EG Vines is a cunning roots rock craftsman. Angled towards rock, Vines finds the raw potential for incorporation in many of the genre’s subcategories. Throughout Family Business, his first full-length album as a solo artist, Vines uses elements of rock in many forms to craft his overarching sound. These range from Southern rock to progressive Americana and infectious pop-rock that recalls the early aughts, to gypsy-tinged psychedelia and beyond….
Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Sara Melson acknowledges that change is the only constant in life on the gorgeous and pensive “Same River,” the latest release from her forthcoming EP Wild & Precious Life (out Oct. 11).
The singer and actor, who’s appeared in The Wonder Years, Grey’s Anatomy, Frasier and more, says the dreamy song was inspired by the Greek philosopher Heraclitus and a day spent with her parents…
If we have to do a reprise of the late 60s and early 70s — complete with presidential impeachments, we might as well get the soundtrack, too. Caitlin Anne Webster’s got the kind of rich, clear singing voice that would have made every beatnik drop their espresso and every hippie drop their doobie — and make you drop your vape pen. “Powhatan River Blues” luxuriates in time, space, and musicality. It’s a simple finger-picking pattern that showcases Webster’s poise and insightful lyrics. Clocking in at five minutes, it’s a reminder that we deserve to spread out and take things slow as much as possible.
For the last eight years, queer country trailblazers Karen & the Sorrows have also been at the heart of a growing queer country community, running the Gay Ole Opry Festival and the Queer Country Quarterly, and creating space for people who love country music even if country music doesn’t always love them back.
With the Sorrows’ third album, Guaranteed Broken Heart, singer-songwriter Karen Pittelman has struck off in new directions. While many of the songs still center around the dark, country-rock twang that Pittelman loves, she also dove more deeply into both ‘90s country and string-band inspired sounds.
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Jeff Crosby // “Laramie” (Nov 15)
Born and raised in a sleepy mountain town in Northern Idaho, singer-songwriter Jeff Crosby creates critically acclaimed music that has landed him in the sometimes indefinable genres of folk, rock, and Americana. Writing about the rare beauty found in his travels and the unconventional stories of the people and places he has encountered along the way, he has that rare gift of sounding like he does not belong to any specific era. It’s this timelessness that has allowed him to spend the last decade sharing the stage with an array of performers including Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, Charley Crockett, Wide Spread Panic, American Aquarium, Nikki Lane and many more.
His songs present almost as pages ripped out of an intimately personal diary, capturing what it means to have loved, lost and kept on the move. There seems to be no shortage of inspiration as Crosby is one of the last few “troubadours” that truly lives the life he sings about. His music has been favorably compared to great singer-songwriters from Dylan to Van Zandt to Earle.
After dropping out of school at 17 to pursue touring full-time with a band on the west coast, he’s made his living by permanently staying on the road – night after night, show after show, from load-in until the last drink is poured.
Crosby’s new single “Laramie” (which features Ken Coomer on drums (Wilco/Uncle Tupelo/Todd Snider) is an insightful story and an honest, open expression of where Crosby has gone wrong while reminiscing on an old, fond memory. Bittersweet lyrics, world-weary vocal tones, and organic, timeless instrumentation make the song feel like a classic ready to add itself to the canon. The song was produced, engineered, and mixed by Geoff Piller at Electric Thunder Studios in Nashville, TN (Truth and Salvage Co., Tyler Bryant and The Shakedown) and mastered by Brian Lucey at Magic Garden Mastering in Los Angeles, CA (The Black Keys, Lucinda William’s, Ryan Bingham, The Shins, Ray Lamontagne).
For 5 years, home for Crosby was a little shoebox apartment off Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. Giving up coffee to pay rent and running around with “The Homeless and the Dreamers” (the title of a song he wrote paying homage to that time) he found a way to thrive despite the hardships and make poignant music while doing so. Through a chance encounter in the city, he met and befriended a music editor for the critically-acclaimed television show Sons of Anarchy and ended up with two songs featured on the program.
Now based in Nashville, Jeff continues to tour and share his stories with the ever-growing audience that he has collected for over a decade, offering up a sort of mirror so that it might better see itself. New single “Laramie” is just a taste of what’s to come, including a new LP scheduled for release in 2020. Stay tuned for more.
“Crosby’s songwriting has that perfect balance of folk/rock/country that feels like it defies genre in all the right ways. If you’re a fan of the Stapleton/Isbell movement in Americana and alt-country music, Crosby is definitely worth your time.” – Ear to the Ground
“He has that rare gift of sounding like he does not belong to any specific era.” – Vents Magazine
“Crosby’s material draws from the rare beauty found in his travels and the unconventional stories of the people and places he has encountered along the way, giving his work the feel of being like a page ripped out of an intimately personal diary of someone who has loved, lost and has relentlessly kept on the move. His work has been compared by some to the work of legendary and beloved singer/songwriters like Bob Dylan, Townes Van Zandt and Steve Earle.” – JOVM
“Almost too personal.” – The Boot
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Blending a Detroit born history in soul and a love of southern roots, Michelle Brooke is a dynamic and powerhouse performer, vocalist, and songwriter. Currently based in Tennessee, she’s been writing for her debut EP, recorded at Nashville’s beloved SputnikSound with Grammy award-winning producer Mitch Dane. Michelle attributes an engaging and captivating performance ability to her younger years spent studying music theatre and belting out Broadway tunes in school plays, summer camps, and her parents’ basement. She began writing poetry and songs as a teenager, as she explored the booming pop/punk music scene in Michigan. Michelle moved to Nashville in the fall of 2016 after studying vocal performance in New York City. She can be seen in multiple local bands, touring and collaborating with highly revered songwriter sand artists, and has been featured on some of Nashville’s most prestigious stages, such as the Cannery Ballroom and The Ryman. Her debut single “Fly” was widely received, and her debut EP “Let the Light in” is expected in early 2020.
“Her voice dazzles in the light of gospel and soul music, and while the production certainly crescendos to mirror her own journey out of a broken relationship, there is stunning vulnerability embedded in the lyrics.” – American Songwriter
“In the new video for Michelle Brooke’s smoking single “Storm,” all of Brooke’s roots are on display: her love of ‘90s country music, her untouchable vocals and her honest, queer storytelling.” – The Boot
“Storm” has all the elements of a modern masterpiece.” – LeFuturewave
“She has a huge and soulful voice and this is is a huge and soulful song.” – Americana UK
“It isn’t common for a new voice to land on the country scene with such a resounding thunderclap – but that’s exactly what Michelle Brooke did with her dramatic and touching new single ‘Storm’ ” – Country Queer