Today, Finnish electronic artist Detalji has shared new single 'Keep Me Alive', ahead of the release of their forthcoming debut album, Truly, which is set for release on March 31st. New single ‘Keep Me Alive’ merges indie pop with low-fi drum and bass.
The track is about miraculously finding a loving relationship after
years of being lost. "A friend said it could fit well on a Fleabag
soundtrack because of its bittersweet atmosphere,” says Myllyviita.
Detalji is the project of Helsinki based artist Krista Myllyviita. Written during the lockdown years of 2020 and 2021, Detalji's debut album Truly is a slice of pure escapism. Drawing inspiration from the soundtracks of video games they was playing during that time (namely Crash Bandicoot, GTA Vice City and GTA3) carefully weaving a comforting world of their own, creating distinctive sounding pieces of music that are difficult to place in a certain moment in time. Picking up the guitar after years of neglect also served this purpose, surprising their longtime fans with a completely new addition to the Detalji sound.
Truly takes its cues from the pioneering leftfield pop artists of the 80s and 90s. A tasteful dose of nostalgic dance and trance is melded together with a forward-thinking contemporary sound palette in a way that feels completely timeless and totally unique to Detalji. Detalji was nominated for an Emma award ('Finnish Grammy') in 2020 and won a Femma award ('Finnish Indie Grammy') for Best Electronic Music in 2019. Since 2020 Detalji has toured around the world playing shows in the U.S and Europe including performances at SXSW, Eurosonic and Iceland Airwaves.
"Don´t Even Try", the new single from Eide Olsen, is delicate pop confection from the top shelf. The song is a taste from the upcoming album, "My Dear", and has been mastered by Ryan Smith (Adele, Beyonce, Coldplay).
The collaboration with Eirik Grønner (Kurt Nilsen, Endre Nordvik) has given Eide Olsen a more modern and "poppish" expression than what we know from previous releases. "Don´t Even Try" effortlessly nods to mid 90s references such as The Cardigans, where small soulful, melodic details and a steady arrangement provide balance to a slightly heartbreaking text.
Teeth is a fabulous new song where a smooth flowing indie soundtrack is the perfect backdrop for Mary's melodic and distinctive vocals that glide and dance above. Mary Hennessy is a 24-year-old, Liverpool based singer-songwriter, who has been releasing music since 2018. Her debut album came out during June of 2020. Mary released her single Rollerblade on Friday 3rd March, as the first of three singles in anticipation for her new album.
For the past three years now, she has been making her second, long-awaited follow up album ‘Feels Like’ which drops Friday 5th May. Mary has an atmospheric nature to her music, which is guided by her delicate vocals that deal with all thing’s life in her lyricism.
“I wanted Teeth to have a sense of impatience about it, like something was gradually building under the surface that you could no longer ignore. The lyrics don’t directly say how they really feel, but from what they are saying, the situation is not a happy one. So, I knew I wanted the song to end in a sort of chaotic way, as if the situation is getting out of hand, but something is still yet to be done about it.”
Photo Ops - When You See Something Beautiful In The World.
The autumn blaze maple tree, famous as music in Nashville, is a fast grower. Imagine its teeming majesty of red leaves from above one house in the city’s Inglewood neighborhood. You see it ensconced like a controlled flame by rolling hills and winding roads. A familiar pattern lulls you from days into nights in this dreamy park town. You never realized from the ground, under the shade of that tree, how all these beautiful designs in any city keep you sane.
The sweeping vantage points of Photo Ops’ Burns Bright belong first to the quiet of Nashville’s first modern suburb after World War II. Terry Price lived there while perfecting the melodic soft-rock modes that pleased audiences on tour with Camera Obscura and Fences.
Price took this way of seeing to a new home in Los Angeles. Long drives through dimensional vistas ended in his room in Los Feliz where he recorded Burns Bright. When Etta James, Molly Drake, and The Byrds are all touchpoints of sound and silence, what emerges is a gentle homage to the commonalities of lasting influence in pop music, a kind of time-bending presentiment — the moment of tracking in a studio when everyone senses it’s a moment that will be remembered. Reaching through the layer of industry noise in both hallmark cities as we know them from a distance — is this a hit? — Price treasures the visceral experience of making and recognizing music.
