Nashville-based songwriter Phillip LaRue has shared his new single "Lighthouse," a sweeping track that embraces a sincere underlying message. “I wrote ‘Lighthouse’ with a dear friend of mine Chad Cates,” LaRue explains. “We were both reflecting on depression and how at times it can convince someone they’re nearly worthless. Which is an absolute lie. We wanted to write a song for those that are struggling with this fight or have struggled with it in the past.” The track is now streaming on PopMatters, who observes LaRue's new creative approach as "setting aside the usual folk-based sound for something more grandiose in the vein of Coldplay and Ed Sheeran."
 
Listen: Phillip Larue - "Lighthouse"
http://www.popmatters.com/post/phillip-larue-lighthouse-audio-premiere/
 
On November 13th, LaRue will release his new solo album, You, through Razor & Tie. The music video for his single "Memories" first debuted on Idolator, who remarked that the song is "completely weighted with heartfelt emotion, and the video takes that to new heights." 

(Press Release) During a recent stop in New York City this summer, Nashville rockers Colony House were enjoying a much deserved off day from their nationwide tour...until they decided to make a new video for their recently revamped version of "Waiting For My Time To Come," just because they could.  Premiering exclusively on Clash Music who called it "an intimate, fun glimpse into the band's inner workings," the video was made entirely with the smart phone app Phhhoto and pieced together from over 200 video clips by frontman Caleb Chapman.
 
WATCH: Colony House - "Waiting For My Time To Come" via Clash Music:
http://clashmusic.com/videos/premiere-colony-house-waiting-for-my-time-to-come
 
"This video is the product of a song we have always believed in, an off day in Brooklyn, an iPhone, and an amazing app called Phhhoto!" said Chapman.  "It was a very tedious process that took some serious time, but like any puzzle, was very satisfying to see come together in the end.  We hope it's as much fun to watch as it was to make."
 
Stream/embed from YouTube HERE.
 
Watch them perform the song live on CONAN HERE.
 
Catch them on tour now with fellow Tennesseans COIN or with Walk the Moon on their first European tour this November.
 
Colony House first captured attention with their lead single "Silhouettes" which became the #1 most played track on SiriusXM's Alt Nation for four months straight.  They released their debut full length album When I Was Younger last summer via Descendant Records hitting #3 on Billboard Heatseekers Chart and #7 on iTunes Alternative Rock Charts.  They've performed live Late Night with Seth Meyers, and VH1 "Big Morning Buzz".  They've also been featured on NPR Music, Wall Street Journal, Paste, Nylon, A.V. Club, People Magazine, Teen Vogue, Noisey, Relix,and Baeble among many others.

Nashville, TN (Press Release, October 22, 2015) -- Popular Country newcomer Alexandra Demetree's new acoustic music video, "Outta My Head," premiered October 22nd on The Boot.  Filmed at a vast, aged warehouse in Nashville's historic Germantown district, the video is stunning in its stark simplicity.  Demetree's emotionally-charged vocal and the song's high-impact lyrics take center stage, while abundant natural daylight, a sense of space and timelessness play supporting roles.  Producer/director Brian Harstine's (Dolly Parton, Ke$ha) minimalistic approach kept the camera focused on Demetree, three supporting musicians (Josh O'Keefe, Jason Roller and Jaran Sorenson), and a few quirky "abandoned" props
 
"It was a very straightforward concept," explains Alexandra.  "The entire focus was on showcasing the emotion and musical validity of the song in an organic way."  For Demetree, returning to the basics was an exciting challenge.  "To go back to square one and make an acoustic version of this dynamic, mid-tempo power ballad was just a fantastic experience." The single, produced by Bobby Huff (Reba, 3 Doors Down, Journey, Heart) and written by Mark and Cherie Oakley, is rising on the MusicRow CountryBreakout™ Chart, currentlysitting at # 60.  "Outta My Head" delves into the reminders left behind when a relationship ends:  the photos, the empty space beside the bed and more.  It's a tale that most listeners can relate to, and it follows the petite brunette's three previous successful Country radio releases, including the popular single/video duet of her own composition, "Lay It On Me," with The Bachelorette's Wes Hayden.  

