New England singer-songwriter Kerri Powers upcoming album, Starseeds (due May 4th), is a ten-track collection that boasts eight original compositions and two covers - Blind Faith’s “Can’t Find My Way Home” and Gene Clark's “Polly" - which demonstrate Powers' ability to authentically express sentiments that resonate with common appeal. In advance of the album's release, Powers took the time to answer her Essential 8 and spoke about the story behind Starseeds, her "must-have" albums for the road, being a mother, and more.
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With any particular song, was there an “a-ha” moment when you knew the song was completed and perfect?  Well, I don’t think any song I write will ever be perfect. I think the closest to this feeling I’ve ever come is with two songs; “Mine the River,” and “Old Shirt.” Conceptually, they both came quickly and I didn’t think twice about whether or not they were finished. It just happened, really, an organic process from start to completion.

Is there a story behind your album’s title?
​I decided to title the album Starseeds. A starseed is an empath and a healer from another dimension. When songs are written from an honest and vulnerable place, they are vehicles that have the undeniable power to connect and heal us and their origin is often inexplicable, thus making songs starseeds.
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Where do you draw inspiration from when writing?
I guess I’ve always written about what I know. The everyday seemingly mundane life stuff. I try not to veer from that path because what is authentic is most inspiring - the good, the bad and the ugly. Truth can be inspiring whether we like it or not.

Southern troubadour Boo Ray has forged his singular path in South Georgia honky-tonks, Gulf Coast jukes, Nashville nightclubs & L.A. music joints. In 2016 he released his third album, Sea of Lights, a project forged by intense lyricism, gritty melodies, and Ray's smoky drawl that found him receiving critical acclaim from numerous outlets, including Rolling Stone and No Depression.

Always continuing to flex his musical creativity, Boo Ray began Boocoo Amigos, a duet project which unites the singer-songwriter with a wonderfully diverse group of artists on originals and covers that are out of the box and unique. In October 2017, he paired with Lilly Winwood for their take on the Kenny and Dolly classic, “Islands In The Stream” and followed that up with the boozy holiday-themed tune “All Strung Out Like Christmas Lights" featuring Elizabeth Cook. Then, on April 13th, Ray reunited with Lilly for the release of “Hard to Tell” a sultry, blues-infused tune the pair wrote as the A-side to “Islands In The Stream.” Boo Ray says that “After doing 'Islands In The Stream', we decided we wanted to write some yacht rock disco tune like Eddie Rabbit in the 70’s. I had 'Hard To Tell', which at the time was in this drunk electric waltz style a la Rabbit’s 'Every Which Way but Loose', in my back pocket for three years; Lily and I fixed it up and flipped the beat to give it the Muscle Shoals, R&B shuffle that it has today.”  

And that shuffle sounds sweet on the 7-inch vinyl release, a partnership Ray entered into with Athens-based company Kindercore Vinyl which was instrumental in the inception of Boocoo Amigos. “Up 'til this point, I had never released vinyl. I was studying record making for quite some time and knew that an API console and an Antex tape machine are made for each other like salami and cheese, but even though I had digital and halfway analog recordings, I knew I didn’t have quite the right process of recording, in the right chain of command of equipment, to do a correct press. Then, Kindercore suggested doing a 7-inch single and the pieces fell into place. Before we hit record, we knew we were engineering all the Boocoo Amigos specifically to be listened to on vinyl. It took me all these years and I finally got it right.”

With two pairings thus far, Ray says that more are definitely planned. “We have a bunch of them recorded. The next one, which I am super excited about, will be two original singles I wrote with Sean Brock.” Brock, a professional chef, is also a singer-songwriter who Ray deems, “a fully formed artist;" adding further, “That applies to southern artists like James Willis, Elizabeth Cook, Cormac McCarthy, Nick Cave, and so on…they’re on the same bill, meaning it’s the way they live, they’re identity is tied up in creative dialogue.” 

That dialogue is a part of Boo Ray too. "I've been living out of suitcase and a flattop guitar case solidly since 2009. I don’t offer that as a complaint...it's a choice." Ray's story begins in North Carolina, a place he stayed until "I got a car and got out of there" leading him to stops in California and Athens where he released his first Americana record, Bad News Travels Fast, in 2010. ​"I scrapped together nine recordings from different studios and sessions, slapped them on a CD and sent out 130. I got a call back from one deejay who showed me how to send them out to radio – in lumpy packages so other mail won’t sit on top of them.”  So being the creative force he is, Ray packaged eighty-five miniature MoonPies along with a CD, a one-sheet, and stickers and sent them out - all from a halfway house in Athens on the house computer and phone line. “You do the best you can and sometimes that comes out weird and sideways.”

