Americana rockers Midnight Sky have officially released their highly-anticipated full-length album, Just Before Dawn, on all major streaming platforms via MTS Records. Anchored by the evocative new single “Hearts Are Wild,” the 13-track collection is a cinematic and soul-stirring exploration of love’s complexity, highway solitude, and the quiet moments that linger just before dawn.
Led by veteran songwriter Tim Tye, Midnight Sky weaves threads of country, folk, and roots rock into a cohesive and emotionally resonant album that showcases Tye’s evolution as a storyteller and sonic craftsman. From the haunting melancholy of “Only the Moon is Blue” to the rollicking redemption in “Dockside Jump,” the LP traverses backroads of memory and emotion with unflinching honesty.
“This album is about moments—ones you regret, ones you fight for, and ones you never forget,” says Tye. “Just Before Dawn is where all those moments live. That quiet hour when the world holds its breath and your heart does too.”
============================================================================
 |
| Photo - Julian Gross |
Acclaimed Americana-pop duo The Grahams have announced their fourth studio album, The Bridge, will be out this fall and have released their new single “Only New York.” The powerful track pays homage to a city The Grahams, lifelong lovers Alyssa and Doug Graham call part of their heartbeat and one of the main characters in their life. Their personal and unique tribute to the Big Apple. Set for release on October 10th via the East Nashville label 3Sirens, The Bridge, referring to the George Washington Bridge which transported the New Jersey natives to New York City during their formative years, is the group’s most deeply personal album to date.
“New York City was, is, and will always be a defining piece of who we are,” shares Alyssa. “As kids, we lived across the bridge. NYC was the backdrop for all our minor indiscretions, all our not so minor rebellions. She taught us how to be smart, creative, open-minded, and sometimes devious. As adults, we lived deep within her pulsing heart. We performed music over and over again within her underground. We learned to love her and to loathe her as New York is at once the best and the worst of everything.”
“Our daughter was born a New Yorker,” Doug adds. “When we were writing this song, we realized every bridge in our life, both literally and metaphorically, leads back to New York City. Our forever home. This track is without a doubt the defining song of our life, our love affair, and our legacy, because only New York.”
For perhaps the first time since the inception of The Grahams over a decade ago, Alyssa and Doug give listeners an honest glimpse into their personal lives within their music on The Bridge. The 11-track collection, which finds the couple embracing the collaborative Nashville co-write, is inspired by their everyday lives. The Grahams wrote much of The Bridge with GRAMMY-nominated producer Dex Green, singer-songwriter Kate York, and GRAMMY-nominated songwriter Aaron Lee Tasjan. Alyssa (vocals) and Doug (guitars/vocals) credit these three creative ambassadors with helping them write about their lives honestly and vulnerably, diving deep into their childhood love affair that has lasted over 37 years.
============================================================================
 |
| Photo - Erika Rock |
On Friday, 3x GRAMMY-nominated singer/songwriter Ashley Monroe released her sixth studio album Tennessee Lightning. Co-produced with GRAMMY-winning producer/engineer Gena Johnson (John Prine, Jason Isbell), the 17-song collection was recorded in the wake of Monroe’s transformative bout with cancer and recounts her remarkable journey as a celebration of life, love and the healing power of music. The album features contributions from T Bone Burnett, Marty Stuart, Brittney Spencer, Waylon Payne, Brendan Benson, Butch Walker, Karen Fairchild and Armand Hutton.
Tennessee Lightning has received acclaim from The Nashville Scene, People, Stereogum, NPR Music, Music Row, The Observer, Americana UK and many more. No Depression proclaimed its “an electrifying new album that traverses a variety of musical landscapes, from swampy blues to gospel to pop and country.”
The album is rich, multifaceted meditation on identity, purpose, and meaning from an artist who’s learned to see herself — and the world around her — in a whole new light following a life-altering diagnosis. “When I got diagnosed with lymphoma and started my treatment, I stopped writing, I stopped hearing melodies, I stopped thinking about songs at all,” Monroe recalls.
“When I finally went into remission, I could feel the life and the music start flowing in my veins again,” she explains. “It was like a flood, just this rush of inspiration.” Along with that inspiration came a newfound clarity and gratitude, as well as a vision for this new album.
============================================================================