Demetree wraps a four-day radio promotion tour of Oklahoma today; the tour will resume in a few weeks.  She continues to work on her upcoming EP.  Fans can learn more about Alexandra from recent features at The Daily Country, Music News San Francisco, Digital Rodeo and One Stop Country.

Watch the video here.

On September 25, Nova Scotia's award-winning acoustic crooner David Myles released his official US debut album So Far through Little Tiny Records.  Reminiscent of the late '50's folk/roots/swing era, So Far is a collection of David's songs over the years re-recorded and re-imagined in an acoustic stripped down format seamlessly combining the cool of Chet Baker with the ruckus of Chuck Berry. Earlier today, Myles released the first video from the album for single "When It Comes My Turn" exclusively on The Boot."
 
WATCH: David Myles - "When It Comes My Turn" via The Boot:
http://theboot.com/david-myles-when-it-comes-my-turn-music-video/
 
"On August 25th, we decided to throw a surprise party/concert for the residents of The Sagewood Continuing Care Community in Sackville, Nova Scotia.  What a blast!" said Myles.  "As a kid in Fredericton, I spent a lot of time in a seniors' home called Pine Grove.  My grandmother was a resident there.  She required a lot of care and my dad would go every day to feed her dinner.  More often than not we would join him for the visit.  I learned a lot about aging and my wonderful grandmother during these visits.  Making this video took me back to those visits.  We certainly had a great time making it."
 
The youngest of four brothers, Myles grew up in a musical household on the east coast of Canada.  Even though his parents were avid music lovers - the entire family played an instrument, working their way through the Royal Conservatory repertoire - they insisted that he seek higher education which landed him on the path to a political science degree.  When studying Chinese in China with plans to go to law school, he began writing songs with a $30 red and green plywood guitar and started deviating from his education.  He broke the news to his family that he'd be pursuing music full-time upon his return home and promised his disappointed father that he'd wear a suit to work every single day (hence David wears suits when he performs).
 
More than a decade later, Myles has a thriving career as a musician, hosts a CBC radio show called "The East Coast Music Hour," and tours the country winning many accolades and awards.  Of his many accomplishments, the most unexpected is his collaboration in 2013 with hip-hop artist Classified on the song "Inner Ninja,"an anti-bullying song featuring kids in the chorus.  It went on to become the best-selling rap single in the history of Canadian music, going quadruple platinum, and netted them a Juno for "Rap Recording of the Year."

On October 9th, Muscle Shoals legend Donnie Fritts released a new album, Oh My Goodness through the Florence, Alabama-based Single Lock Records (Steelism, St. Paul & The Broken Bones, Dylan LeBlanc). In celebration of the new release, Donnie Fritts and John Paul White will tour in select cities including Chicago, Philadelphia, and New York City. 
 
The album is the first to be produced by John Paul White, formerly of the Grammy-wining duo The Civil Wars, along with Ben Tanner of the Alabama Shakes. Oh My Goodness features an all-star cast of contributors including Brittany Howard of The Alabama Shakes, Jason Isbell, John Prine, Amanda Shires, The Secret Sisters, Spooner Oldham and many more. 
 
The album was released to great acclaim and was reviewed by Ann Powers of NPR Music and Fresh Air's Ken Tucker. Michael McCall of the Associated Press said, "Like an old friend who drops by every decade or so, it's great to hear such a one-of-a-kind artist offer up his particular brand of American country soul."

Photographer Jacob Blickenstaff recently featured Donnie Fritts in his acclaimed In Close Contact photo series featured at Mother Jones. Blickenstaff said "Over more than five decades, Donnie Fritts' behind-the-scenes contributions—as a songwriter, session musician, and bandmate—have become integrated into the very DNA of soul and country music."

