(Partial Press Release) On May 25th, Snow Patrol will return with Wildness, their first album in seven years, which finds the band searching for clarity, connection, and meaning, while staying true to the melodic songwriting prowess that brought them to prominence. Wildness taps into something raw and primitive, and lead-singer and songwriter Gary Lightbody says of the album: “There are many types of wildness, but I think it can be distilled into two: the wildness of the modern age, all it’s confusion, illogic and alienation and a more ancient wildness. Something primal, alive and beautiful that speaks to our true connectivity, our passion, our love, our communion with nature and each other. This is the kind of wildness the album is centered around. The loss of it. Trying to reconnect with it. To remember it.” Watch the new album trailer for Snow Patrol’s Wildness here.
 
Pre-order your copy of Wildness from the Official Snow Patrol store HERE to be among the first to access tickets to see Snow Patrol live.

Nashville, TN (Press Release) — Independent country torchbearers Jason Boland & The Stragglers have announced their ninth studio album Hard Times Are Relative, releasing May 18th via Thirty Tigers. Together with his longtime band The Stragglers, Jason Boland has remained a true craftsman of genuine, no-frills country music for nearly two decades. In a genre that too often focuses on style over substance, Boland puts substance at the forefront with his intelligent, insightful lyricism that challenges listeners to think beyond the obvious. His unwavering aversion to artifice and audacious attitude is reminiscent of the genre's forbearers, while his deep, baritone delivery and the band's spirited live performances have earned them a fiercely loyal following. Hard Times Are Relative finds Jason Boland & The Stragglers once again expanding the boundaries of what country music can be, while staying true to its original purpose: storytelling in the purest form. 

Hard Times Are Relative is immediately gratifying country with a conscience and a shot of adrenaline. The theme running throughout much of the album focuses on our complicated relationship with the past and accepting the inevitability of change. Songs such as "Do You Remember When" and "Tattoo Of A Bruise" address the need to preserve our history, while "Predestined" questions how much we control the future. Hard Times Are Relative was recorded live to tape, a trademark of the band, and co-produced by The Stragglers, David Percefull and Adam Odor. ​

Jackson, Mississippi’s Young Valley offers points of view from songwriters Zach Lovett, Dylan Lovett and Spencer Thomas with a trading of ideas and styles from traditional country to southern-tinged rock ‘n' roll. Since the release of their debut album No Filter in 2014, the boys have toured 34 states over the span of a couple years sharing the stage with Shooter Jennings, Lucero, American Aquarium, Phosphorescent and Futurebirds.

The band recorded their sophomore self-titled album early last year at Dial Back Sound in Water Valley, MS and the 10-track effort is set to be released this spring. “Well-rehearsed, well-refined, raw” they told Find It In Fondren (a popular Jackson neighborhood magazine) calling it a record that “falls off the bone.”

They recently released one of the album's tracks, "Til I Cross Your Mind," a roots rocker about the demise of a relationship that's highlighted by the sextet's harmonies, acoustic guitar-work and firm backbeat.  Check it out above.
 
Young Valley's self-titled album will be available April 20th.
Click here to pre-order all formats.

March 9, 2018 – The International Songwriting Competition (ISC) has announced the finalists for the 2017 competition. Please click here to view the complete list.

Established in 2002, the International Songwriting Competition (ISC) is the world's largest and most prestigious songwriting competition and is open to all professional and amateur songwriters. Having received more than 16,000 entries from 130 countries, 344 songs have been selected as finalists in a wide variety of genres. Winners will be announced in April, 2018.

Winners will be selected by a panel of high-profile recording artists and music industry executives from Sony, Capitol, Sire, Elektra, Glassnote, Island, Razor & Tie, Concord Label Group, Warner Bros. Records, Alligator, Wind-Up, Interscope, New West, Black River Ent., Word, Syco, and many more. Click here for the list of judges.
​
ISC will award more than $150,000 in cash and prizes, including an overall Grand Prize consisting of $25,000 (US) cash, and more. A total of 71 winners will be selected in 23 categories of music. All entrants retain full rights to their songs.

Luke Winslow-King will release his sixth album Blue Mesa (pre-order link) on May 11 via Bloodshot Records. The album announcement comes with the launch of the album’s first single "Leghorn Women."
​
Blue Mesa was recorded in the Tuscan fortress village of Lari, Italy and features long-time collaborator and Italian blues guitar dynamo Roberto Luti, Chris Davis of King James and the Special Men, and Mike Lynch (Bob Seger, Larry McCray) on organ. For more information visitHERE.