The most devout of craftspeople, Price is on a quest toward the merciful essence of recognition when he writes songs; each line discovers a pure element of comfort, calling back to the land and to his musician mother’s love of transcendent melodies. Burns Bright reminds us how those forces are one and the same.
Price’s heroes in music are more than inspirations. To him, they offer examples of how to keep breathing in a culture that discourages total presence. It’s true that moving an open heart through the world comes with constant risk. Looking out at the expanse we all share — really seeing that world — is the practice of Burns Bright, and the special ability that makes Price a songwriter to cherish.
SE London rock duo The Pearl Harts have unleashed “Hypocritical”, the second single to be taken from their awaited second album ‘Love, Chaos’ (out 21 April, via Double Bang Records).
Blending amped-up punk motifs with booming alt-pop stylings, “Hypocritical” sees the two-piece challenging the perceptions of what it means to be a woman making rock music and relishing the freedom. Spirited and sardonic in equal measure, it’s a playful power-pop anthem with a bitter sting in its tail. As The Pearl Harts explain:
“Hypocritical is a bratty, fun, scream-a-long song, influenced by the hi-octane pop of Miley Cyrus and Gwen Stefani with the punk attitude of ‘Impeach My Bush’-era Peaches. It’s an empowerment song for women and girls taking on the world.”
Following comeback cut “More”, a track praised by Classic Rock as “a single that adds a little polish to their gritty blues-rock sound”, and the Steve Lamacq (BBC 6 Music) and Radio X supported “Wild Me”; “Hypocritical” is the third sampler of the duo’s eagerly awaited second album ‘Love, Chaos’ (out 21 April 2023).
Produced by the band themselves in collaboration with Danio (Husky Loops, Kari Faux), the record features twelve tracks of the high-octane rock’n’roll The Pearl Harts have become known for, while adding some ‘90s NYC punk, 2000s hip-hop and modern polished pop touches into the mix.
Teasing the album, the duo say: “‘Love, Chaos’ is about saying goodbye to unhealthy patterns that we all identify with in our lives. Be that work, alcohol, sex, drugs, procrastination, love… Whether we like it or not our whole lives are a series of patterns that shape our personality, they can come about through the unconscious, through family dynamics, through everyday interactions and through trauma. ‘Love, Chaos’ is about realising and accepting this and forging a life beyond.”
ROWSIE, the four-piece band from London known for their thought-provoking, emotive brand of rock n roll, have released a new charity single titled ‘Makeshift Grave’.
Recorded at the world-famous RAK studios, the song takes a hard, honest look at the mindless ongoing violence and conflict in Ukraine, shedding light on how the destruction of truth is often the first step in rationalising psychopathic behaviour that leads to the carnage we are blatantly witnessing today.
For the video the band thought to involve some first-hand witnesses to the recent atrocities produced by vocalist & guitarist Richard Rothenberg with bassist Alan D. Boyd taking on director’s duties. It’s a simple concept with Ukrainian dancer Angelina Lengyel and choreography by Anastasiia Artiushok. Costumes and floral crowns were provided by designers Nataliia Horbenko and Anfisa Polyushkevych. All have been affected by the war in personal ways.
Proceeds for the sales of this single will go to the charity British-Ukranian Aid who ROWSIE have worked with in 2022 raising over £10,000 for the charity in a previous benefit concert.
Amsterdam-based musician Sofie Winterson announces details of her forthcoming album Southern Skies produced by Benny Sings via Excelsior Recordings in June. The project is a continuation and expansion of their 2019 collaborative EP Moral and new single "Jump" offers up more of the accidental magic which is at the core of their partnership.
"Jump" chronicles uncertainty yet offers soothing reassurance with its lilting, warm indie-pop sound. A nod to the rest of the album which saw Sofie embrace simplicity and foster a new perspective. Of the new single Sofie says: "Jump is about wanting to make a big change in life, but not knowing where that change will take you. It’s meant to comfort you in this state of insecurity. It can encourage you not to overthink where that change will lead you, since you will be a different person by the time you’ll get there."