Utah-based singer-songwriter Cheri Magill celebrates motherhood with her upcoming release, Tour Guide, due May 4th. Produced in Nashville by Cason Cooley (Ingrid Michaelson, Ben Rector), Tour Guide features Magill's heartfelt lyrics in original tracks that shape the universal feelings of motherhood, from quietly reflective to outrageously joyful.
 
Cheri explains, "I felt drawn to write about motherhood because it has stretched me more than any other thing I've been a part of in life. I don't write about it because I believe I'm a perfect mother. I write about it because many times I've struggled and grasped at straws. I've locked myself in a closet, so I could cry and eat chocolates. I've wondered if I was doing it all wrong. But I have also found my heart bursting and doubling in size as I've watched my children grow and teach me how to love unconditionally.  I believe that mothers need to feel they aren't alone, and they need to know someone else feels the same way they do. I want this album to be that healing and nurturing power for mothers."

Ahead of the album's release, Magill kindly took the time to answer her Essential 8 where she shares the story behind the album's title, and talks songwriting, Richard Marx, and more!

With any particular song, was there an “a-ha” moment when you knew the song was completed and perfect?
When I finished “Tour Guide” I knew it was all done because when I played it for my husband and parents they cried…and so did I.  I wanted it to evoke the emotions of a parent watching their child grow up before their eyes and I was happy when that emotion came across for others.
 
​Is there a story behind your album’s title?
I’ve always said my favorite thing about motherhood is that I get to show my children the world.  I love the concept of being their tour guide, so when I stared this album that title just felt right.
 
When/where do you do your best writing?
I wrote most of this album at the library and at my church.  I would hire a sitter once a week to give me time to write, but I had to leave the house to do so.  That meant the library and my church were the only quiet places I could go and since the church has a piano that worked well.

Inspired by a landscape of rich imagery that forces the writer to delve into the past, retrace his own steps, dance with the present, and wistfully search for their place in the passage of time, Vickers Vimy’s second album, Atlas of the Heart, is a rootsy, textured, and timeless collection from the Ireland-based outfit.

The ten-track project includes songs like “Budapest” which elegantly unwinds like a postcard, “When The Helicopter Came” a track that captures a quiet intensity and “Mermaid of Luna Park” which chronicles the world of fables and polaroids. Here, songwriter and guitarist Ed Drea, answers the band's Essential 8 and talks songwriting, Cohen, Crowded House, Calexico, and more.


Is there a story behind your album's title?
The album is titled 'Atlas of Hearts' and is inspired by the idea that inside each of us we are made up various maps and adventures. Imprints of life if you like.

Where do you draw inspiration from when writing?
Recording the album in Mayo beside the Wild Atlantic ocean inspired us to try and capture the drama of Clew Bay as the squall comes racing in across the islands. The landscape is so dramatic here that it literally pushes your pen around the page urging you to capture it in words and song.

Do you write about personal experiences?
The writing of the album was definitely inspired by travel and the imprints of family. "Budapest" is a song off the album that is about a train journey from Budapest to Italy and inspired by the music of Il Postino a beautiful Italian film. "Bonfire of Dantes" is a song off the album that has its roots in the classic Dante's Inferno. Keep your eye on the road is a song about friendship and loss and how people come and go in your life. So yeah the songs arrive from all ports, I guess

A dynamic new voice in country music, Kalie Shorr is rapidly gaining attention in Music City and beyond. In January of this year, the singer-songwriter released her new EP, Awake, a seven-song collection of guitar-led country that showcases Shorr’s contemporary writing and fresh melodies. Having recently toured with Sara Evans and Raelynn on CMT’s Next Women of Country Tour, the emerging artist is heading to NYC on April 28th for her first full-band headlining show at Opry City Stage. Ahead of the performance, Shorr kindly took the time to chat about Awake, her involvement in Song Suffragettes, and more!

2018 has been a very busy year for you beginning with the release of your EP, Awake, in January. Is there a special significance in calling the project Awake, which is also the title of the first track on the project?
“Awake” was one of the first songs I wrote for the project. My producer, Skip, and I were planning to write with a friend, but that person ended up getting sick and instead of canceling the write, we decided to write together - and it ended up being one of the most emotional writing days I ever had.
We had written together for other artists, but we had never written a Kalie Shorr song together and on that day, I felt like we really connected. I allowed myself to go to a vulnerable place and we got the song “Awake,” which is everything I wanted to say to that person, but forgot to, when we spoke on the phone.

