Award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter Cara Leigh released her sixth EP, Home, on March 2, 2018.  The five-track collection features well-crafted songs led by Leigh's soothing vocals, atmospheric melodies, and emotionally-driven lyrics that captivate. Recently, Leigh took the time to answer her Essential 8 and discuss the EP, songwriting, baseball, playing the U.S., and more

Did you have a musical mentor? If so, who was it and how did they influence you?
I have not had a music mentor. I had a vocal coach for a couple years, and have tried to improve my writing by working with a variety of artists/producers.
 
With “Home”, what was the “a-ha” moment when you knew the song was completed and perfect?
After the last re-write of ‘Home’, I was playing it live for my partner. He suggested the last line in the chorus “life syncs with a metronome” to “life sings with a metronome”. It was exciting; I felt the song was complete.

What’s the story behind your album’s title?
Over the last few years, I’ve been releasing material that is more alternative/rock and also writing in the EDM world. My “Home” EP is a handful of songs that are more representative of my folk/indie roots, which I felt was like returning home.  

Why did you choose to anchor the album with the songs you did?
I packaged the EP with these 5 tracks for a couple of reasons. They all have a folk/indie feel, and each track is part of a spectrum from cheery/upbeat to somber. I wanted to incorporate a feel that wasn’t all the same, and represented the shifts in life since the tracks were written to process my own ups and downs.

Where do you draw inspiration from when writing?  
Reading, other artists’ work, being outside, my observations and emotions
 
When/where do you do your best writing?
Right now, I do most of my writing in my home studio. I find if I keep at it regularly, I eventually write something I like or feel I can build upon. It needs to not feel forced, and I need to be in a headspace where I can remain open to ideas floating in. 

A convergence of sound and space, experimental folk collective We Are The West are dedicated song-stylists who have developed a uniquely immersive approach to performance, playing both concert halls and improvised venues, including their preeminent underground parking garage concert series.

On March 30, 2018, We Are The West will release their first full-length album, The Golden Shore, a lush, intricate, and moving eleven-track collection. Ahead of its release, John Kibler and Brett Hool kindly too the time to talk in depth about the album, 'The Underground Series,' The Hollywood Bowl, and more.

Did you have a musical mentor?  If so, who was it and how did they influence you?
Brett:  There’ve been countless mentors, coaches, heroes, and teachers along the way, I think for both of us.  I studied mostly literature and John studied classical music.  But I’d say personally that in terms of performance and expression, one of the biggest influences on me was my grandmother Constanza.  She was a ballerina and choreographer in Mexico, and forged a very unique career throughout the 50s, 60s, and 70s, all over Latin America.  But the experiences she would talk to me most about were the spiritual moments, when her dancing would transcend, like a particular performance in a cathedral that didn’t used to let women in, and performing in India for Indira Gandhi, improvising with local musicians.  When she was getting late in her life, I remember my brother wheeling her into one of my first gigs, at this fairly grungy dive bar we used to play.  Later when she was in hospice and I brought my latest recording and some earphones for her, her hands and feet started dancing in the wheelchair, and she told me she was choreographing something, telling me how to position myself on stage.

Is there a story behind your album’s title?
Brett:  ‘The Golden Shore’ arrived within the title song.  It’s one of our oldest tunes, but the original chorus and title weren’t quite working.  The album starts out in the dark a bit, floating on the sea, and so does the beginning of this song.  When the chorus arrives it’s like the sunrise, washing out the consuming thoughts and worries.  A little light, a change in perspective, and suddenly you see you’re surrounded by beauty, that life is a gift.  You know, all the good stuff.  I think it was tied to the painting we’ve used as the album cover, which appeared to us at just the right time.  We live in LA, and have been touring up to the Bay Area quite a bit over the years.  A while back we played a last minute gig at this DIY art center warehouse junk shop kind of place, that doesn’t even exist anymore.  Before we played John and I walked around, taking in all the strange artifacts that littered the place: a full miniature version of Coney Island, an intricate collection of soap carvings by an inmate at San Quentin, a bunch of random stuff.  This one painting caught both our eyes but we didn’t say anything to each other about it.  At the end of the night the owner was apologizing for not being able to pay us much.  We both asked, “What about that painting?  How much is that?”  He just told us it was ours.  That night we were hanging at my buddy’s place where we were crashing, and we had the big painting up while we listened to music.  We were watching the painting like it was a TV.  “Now, that’s a record cover!” we agreed.  We found out later it’s by Marcus Uzilevsky, so we contacted his family who gave us their blessing to use it.  Once this album started coming together, ‘The Golden Shore’ seemed to tie it all together.