Created in primarily Benny Sings' canal-hugging studio in Amsterdam, Southern Skies was formed as an act of stripping-back and growing as a songwriter. Sofie’s last full-length album Sophia Electric instead acted as a way to expand her work as a producer. Her varied influences, from the soul and folk she grew up on to the dream-pop of her university years can all be heard as part of the album’s eclectic palette which leans in a more minimal direction than before.
Putting the lyrics and storytelling front and centre, Sofie’s love of reading has never been more evident than in the way she approached writing for this record. “What I try to do in my lyrics [is] to find the best way to describe a thought,” she says, “the thought could be anything, it’s always my challenge to try and find exactly the right words.” Noting that her favourite part of reading is not so much following the narrative, but revelling in the descriptions of situations.
Featuring original vocal takes and lyrics that were written in the room, it marked a new way of working for Sofie, with Benny encouraging her to approach writing in a different way, a more technical way. Pulling inspiration from both Adrienne Lenker and Rachel Cusk’s ‘Transit’ in tandem, what’s clear is Sofie Winterson’s never-failing ability to tell a story with grace, immense consideration and the freedom to be projected upon and moulded as her listener’s see fit.
Dutch artist Pitou’s musical awakening came from an unlikely source. From a very young age, she developed an unexplainable interest in classical music – her father would often find her crouched down by the radio, in search of the sound of orchestras and choirs. From the age of 9, Pitou started singing in a children’s choir, and she soon found herself performing at the baptism of Catharina Amalia, the Princess of the Netherlands, and in renowned music halls throughout Europe. “Singing together with other singers, making harmonies together, made me feel like nothing had ever done before,” she says of that moment.
It's a memory that continues to inspire. Big Tear, her long-awaited debut album, is a rich, fearlessly creative collection of alternative pop that draws from her classical background; unexpected harmonies and song structures, vocal layering, loops, wistful melodies, and classical instruments all swirled together in stylish, clever ways.
The record also marks her own development, both as a performer and a songwriter. “I knew I wanted to move away from the guitar being self-evidently always there,” she says. “I also wanted to find out what it felt like to tell the stories of my songs on stage with just my body and voice, without the physical restriction of the guitar.” Eager to move into other sonic worlds, she embraced the creative possibilities of different instruments – piano, harp, synths – and using computer programs to build and refine her music; some tracks were written entirely on piano or using software.
To celebrate the release of her new album, today Pitou has shared a new music video, 'Knife'. Of the video, she says: "'Knife' is the emotional axis of this record, very raw in its sentiment, which is always a challenge to translate into visuals. The song is about a person deciding to break away from a bond, for their own sake. I visualised a couple living in a small, quiet home. One half of the couple would be a human, the other a faceless but ever-present being.
Eora/Sydney based musician Georgia Mooney (All Our Exes Live In Texas), shares her empowering new single ‘I Am Not In A Hurry’. Celebrating freedom and all the adventures born along the way, the track comes as a glacial moment of escapism. Following her cinematic debut solo single ‘War Romance’, ‘I Am Not In A Hurry’ is the second single taken from Mooney’s to-be-announced debut solo album, and is out now globally through Nettwerk.
A beautifully matter-of-fact bucking of pressures to stay in one place or settle down, ‘I Am Not In A Hurry’ was written in Florence, Italy just after a spontaneous three-day holiday marriage to a painter in Skopelos, Greece. Its sonic warmth comes via a dulcimer that Mooney won in a raffle in Canberra - a suitably whimsical fit for a song that celebrates the impulsive, unexpected moments in life; the impossibility of settling down when something new and exciting could be around the corner.
The track is accompanied by a diaristic music video bursting with nostalgia and a lust for life. Georgia Mooney shares on the video, “The video for ‘I Am Not In A Hurry’ is comprised entirely of little snapshots of moments from the last fifteen years of my life. Some of them are small and gentle like a cat on a fence, some of them are more momentous, love affairs, big concerts, cross-continental adventures. The video is personal, nostalgic and whimsical. It is no more extraordinary a life than any other, it is just a little open window into one.”