I knew that I wanted to begin work on a new project and had a gut feeling that “Awake” was the sound that I been looking for, so I texted Skip and asked how he felt about cutting a master of the track and he was all for it. From there, the idea for the EP was born. This past summer was an amazingly creative period where I dialed into what I wanted to say, as well as my sound. It was like an awakening and I thought Awake would be the perfect title for the project.

Being that you write for yourself and others, were all the songs written in that period over the summer?
“Cool Kids”, “Backseat,” and “Candy” were but “Two Hands” and “Who What Where When Why” had longer journeys. “Two Hands” was written for Slingshot but didn’t make the cut. However, I had a special place in my heart for that one because it was the first love song I had ever written that felt true to the way I fall in love, so I decided to put it on Awake. “Who What When Where Why” was a song I wrote in LA for Selena Gomez; that didn’t end up working out, and in the end it was fine because I always loved the song and am so glad it made the EP. 

Travis Shallow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and producer who is best known for his prolific solo career and as a former member of alternative country band A Few Good Liars. In 2012, Shallow left the band and started writing and recording songs that would later be released as his first solo self-titled album. After extensive touring, Shallow, armed with an arsenal of new material, released his follow-up, The Great Divide, in 2017 which gives listeners a glimpse into what makes this NC Native tick via masterful instrumentation, and thoughtful lyrics that flow seamlessly between  Americana, Soul, Rock, and Country. Here, Shallow took the time to answer his Essential 8 where he spoke about Jerry Joseph, songwriting, the story behind The Great Divide, and more.

Did you have a musical mentor? If so, who was it and how did they influence you?
I met a songwriter named Jerry Joseph that’s based out of Portland, Oregon about 13 years ago while he was touring the east coast. He changed how I looked at songwriting & performing 100%. I think he turned into a mentor in my head wether he knew it or not - and at times it was from afar, but I learned a lot from Jerry. He’s taken me out on a few tours since we met and I’ve come to call him a friend. He also got sober about 8 years ago and he became a mentor for me on that regard when I stopped drinking a couple years back. So yea, he’s a mentor on multiple levels for me. We keep in touch, and I actually covered one of his songs on this latest album (which was a first for me). It’s a song called “World Will Turn”. I sent him the finished version before we released the album, and was just hoping he didn’t hate it. He sent me one of the nicest emails I could’ve hope for about our version of his song, I have that one saved. ;)

Formed in 2010 when Jennica Scott, who played trumpet, and Jeremy Burchard, who was in the drumline, met as members of the University of Texas Longhorn Marching Band, Moonlight Social spent the next six years honing their craft and touring consistently, playing hundreds of shows throughout more than a dozen states including festivals with FGL in Wisconsin and songwriter nights in Texas with Jack Ingram. Building a solid fanbase via a grassroots undertaking, the duo found much success in the Lone Star State, releasing two singles to Texas radio, including the award-winning, “Rub A Little Dirt On It” [SongDoor International Songwriting Contest for Best Country Song]. All the while Jennica and Jeremy were traveling to Nashville to focus on songwriting and in doing so, fell in love with Music City, eventually bidding Texas adios and making a permanent move to Nashville in 2016.

While many artists can make a solid living recording and touring in Texas alone, the duo realized Nashville was the place for them. Jennica notes, “For years we did the Texas route, and while we had a lot of success, we were often traveling to Nashville to co-write. We really liked the vibe there and found our [musical] style fit better there as well.” Jeremy adds, “We never wanted to be boxed in or as market specific as Texas. We write and approach things slightly different than they do - and we have a female vocal, which is rare in the context of the Red Dirt/Texas scene.”

Their brand of original, contemporary country blends genres, including pop and rock, which is not surprising as Burchard says he's “a child of the 90’s, but we draw from so many genres from the Eagles and classic rock to Sugarland, too.”  Those varied influences can be heard on the duo’s new EP, Make You Smile, which features five engaging and ear-grabbing tracks, all of which the twosome wrote or co-wrote with a variety of songwriters from Jenn Bostic to Byron Hill, noting “Choosing the songs [for the project] was a process and in the end we chose the songs that we not only loved, but also had a message that was important to us.”