Why did you choose to anchor the album with the songs you did?
John: It’s funny how these songs came to be on the record.  We’ve always been more aware of space and room sounds than gear and recording techniques.  A friend and fellow bassist, Kaveh Rastegar, suggested a recording engineer named Husky Höskulds, who worked out of an old warehouse in Downtown LA.  We approached Husky with the idea to record 3-5 songs over the course of a few days.  Our intention was always to record the trio (bass, drums, guitar/ voice) live, so we spent a lot of energy in the days and weeks leading up to the session rehearsing and ironing out the details.  When we got into the studio we found ourselves having recorded 5 songs within the first two days, so we decided to continue with other songs and in the end we ended up with 11 songs in total.  Because of this I think the record is a great combination of patient and impulsive musical moments.

Originally from upstate New York, but now calling Nashville home, Patrick Darrah was an auto body technician who listened to the voices of country music greats (Charlie Daniels, Marshall Tucker, George Strait) as he worked. It was those same voices that motivated Patrick to put down the tools and pick up his guitar. Eventually, he switched gears, earned a degree in Music Production and Audio Engineering and devoted his concentration to writing, recording and performing.
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A downtown Broadway entertainer who has performed at some of Nashville’s most notable honky tonks and nightclubs (Honky Tonk Central/The Stage/Tin Roof/Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge), Darrah recently released his new album, NORTHERN TRUTH which reveals honest recollections, longing desires, painful regret, and a hope to love again. Here, Darrah answers his Essential 8 and talks about the album, his move to Music City, and much more.

Is there a story behind your album’s title?
I really wanted to pay homage to my hometown of Bloomingdale, NY.  NORTHERN TRUTH has a two-fold meaning; it’s dedicated to my family, friends, neighbors and the community that built me and has supported me in this endeavor. I also titled the CD NORTHERN TRUTH because I think it reveals that country music is everywhere.  This country music just happens to come from a country singer born and raised in New York!  

Why did you choose to anchor the album with the songs you did?
Well, to be painfully honest, the album is anchored with break-up and heartache songs because that’s right were I was at when I wrote and recorded the project.  We shook it up a little with the track “Colorado” which is an upbeat, raw, rockin’ tune that really makes the listener stop and take notice. The final track, “Dry County,” just kind of sums up NORTHERN TRUTH.  

What’s the biggest sacrifice that you’ve made in your music career and what have been some of your hurdles?
​I left a more comfortable lifestyle (money, house, etc.) to chase my dream. I had an almost guaranteed future that I left behind to come down to Nashville. You sacrifice big things for a music career with the hope that it will all come back three-fold. I think one of the biggest hurdles was to finish up the recording of the new album (NORTHERN TRUTH).  A lot of unexpected, unplanned obstacles were thrown our way and it took a lot of time to put it together. This career “moves” you to make sacrifices and jump hurdles; you just have to be in it for the game and I’ve got the passion and drive for this game.  …and… I’m proud to say NORTHERN TRUTH is done!

You recently moved from upstate NY to Nashville, how has the transition been?
There actually wasn’t too much of a transition moving from upstate NY to Nashville. When folks think of New York or New England, I guess they don’t think we have “country” settings or enjoy “country living.” But, where I come from, it’s small town, small time, simple living! I’ve always described my hometown (Bloomingdale) as a small southern town that got picked up and dropped in upstate New York!  