Donnie Fritts is a Florence, Ala. native and one of many local musical luminaries. He’s a lauded songwriter, noted for his tracks “We Had It All” (recorded by scores of artists from Waylon Jennings and Dolly Parton to Ray Charles & The Rolling Stones) and “Breakfast in Bed” which he co-wrote with Eddie Hinton for Dusty Springfield’s album Dusty in Memphis. He played and travelled with Kris Kristofferson’s band for nearly 20 years, and has released three previous albums-- Prone to Lean, Everybody’s Got a Song, and the Dan Penn-produced One Foot in the Groove.

Tour Dates:
 
10/25- Old Town School of Folk Music - Chicago, IL
11/03- World Cafe - Philadelphia, PA
11/04- Joe’s Pub- New York, NY

ww.funkydonniefritts.com
www.facebook.com/donniefrittsmusic

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Press Release, Oct. 22, 2015) – GRAMMY Award-winning recording artist Kristian Bush performed throughout the Points Of Light Conference on Volunteering and Service this week (Oct. 19-20) in Houston, TX. Points of Light encourages millions of people each year to take action and change the world, and is the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteering and service. This year’s annual conference brought together civic leaders, government officials, and businesses in support of building stronger communities. 

Opening the conference, Bush sang “The Star-Spangled Banner,” joined by U.S. military veterans and the Mayor of Houston Annise Parker, and headlined that evening’s Welcome To Texas Celebration on the city’s Discovery Green. The following evening, he joined a star-studded cast for a 25th Anniversary Tribute concert honoring former President George H. W. Bush, who founded the Points of Light volunteer initiative in the 90’s. Bush opened the concert with “Walk Tall” – featuring a string arrangement composed specifically for the event by his brother, Brandon Bush – then joined fellow performers Yolanda Adams, The Midtown Men, Kenna, andDionne Warwick for a finale rendition of the latter’s hit “That’s What Friends Are For.”

About Points Of Light
Points of Light, the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service, mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world through affiliates in 250 cities and partnerships with thousands of nonprofits and corporations. Points of Light engages 4 million volunteers in 30 million hours of service each year, bringing the power of people where it’s needed most. For more information, visit www.pointsoflight.org.

(Press Release, Nashville, Tenn. – Oct. 21, 2015)  – Country artist Amber Hayes has been added to the 16-city Nothing But The Hits holiday tour. Performing alongside big names like Ronnie McDowell, Deborah Allen, Jeff Bates, Ken Mellons and others, Hayes is in her element. Coming off of her fourth Top 40 Country music single, “Running Out of Memories” and her newest release “Hero's Heart,” there's no doubt Hayes fits right in with the tour's lineup.

A 15-piece band will be accompanying the artists as they perform their hits and Christmas favorites. The show will also be in the traditional Country camp, satisfying listeners yearning for what promoter Danny Rasberry calls “real” Country music.

“There is a void and a need for 'real' Country music,” said Rasberry. “With this tour, we put together some of the most sensational voices in music. I know the fans will love what will be coming their way!”

Hayes and a hearty dose of Christmas spirit will be coming your way as the tour kicks off Nov. 28 in Stillwater, Okla. The tour will make its last stop in Newberry, S.C. on Dec. 19, hitting towns throughout Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and South Carolina on the way. To purchase tickets, call 601-649-2822 or visit www.NothingButTheHits.com.

Nashville, TN…October 21, 2015 (Press Release)…Nashville’s ALLISON VELTZ is joining 50 artists from across the country to compete in “A&E PROJECT STARTUP,” a crowdfunding initiative in partnership with RocketHub and Ovation TV, to gain support for her passion project, The White Room EP. In less than 48 hours, Veltz’s campaign has been fully funded, allowing her to take the next steps in the creative process.

Named for the music room in her East Nashville home where she will also record this intimate project, The White Room’s five songs are co-written by Veltz and include guest appearances by Carly Pearce and Josh Matheny. Additional funding for her RocketHub and Ovation TV campaign will allow her to tour in 2016 in support of the project’s release.
 