I Am Not In A Hurry was Co-produced with Noah Georgeson (Cate Le Bon, Devendra Banhart, Marlon Williams, Joanna Newsom), the release itself is a tribute to Joni Mitchell, one of Mooney’s musical and personal idols - and her song Cactus Tree, in both spirit and sound. “Mitchell (a painter, poet, songwriter, traveller) is herself hard to pin down”, says Mooney.
On ‘I Am Not In A Hurry’, Georgia Mooney shares, “I was in Florence for almost a month writing songs… It is no wonder that this song emerged there. In those weeks, travelling alone and caught up in the romance of it all, I couldn’t imagine ever wanting to stay in one place again. How could you when there is so much to explore and there are so many people to meet? This song is about internal restlessness too and the desire to throw off the expectation society imposes on us to settle down, find a partner, have a baby. Why the hurry?”
Stephen Wilson Jr - American Gothic (feat. Hailey Whitters).
Southern Indiana-born, Nashville-based artist Stephen Wilson Jr. announced he has signed to Big Loud Records, and released his debut EP bon aqua. The seven-song collection compiles 6 previously released songs and the brand new single “American Gothic” (feat. Hailey Whitters) that was co-written with Whitters. Wilson is currently on the road supporting Whitters and will hit the road with The Lone Bellow next month before performing at Bourbon and Beyond Festival and CMA Fest later this year.
“Fellow cornfield kid, Hailey Whitters and I met some years ago writing songs and she had this beautiful idea inspired by her favorite Grant Wood painting to showcase parts of the American cultural fabric using nostalgia and the same duality that the painting seems to represent. We ran with it and sang it from the top of our lungs,” Wilson explains about the song.
“The first time I heard Stephen Wilson Jr. was at The Basement a few years back and he absolutely blew me away.... his writing, his songs and his live show is next level. He’s one of a kind and this genre is so much for the better with him in it,” Hailey Whitters proclaimed.
About his debut EP, Wilson adds: “Bon Aqua: Good water. Everything starts with good water. We are made of mostly water. The world is mostly water. As a microbiologist, I used to test water for pharmaceutical companies and everything from shampoo to aspirin to pet food to anything you can think of requires water. Not just any water… good water. I was in charge of making sure the water was good. In and around Bon Aqua, Tennessee is coincidentally where I wrote and conceived most of this EP and filmed most of the videos and visual aspects. Hence the name, it is known for its good water and it only made sense for it to all start there."
London-based American singer-songwriter and actress Alison Sudol has followed up on the release of her autobiographical and intimate new album, Still Come The Night, with the moving visuals for her poignant single “Come On Baby.” The song and video powerfully capture the shared journey of grief Alison and her partner, Welsh actor and director Tom Cullen, experienced following the miscarriage of their first baby during lockdown. This new visual arrives ahead of tomorrow’s reading of the U.K.’s Miscarriage Leave Bill in the House of Commons, which if passed would ensure three days of paid bereavement leave for people who have experienced miscarriage.
“In the days following my pregnancy loss, I was physically and emotionally crushed,” shares Alison. I was meant to be on tour when it happened, but due to the pandemic, the dates were canceled and I was lucky enough to have time to recover at home. Most women aren’t so fortunate, and have to go into work despite their tremendous emotional and physical grief. This bill would at least provide a small buffer in a difficult time, as well as an acknowledgment of the gravity of the loss. I deeply hope the UK government will recognize this need and act accordingly.”
Written and directed by Tom, the visuals are permeated by the disarming honesty and integrity both Alison and her partner share as artists. Transforming their own pain into beauty, Alison and Tom created a piece of art that transmutes their trauma into a healing experience.
“It was deeply meaningful when she asked me to write and direct the video for ‘Come On Baby’,” says Tom. “It’s a searing, raw and deeply moving song.” “The song addresses the night the miscarriage happened as directly as I could,” explains Alison. “I needed to face it head on. It’s what the whole album is centered around.”
Brian Dunne shares his new single “Stand Clear Of The Closing Doors,” off his upcoming album Loser On The Ropes, which releases April 14 via Kill Rock Stars.