Based out of the Bay-area, husband and wife duo Flood County - Stewart Peck and Katie Meier-Peck - write sparse, atmospheric songs with insightful lyrics about love, loss, and hope. Their debut studio album, We’ll Be Fine, mines those themes as it blends together classic country, western swing, and traditional southern folk throughout its ten tracks. Here, Stewart Peck answers his Essential and talks the story behind We'll Be Fine, Raymond Carver, Dave Rawlings, the Hotel Utah, and more.



Is there a story behind your album’s title?
 I wrote a song called “We’ll Be Fine” a couple of years ago about the ups and downs of a relationship. It lays out all the struggles and grievances that you normally feel in those situations, but ultimately says, “these things will work themselves out. It’ll be alright.” The point being that as long as you put in the work, and are able to forgive, things will be fine.
 
When it came to the album we realized that, emotionally, it’s all pretty heavy stuff on there. But we kept coming back to those themes of “We’ll Be Fine.” Just keep moving forward, there’s always hope. So we named the album after the song.
 
Where do you draw inspiration from when writing?
 I always come back to the author Raymond Carver, his stories read like country music to me. He was so good at capturing that feeling of things not turning out like how you thought they would. I find that sentiment common to a lot of country music I like, too.
 
He wrote this great line, “dreams are what you wake up from.” It’s such a powerful statement and, I think, something a lot of people can relate to. That’s what I’m chasing.
 
Do you write about personal experience, the experience of others, stories or a combination?
It’s a mashup of everything. Sometimes it all me. Sometimes it’s a feeling or a thought that’s not completely true to myself, but rather something I felt in a moment of frustration or despair. Sometimes it’s something I see in a friend or a stranger.

In 2016, after eight years with JJ Grey's band MOFRO, Anthony Farrell (vocals, keyboards) and Andrew Trube (vocals, guitar) departed, directing their energies full-time on writing, recording, and touring as the Greyhounds with drummer Ed Miles. With two albums under their belt, the Greyhounds will release their new record, Cheyenne Valley Drive, on April 6th. Recorded at Sam Phillips Studios, the all original project is a bluesy, groove-filled nine-track collection centered around love and unity. In advance of its release, Trube kindly took the time to chat about the album, their organic recording process, songwriting, and more.

The new album 'Cheyenne Valley Drive' was recorded at Sam Phillips Recording Studio. Was this the first time you had the opportunity to record there?
We’ve been going to Sun Studios for years. In 2016, we recorded the "Sun Studio Sessions" there and met engineer Matt Ross-Spang shortly thereafter. He eventually moved his operation to the refurbished Sam Phillips Recording studio and kept bugging us to come record there. So finally, after two years, we made it happen.
 
The recording process for the entire album took three days, which is pretty short. Did things come together pretty quickly?
Making records in that amount of time was how we did it when we first started. It’s also the structure of that studio where you come in ready to commit, knock it out, and then move on - which is what we wanted to do. With the help of our friends like Will Sexton and Amy LaVere, we recorded it all analog, so there was no computer to look at or things to go over. We left everything raw and real, and honestly, it's those scars and blemishes that you can hear on a record, that make it. It was a great experience.

Anthony and yourself have been writing together for seventeen years, so there must have been a large selection of material to choose from.
We have been writing and playing together for almost twenty years and over that time there is so much that we have written that I feel like we are just starting to scratch the surface of our catalog. We went through a bunch of tunes and tried to figure out what we could do that would resonate live on tape as we recorded it. We pulled from songs that were written within a few months and some that we had in the ammunition pile that were fifteen years old. We always go in with more songs than we need, and for this record, we started out with thirteen songs, giving a couple got the ax in the end until we had the nine that eventually landed on the record. 

Do the two of you share songwriting duties? How does your process work?
Basically, we write everything together. It might start off with one person writing something, but we work on lyrics and song structure together. Anthony’s always been the yin to my yang. We were born on a completely polar opposite calendar [zodiac], but we balance each other out and I think that’s the reason we’ve not only been able to play together for so many years, but have fun doing it. And you have to have fun because that makes all the other stuff, like the long drives and headaches, worth it.

