songs that are honest and relatable, part chagrin and part hope, Platt’s voice carries a timeless appeal. Pre-sales for the album have launched on iTunes and include four immediate tracks to download off the fourteen track release. They have announced tour dates throughout the southeast and into the northeast this spring and summer; more dates will be announced.

Led by songwriter Amanda Anne Platt, The Honeycutters include Tal Taylor on mandolin, Rick Cooper on bass, Josh Milligan on drums, and Matt Smith rounds out the band on pedal steel, electric guitar, and dobro to create a sound that carries just as well across the bar room as in a church or a theater. Platt’s songs are shaped by a raw honesty that comes straight from the heart and emits a sort of melancholy happiness.

Me Oh My is threaded with themes of love, loss, acceptance and regrowth. It kicks off with an engaging southern swingin’ song, “Jukebox,” that is about taking life one day at a time and not taking yourself too seriously saying “it’s only a song, so for heaven’s sake won’t you sing along?” The title cut is an inspirational anthem about the state of the modern woman, stating, “Some girls marry and some girls wait.” Me Oh My brings more of what fans love about The Honeycutters, honestly written songs sung in Platt’s authentic voice. The up-tempo, beer-raising, danceable “Ain’t It The Truth” is one that will fuel audiences at live shows while melancholy ballads like “Texas ’81” balance the album both in meter and mood. The upbeat “I’ll Be Lovin’ You” as a whole speaks to holding someone up until they are strong enough to stand on their own. Me Oh My delves deeper into the darker realms of love with “Little Bird” which gained Platt notoriety as it was chosen as a finalist at MerleFest’s prestigious Chris Austin Songwriting Contest (2011).

Platt self produced the album along with the help of engineer and assistant producer Jon Ashley. The album was recorded in Echo Mountain Recording Studio and Mixtown Studio in Asheville, NC and it was mixed and mastered just down the road at Crossroads Studios in Arden, NC.

“The new album is the one I’m most proud of to date.” Platt says, “I took much more of a driver’s seat in it’s making, and the process has forced me to do a lot of growing up… I feel like I’ve really found my voice. I’m very excited about the line up of the band, and the songwriting includes some of my very favorites.”

The Honeycutters on Tour
4/2 Thu – Robert Ferst Theatre Amphitheatre – Atlanta, GA
4/3 Fri – Mars Theatre – Springfield, GA
4/17 Fri – Isis Music Hall – Asheville, NC
4/18 Sat – Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival – Silk Hope, NC
4/22 Wed – Music City Roots – Nashville, TN
4/24 Fri – MerleFest – Wilkesboro, NC
5/2 Sat – Sylvia Theater – York, SC
5/3 Sun – Eddie’s Attic – Decatur, GA
5/8 Fri – The Willow Tree – Johnson City, TN
5/9 Sat – Barley’s – Knoxville TN
5/14 Thu – The Double Door Inn – Charlotte, NC
5/15 Fri – Bourgie Nights – Wilmington, NC >
6/4 Thu – The ArtsCenter – Carrboro, NC
6/5 Fri – Sails Music Series – Hickory, NC
6/17 Sun – 10th Ave Burrito Co. – Belmar, NJ
6/18 – Thu – Rockwood Music Hall 2 – New York, NY *
6/20 Sat – Rochester International Jazz Festival – Rochester, NY
6/21 Sun – Mechanic Street House – Cleveland, OH
8/21 Fri – Summer Tracks Rogers Park Amphitheater – Tryon, NC
8/22 Sat- Cataloochee Ranch – Maggie Valley, NC

> w/ Massive Grass
* w/ The Hillbenders

For more information about The Honeycutters and further tour dates, please visit: www.thehoneycutters.com. For news from the road, please visit www.facebook.com/Honeycutters and twitter.com/thehoneycutters.

 

 

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The Honeycutters Release ‘Me Oh My’ on April 21 Through Organic Records

Asheville-based American Country Roots Band, The Honeycutters,
Set to Release 3rd Studio Album, Me Oh My, on Tue, April 21, 2015
With Organic Record Company

Me Oh My Pre-sales Begin Tuesday, February 17th on iTunes
Pre-sale orders include two immediate tracks for download

The Honeycutters, an Asheville, NC-based original country roots band, is set to release their third studio album, Me Oh My, on April 21, 2015 with Organic Records®. Led by songwriter Amanda Anne Platt, The Honeycutters include Tal Taylor on mandolin, Rick Cooper on bass, Josh Milligan on drums, and Matt Smith rounds out the band on pedal steel, electric guitar, and dobro to create a sound that carries just as well across the bar room as in a church or a theater. Fueled by the powerful songwriting and vocals of founder Amanda Platt, Me Oh My moves her into the spotlight as producer, band leader, and principal creative force behind the band. With songs that are honest and relatable, part chagrin and part hope, Platt’s voice carries a timeless appeal. Pre-sales for the album start Tuesday, February 17th on iTunes and includes two immediate tracks to download.