“Any New Yorker knows the phrase ‘Stand Clear Of The Closing Doors’ because it’s what comes over the loudspeaker on the subway at every stop,” states Dunne. “I hadn’t ridden the train in a while because of the thing (trying not to mention the pandemic for the entirety of this album campaign) so when I hopped back on in mid-summer 2020, I really ‘heard’ it for the first time. Get in or get out, but get out of the way. And that’s really how I was feeling. So I wrote this narrative about a character who’s spent a lot of time ‘living, laughing, loving’ her way through the modern world, only to be jolted by a revolutionary awakening. And she has to make a choice, whether to embrace it, or run from it. It’s really an indictment of my younger self, if I’m being honest.”
Dunne signed with Kill Rock Stars on the strength of his demos for Loser On The Ropes, which he’d whittled down from nearly 200 tunes penned over several years of incessant writing. Working with producer Drew Vandenberg (Faye Webster, Of Montreal) in Athens, he fleshed the tracks out with analog synthesizers and reverb-drenched guitars, taking cues from Jonathan Richman, The Pretenders, Dire Straits, and Tunnel of Love-era Springsteen to cast a warm, cinematic haze over the whole thing that helped blur the already fuzzy lines between fantasy and reality for the characters who populate the collection.
Loser On The Ropes explores defeat and denial, fortune and faith, shame and redemption, all set against the backdrop of a world run by blowhards and bullshitters who manage to perpetually skate by without cost or consequence. The songs are lean and gritty, cutting straight to the heart of things with Dunne’s raw, understated poeticism, but rather than getting lost in the darkness of it all, Loser On The Ropes emerges as something much more resilient and exhilarating.
Ryan Daykin Victorian based Singer/Songwriter is back, leaning into his authentic approach to crafting REAL songs, with the Alt. Country tinged “Tears Of Sin”.
His impressive body of work, including his 2019 EP “Keeping Secrets” and previous single penned with Felicity Urquhart “Broken Feathers” has racked up accolades, but more than that, it has cemented Ryan’s place as an artist with a mission to create music that rises above the ordinary, that captures emotion and tells stories that draw a listener in.
Tears of Sin shows us a darker side of the previously more pop country leaning stylings of Ryan Daykin a “It’s a provocative story that talks to our internal struggle of who we are versus who we think we should be”
To compliment the edgy concept of the song, Ryan entrusted iconic producer Matt Fell to produce the track, allowing a more alternative country instrumentation and production, showing us a matured and versatile side to Ryan Daykin. ‘I was trying to move away from the pop/country based vibe of my previous releases, but not stray away completely because it would be inauthentic, I think we came up with a solid compromise”
Tears Of Sin is a personal story of an internal battle, and one that Ryan knows too well, having struggled with his self identity for many years, Ryan drew on support from Mary Harrison to express his feelings and at the revered DAG songwriting retreat, Tears Of Sin, which had been a work in progress for Ryan for years, became a co-write between the two artists.
The music on the new album 'Cosmos' searches outward, while the lyrics look inward. The resulting record includes elements of pop, while it pushes the envelope for what Norwegian americana can sound like. Cosmos is also about loving yourself, and there are of course a handful of love songs about shaky relationships – as we’ve come to expect from Darling West. The band continues to develop their unique musicianship and Cosmos is indeed another masterstroke from the band.
We are told the following about 'Still Her. Being in a long-term relationship is not always easy, as you can tell from a lot of songs in any genre. This one explores a moment when you realize that you have to deal with something and not put it on hold any longer. Most of us have been in these situations. It can fall both ways, but you have to choose. Work on it or let it go. When Thomas hit us with this drum groove in the chorus we almost fell off our chairs. So surprising and fun to play along with.
When Mari and Tor Egil Kreken started Darling West back in 2013, the project was intended as a way to give the married couple an opportunity to spend more time together. Tor Egil was one of Norway’s most critically acclaimed studio/live musicians, and he frequently toured the world with some of Norway’s biggest artists.