“I want to keep it simple, raw and real,” shared Veltz.  “I’m excited to be pulling back the curtain and letting people in on the process. The amazing thing about crowdfunding is my fans get to be part of everything now, instead of waiting until I’m on their radios.” 
 
The crowdfunding competition, which launched earlier this week and runs through November 18, shines a spotlight on our country’s brightest up-and-coming artistic minds, including musicians, novelists, photographers, inventors and more, and helps to jump-start their creative works. Three projects will be selected at the end of the campaign, based on creativity, buzzworthiness and potential for additional crowdfunding success. Winners will receive an award of $5,000 toward their artistic creations. In addition, the winners will receive exposure on Ovation TV, America’s only Arts & Culture network.

To contribute to Allison Veltz’s RocketHub campaign and learn more about her story andThe White Room EP, visit http://rkthb.co/61452, and follow Allison’s journey on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

A veteran band leader of the last twenty years, and a songwriter of considerable output,  Adam Busch now presents his first solo record “River Of Bricks”, after a career spent  at the helm of art rock ensembles The Curious Digit (Jagjaguwar), Manishevitz (Jagjaguwar) and Sonoi (Meno Mosso).

Busch began writing "River Of Bricks" in a domestic haze, having halted band activity in favor of spending time at home with his newborn son.  However, what was intended as a hiatus from music became a free pass for trying new ideas, with no external pressure to produce for an ensemble.  Many of the songs emerged during a period spent studying guitar with African music scholar Nathaniel Braddock, who began teaching him a variety of finger style forms by way of repertoire including African, American Primitive, and British Folk icons Bert Jansch and Davy Graham.

While “River Of Bricks” has a gentler tone then Busch’s previous releases, it’s a more exploratory effort, resonating deeply in imagery and modal expression, while playfully experimenting with minimal arrangements.  

Recording began in Chicago during the spring of 2013 at Benjamin Balcom’s Minbal studio and continued in Phoenix with longtime collaborator and Boxhead Ensemble founder Michael Krassner.  Busch called on former Manishevitz players to flush out his compositions, with percussion contributions from Joe Adamik (Califone, Iron and Wine) and guitar, bass and keyboards from Wil Hendricks (Boxhead Ensemble).  Fred Longberg-Holm and Justin Amolsch added cello and French horn, respectively on tracks “River of Bricks”, “Mother”, “End of an Arrow”, and “Bedouin Shaker”.

(NASHVILLE, TN – October 21, 2015) – Stoney Creek Records guitar chanteuse Lindsay Ell secured the #1 Most Added spot at U.S. Country Radio this week when new single “By The Way” debuted with 44 first week stations. The flirty, lemons-to-lemonade break-up tune earned adds in major markets from coast-to-coast in addition to being added to SiriusXM’s “The Highway.”

The light-hearted, up-tempo number puts an unconventional spin on the typical break-up song. Cleverly referring to ex-flames as “Mr. Cowboy Boots” and “Mr. Baseball Cap” Ell reminds them just how quickly her heart can rebound, even crediting them for helping her meet Mr. Right (i.e. “Mr. Pick-Up Truck”).

"Not every relationship needs to be sad and down in the dumps after it. You learn from it," Ell told Rolling Stone Country. "You learn what you want and what you don't want, and you move forward.”

Rolling Stone Country exclusively premiered the lyric video for “By The Way” today. Lindsay Ell - critically lauded for being the youngest female lead guitar player in Country music – also stars in the video where she performs guitar in her bedroom while getting ready for a night out on the town.  Watch it here.

The fashionable young star is honored as StyleBlueprint’s “FACE of the South” this month, joining the ranks of celebrities such as NBC TODAY’s Hoda Kotb, Nashville’s Lennon and Maisy and Shawna Thompson of CMA-winning duo Thompson Square.

Ell discusses songwriting inspiration, European tours, women she admires, her dinner party playlist and more with the Southern-based lifestyle blog. Read it here.

Lindsay Ell’s “By The Way” is available at all digital retailers now: http://geni.us/bytheway