With four releases under their belt, Massachusetts-based quintet, Parsonsfield -Antonio Alcorn, Chris Freeman, Harrison "Whale" Goodale, Erik Hischmann, and Max Shakun - has garnered attention and critical praise from outlets such as the New York Times, American Songwriter and Folk Alley, establishing them as a musical force whose blend of bluegrass, folk, and more is nothing short of dynamic, innovative - and infectious.

On March 9th, the band will release their new EP, WE, a five-song collection that is highlighted by lyrical introspection, deft musicianship, tight harmonies, and memorable melodies. Ahead of its release, Chris Freeman took the time to chat about the EP and its dual nature, share the stories behind the songs, and more.

Releasing on March 9th, WE is your fourth release. Did you approach anything differently this time around?
We always do things a little differently, but this was the first time we had a chance to dive into a record at home before going into the studio.  We worked on demos and dissected the songs because we wanted to enter the recording process more informed and with a better understanding of the songs.

Another thing we did differently this time was that we recorded in a real studio. We previously recorded in an old farmhouse in Maine and an abandoned ax factory in Connecticut, but this time we headed to Dimension Sound in Boston to work with our producer, Dan Cardinal, who helped us maintain the vibe we had found in our little home studio.
 
Did you find working with him to be collaborative?
Definitely. He’s a great producer who made us feel confident, but he’s also an amazing engineer who had all of these toys and tricks to get the sound just the way we wanted. He used some intricate techniques, like deep compression on the drums, that are beyond my capacity to understand but made everything come out in such a wonderful way. It was an interesting and complex recording process, but in the end, we were able to find what we were hoping to find in the demos and maintain the integrity of where the sound came.

Where does the title of the EP originate from?
WE is almost a bipolar record in the sense that it’s called WE  but it’s not about a group of people - it's about the voices in our heads. Highs and lows happen for everyone, but with what we do it can be quite heightened. We have those voices that tell us we are superstars one minute and others that tell us we’re wasting our lives away in a van. Over the past six years of doing this, we’ve ridden those waves and experienced a lot of self-doubt, loss of confidence, and the feeling of not knowing what comes next in life. This whole EP centers around those extreme times when you feel like can’t get out of bed and the days when you feel like you can’t get in bed. 

​There are four originals and one surprising cover on WE. Were the originals written since the previous album [2016’s Blooming Through the Black]?
It’s a combo of old and new. ​For example, we wrote “Take Me Back” before the last record came out and have been playing it live for years where “Go Find Yourself” is one we played live for the first time on this tour. Antonio was a big force on this record. He started writing a lot of songs, but we were all involved in fleshing them out and making sure that every one was focused and as emotionally real as it can be.

​Tennessee Jed's fifth album, Pimpgrass (March 1) features a blend of funk, soul, country, and traditional bluegrass that packs solid musical punch. A perfect stew of opposing genres, the album highlights honest lyrics, Jed's silky tenor, and dynamic melodies blended and basted into stories that are authentic, funny, and touching. Here, Jed answers his Essential 8 and talks the story behind his album's title, favorite food finds on the road, a bucket list item, and more!

What’s the story behind your album’s title? 
My buddy, Al Al “Sweet Nasty” Ingram, coined the term, “Soul-Country Pimpgrass” to describe my music a few years back. I told him I was going to use it. Then I made up the story of a dream where I try to convince a record store clerk there should be section in the record store for “Soul-Country Pimpgrass.” Preposterous! But by the end, he, and everyone else in the record store become converts. I turned it into a song, which became the title track for the new album, simplified and shortened to “Pimpgrass.” And now there’s an official music video to go with the song.

When/where do you do your best writing?
I find myself coming up with ideas while I drive with the radio off. Hooks, melodies, and concepts come through fairly uncluttered when I’ve been on the road for a few hours. I used to try and write them down or record them while driving, but I make myself pull over these days. Which happens frequently, in seemingly random, often beautiful places.