Mari was hardly idle at home, and although she didn’t play any instruments at the time, her beautiful voice landed her gigs as a backup singer for artists such as Marit Larsen, Stein Torleif Bjella and Maria Solheim. After a few years of practicing the guitar, harmonica and other instruments behind closed doors, Mari was ready to enter the stage as the frontwoman of Darling West. In creating Darling West, Mari and Tor Egil combined their fascination for American songwriting traditions and their ability to write catchy and memorable melodies.
A poet at heart, Anna Elyse is a singer, songwriter and producer who draws inspiration from prolific songwriter like Neil Young and looks to modernize her sound with influences from producers like No ID, Mike Dean and Illangelo."I always found solace in music, especially when I connected to the stories. And I hope to provide that for someone else."
After graduating from UCLA, with a concentration in Creative Writing (Poetry), she went on to Audio Engineering School and found that one of her very favorite places to be was in the studio. She was used to spending many hours in the dance studio growing up, and stepping into the recording studio was like slipping into an immersive world she knew she fit.
She worked behind the scenes in recording studios and serendipitously ended up on a few prominent hip-hop albums (Logic's albums: Under Pressure, The Incredible True Story, and No Pressure). But, it wasn't until a couple of years ago that she decided to let go of her reservations and release her own music. Her self-produced and mixed debut single, "Trading Glances" landed her on several upcoming folk-pop playlists (Greywood Records, Dave Powers, HQIndie).
Anna Elyse is excited to share her newest track, "Faster Than We Ran" with the world on March 23rd. Here's what she had to say about it: "This song came to me one foggy morning at the beach while staring out at the water and the thick mist hanging over everything. It felt like I was about to watch a portal open up into a different world. 'Faster Than We Ran' is about looking back on something that was magic and feeling immense gratitude for it. It may have been short-lived and incongruent or wrong in some ways, but it still lit you up and that's what life is about. It's looking back and saying, 'That was so awesome, the human experience is such a magical thing.' even when it's imperfect".
Lilac Haze - The Ghost That I Once Knew / Lilac Haze.
Bath-based dream pop artist Lilac Haze is pleased to announce the release of her debut double singles ‘The Ghost That I Once Knew // Lilac Haze’ today March 24th 2023. Lilac Haze is the project name for Bath-based songwriter Katrina Swift. Greatly influenced by bands of the ‘80s/’90s, Swift draws inspiration from The Cure, All About Eve, Eva Cassidy and Fleetwood Mac, combining atmospheric and ethereal textures with a sense of nostalgic romance.
Lilac Haze’s stunning debut double singles The Ghost That I Once Knew // Lilac Haze were produced by Calum Wotherspoon (Nightswimming) and mastered by Adam Ayan (Paul McCartney, Lana Del Ray, Carrie Underwood), with guitarist Sam Allan (Nightswimming) and drummer Torin Moore (Nightswimming) collaborating on the tracks to create the backdrop for Swift’s hypnotic vocals.
With a background performing across the U.S and Europe fronting ensembles and orchestras and classically trained with a high, gentle voice, Swift’s angelic, haunting vocals gently soar upon soft guitars, delicate strings and dramatic synths.
Speaking about the inspiration behind the singles, Swift explains, “In December 2021, I wrote Ghost after a period of self-reflection during a time when I felt unsure and lost in my new surroundings. It’s a reflection of the loss of innocence as we mature… a farewell to your old self. Lilac Haze however is a song written for anyone who has been affected by loved ones lost to Alzheimer’s and Dementia.”
It took no time at all for songwriters Hilary Tipps and Steve Obermiller to fall in love and start their lives together. But it was a decade of trying to create life, deal with death and build careers before they wrote their first songs together.
“Love (and Other Mysteries”) is a debut album that bursts open a dream deferred: tunes written long ago, newly developed duets, and their first three co - writes that promise great things for their future. It is a collection of songs with equal parts contemplation (Willow Tree, Heart, Rewind Repeat), wisdom (Mrs. Montgomery, These Hands, Jack), and simple fun (Thick as Thieves, Ferris Wheel, My Love Will). The album ends with a raucous version of Trouble in Mind, recorded in 2017 and added as a tribute to late friend and guitarist Joe Ward.