The Honeycutters are (right to left)
Matt Smith, Josh Milligan, Rick Cooper,
Amanda Anne Platt & Tal Taylor.
Photo by Sandlin Gaither.

“The new album is the one I’m most proud of to date.” Platt says, “I took much more of a driver’s seat in it’s making, and the process has forced me to do a lot of growing up… I feel like I’ve really found my voice. I’m very excited about the line up of the band, and the songwriting includes some of my very favorites.” Platt self produced the album along with the help of engineer and assistant producer Jon Ashley. They laid down the all original 14-track album in Echo Mountain Recording Studio and Mixtown Studio in Asheville, NC and it was mixed and mastered just down the road at Crossroads Studios in Arden, NC.

Me Oh My is threaded with themes of love, loss, acceptance and regrowth. It kicks off with an engaging southern swingin’ song, “Jukebox,” that is about taking life one day at a time and not taking yourself too seriously saying “it’s only a song, so for heaven’s sake won’t you sing along?” The title cut is an inspirational anthem about the state of the modern woman, stating, “Some girls marry and some girls wait.” Me Oh My brings more of what fans love about The Honeycutters, honestly written songs sung in Platt’s authentic voice. The up-tempo, beer-raising, danceable “Ain’t It The Truth” is one that will fuel audiences at live shows while melancholy ballads like “Texas ’81” balance the album both in meter and mood. The upbeat “I’ll Be Lovin’ You” as a whole speaks to holding someone up until they are strong enough to stand on their own. Me Oh My delves deeper into the darker realms of love with “Little Bird” which gained Platt notoriety as it was chosen as a finalist at MerleFest’s prestigious Chris Austin Songwriting Contest (2011).

Special guests on the album include Phil Cook on piano and organ, Aaron Wood on Telecaster, Peter James on Telecaster, Will Straughan (Red June) on harmony vocals and resonator guitar, Mica Hanks electric guitar, Evan Bradford on trumpet, and Amanda’s father Mark Platt on harmonica.

Music City Roots’ Craig Havighurst calls The Honeycutters “… just superb, with a sweet toned and melodious aura… Today’s Smoky Mountain area modern folk thing does have a certain vibe, and these guys are among its finest purveyors.” Folk Music About.com’s Kim Ruehl wrote, “Their music embodies a very catchy, accessible, optimistic sort of spirit so frequently lacking in folk circles (where brooding, hyper-analytical music reigns supreme). What’s more, like Carolina Story, they’re a great band replete with tasty harmonies.”

They’ll celebrate Me Oh My with an album release tour which is soon to be announced as well as a hometown album release party at Isis Music Hall in Asheville on April 17th. They are also set to perform at MerleFest in Wilkesboro, NC the weekend of the release date.

In both her simple composition and honest delivery it’s easy to hear the influence of country legends such as Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, or Loretta Lynn, and with this Miss Platt credits growing up listening to her Father’s extensive record collection every Saturday morning. Despite her love for classic country, Platt cites Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty as major influences and her songwriting carries a wit and an edge that plants her firmly in her generation.

The Honeycutters formed in 2007 in Asheville, NC, the town they still call home, and had quick success with their first release Irene (2009). Me Oh My is the highly anticipated follow up to the 2012’s When Bitter Met Sweet. Each album has helped to grow grow their audience and expand their tours to include notable appearances at MerleFest, Suwannee Springfest, Strawberry Music Festival, Vancouver Island Music Fest, Vancouver Folk Music Festival, Folk Alliance, Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival, Falcon Ridge Folk Fest and the Nelsonville Music Festival. They have also performed alongside esteemed musicians Guy Clark, Tony Rice, The Seldom Scene, Billy Joe Shaver, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Amy Ray, Donna the Buffalo, Jill Andrews, and The Steep Canyon Rangers.

For more information about The Honeycutters and their tour dates, please visit: www.thehoneycutters.com. For news from the road, please visit www.facebook.com/Honeycutters and twitter.com/thehoneycutters.

The Honeycutters on Tour
2/12 Thu – Willie’s Locally Known – Lexington, KY
2/18 Wed – Music City Roots – Nashville, TN
2/19 Thu – Old Rock House – St. Louis, MO
3/13 Fri-  Mudville Music Room – Jacksonville, FL
3/14 Sat – Music Under the Moss – Panama City, FL
4/2 Thu – Robert Ferst Center For The Arts – Atlanta, GA
4/3 Fri – Mars Theatre – Springfield, GA
4/17 Fri – Isis Music Hall – Asheville, NC
4/18 Sat – Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival – Silk Hope, NC
4/24 Fri – MerleFest – Wilkesboro, NC
More dates TBA

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