Do you write about personal experience, the experience of others, observations, made-up stories, something else or a combination?
I don’t stick to any one approach, and I often blend them, which can make for some awkward explanations for people that know me. Sometimes, I will be writing from a first-person perspective and it will be at least partially biographical. And then, in order to make the story work, or in order to emphasize a different point, I will add something or change something. Sometimes, I’m just making the story up as I go. Some songs are definitely straight up personal experience. And sometimes, I will leave things a bit vague intentionally, to leave room for listener interpretation. I want folks to take away something of their own from the lyric.

What’s your favorite food on the road?
I love to sample the local stuff. Which isn’t always good for the waistline. For example, I just had some great barbecue from a spot in Kansas City while I was there for Folk Alliance International Conference. Had to be done. They were running a special that consisted of a pulled pork sandwich with ham on top. How am I supposed to resist pig on top of more pig? My favorite discovery ever, though, was the deep fried boudin ball of southern Louisiana. 

California-native Charlie Overbey will release Broken Arrow, a collection of introspective and honest alt-country tunes helmed by Ted Hutt and featuring guest appearances from The Mastersons, Miranda Lee Richards, and Eddie Spaghetti, on April 20th. From the reverb-drenched ‘70s-channeling opener “Slip Away” to “The Ballad of Eddie Spaghetti," and the rootsy "Outlaws," Overbey approaches life's darkness with determination, appreciation, and optimism. Ahead of the record's release, Overbey answered his Essential 8 and spoke about gratitude, Broken Arrow, and The Fillmore, and shared a special gift from a fan.

Is there a story behind your album’s title?
I named the band "The Broken Arrows" as a nod to the Native American symbol for Friendship. I named the album Broken Arrow because at times we are all broken in some way. Broadly speaking here: we are all headed somewhere unknown, and right now our great nation seems to be as fractured as ever. It felt a perfect title for the times and a lot of the songs from this album were written in some of my most vulnerable/"broken" moments. 

What’s your favorite food on the road? 
I love a good burrito from Flying J Truck Stop...and there's nothing like some good ol' Texas BBQ! Brisket country.

What are your “must have” albums for the road?
Jackson Brown's Runnin On Empty, The Rolling Stones Exile On Main Street and David Allan Coe's Greatest Hits. 

Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Brittany Jean is a singer-songwriter whose interest in music started at a very young age. She began writing songs when she was sixteen and stepped into a recording studio for the first time in October 2012. She has since released three albums. Whispered Stories, Leavin' Home, and her latest, Wander With Me.
Released on January 18, 2018, the personal and heartfelt collection focuses on the people you take with you and the people who take you with them as you step out on the road. Recently, Brittany Jean graciously took the time to answer her Essential 8 and discuss her album's title, inspiration, John Denver, and more!

Is there a story behind your album’s title?
My new album is called Wander With Me, and it is titled after the first song on the record. Both the song and the album are dedicated to the fans who have been wandering with me for the past few years, but the song is also an invitation to whoever is listening to wander with me, too. It’s a “thank you” as well as a first “hello”, and it’s a “remember when” as well as a “what’s next?”.

I actually have a brand new music video for the title song—check it out!
https://youtu.be/ID_RPPBeBEI
 
Why did you choose to anchor the album with the songs you did?
Song placement takes a lot of thought. Careful thought. Every song on an album is set in its place for a reason, and like pillars, you need the strength of each song to support the next. When puzzling over what should go where, you have to take in the full picture. What does your album look like as a whole? Is there a theme or a common thread that connects some or all of the songs together? Do some of the pieces have a natural place before you even begin? And then it takes experimentation. With time and soft eyes, the songs—including the anchor songs—begin to sort of fall into place like a Boggle board. Just a little less haphazard.
 
Where do you draw inspiration from when writing?
Inspiration and ideas can come from anywhere—and usually when you’re not looking for it. It could be a conversation. It could be a happen-by-chance meeting. It could be a friend… a memory… an experience… a place… a road trip… a book…. I never know where my next song idea might come from.
However, I enjoy writing songs about other people most of all. While I’ve certainly written about personal struggles and stories, I love capturing the beauty of someone else’s story—especially when that someone might not even see their own beauty yet.