This is a songwriter’s record that defies genre: folky in its roots, dabbling in country, jazz and rock. Yet, it avoids being too many things. Trey Ware (drums), Aden Bubeck (bass), and Matt Tedder (guitar) give this album a distinct continuity. Their personalities can be felt weaving through Hilary and Steve’s well - crafted songs and offer a through line to the whole of the album.
Though you might call them Folk or Americana, Hilary Tipps and Steve Obermiller are not genre - specific songwriters. Just as they write about every aspect of life and living, they use every style of music to suit the song at hand.
LA-based, Boston-bred, singer-songwriter Alice Howe new single "Love Has No Rules," is out today March 24th. The song is about those unexpected things that happen when it comes to matters of the heart - you can't help who you fall for, and love definitely has no rules. "Love Has No Rules" is from Alice's forthcoming LP, Circumstance, out April 21st.
Recorded in two sessions at the legendary FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, Circumstance chronicles Alice's personal and musical evolution. The songs evoke both the classic singer-songwriters and the seminal music that once filled airwaves, roadhouses, and juke joints.
It’s a deep, personal journey across a soundscape dotted with blues, folk, country, soul, and rock, a personal, soulful nod to her influences and the music she loves. In spirit, it draws from admired singers – Alison Krauss or the 1970s Laurel Canyon circle — but its soul is pure Alice Howe.
Singer, songwriter and author Mary Lee Kortes has shared a video for her new song “Green Sand” which features Joe Jackson on backing vocals. “Green Sand is partly inspired by the story of Bonnie and Clyde,” writes Kortes, “by the envy and coveting of the riches and plenty of others so prominent in the Depression era—Beulah's era—but also by the more universal desire for what seems forever out of reach. Joe Jackson offered to guest on the record and this song gave the perfect opportunity for the brilliance of both his voice and piano playing.”
The song is the second single from her recently announced album Will Anybody Know That I Was Here: The Songs of Beulah Rowley. Recorded with the Grammy-winning producer Hal Willner, the project presents the story of the fictional dustbowl-era songwriter Beulah Rowley. The record will be released on April 22nd as a Record Store Day vinyl exclusive.
Kortes previously shared the track “Born A Happy Girl,” which premiered with American Blues Scene who writes that Kortes “...has brought her considerable talents to craft songs that sound like they came right out of the Depression Era.” “As a writer, you get in a zone. You get possessed by something. If you're lucky,” says Mary Lee Kortes.
Will Anybody Know That I Was Here: The Songs of Beulah Rowley, Kortes’s new stunning and immersive album, was born from one of those all-encompassing possessions, from a feeling she couldn’t shake, one she had to write through to fully understand. She knew she wanted to expand upon a typical album format to create a more cohesive work with a sense of character that could incorporate her love for writing fiction. “I went to sleep with all of this on my mind,” she says, “and I woke up in the morning with this woman in my head named Beulah Rowley, a depression-era singer-songwriter, from the Midwest like me, and I immediately started writing the song ‘Born a Happy Girl.’” Kortes would go on to create the biography of Beulah Rowley—and her complete songbook.
Following their more anarchic first single, the new single "Gorgeous" offers a compelling new wrinkle in Foyer Red's sound. Though composed of characteristically eccentric parts, it contains some the prettiest moments in the band's catalog to date, with an arrangement delicately balances the warmth of singer Elana Riordan's voice with the more discordant elements that bubble over wonderfully in the final third of the song.
The confidence and creativity with which the band explore an unfamiliar sonic landscape provides another engaging example of what makes Foyer Red so exciting.
Riordan expands on the track's background: "We wrote this song organically in the studio together one day. It was one of those songwriting experiences that blows your mind over and over and makes you feel incredibly lucky to have such well-matched collaborators. I recorded a voice memo of us playing (later renamed it “wow gorgeous jam”) and listened to this low quality voice memo on repeat for days, literally bubbling up in bliss. I wrote the lyrics about my partner and bandmate Marco, for whom I keep a list of 'Marco-isms', his ever endearing botched colloquialisms that I hope he will never correct." Yarn The Hours Away will be released on Carpark Records on May 19th.
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