Acoustic Guitarist of the Year Christie Lenée announced the release of her third single from her upcoming album, Coming Alive, due out November 18. She will also be touring in support of the album.
PopMatters Highlights Good Grace’s New Song
It’s been 16 years since Kim Ware and the Good Graces made a splash in the Atlanta indie scene. The songwriter has since blossomed into an intuitive folk artist, attuned to crafting atmospheric works that have carried her around the country and back to her Georgia and now North Carolina home. Ware recently moved back to her hometown of Kings Mountain, a small town where she first picked up her musical streak through drumming. Alongside the move, Ware teed up for the September release of the Good Graces’ sixth album, Ready, produced by Jerry Kee (Superchunk, Polvo).
The Boot Features Album by The Good Graces
Hearty road warriors The Good Graces— a shifting collective lead by Kim Ware — reconcile their past, present, and future on their upcoming album Ready, out Sept. 16 on Fort Lowell Records. The band’s new song, “Palisade Peaches,” channels grief and nostalgia into a smooth, ’90s college radio-style track.
Ware comes by the sound honestly. After making music with the high-caliber talent in the Atlanta indie rock scene for 16 years, decamped to her home state of North Carolina just as the pandemic hit.
Americana Highways Applauds Brittany Collins’s LP
The title of Brittany Collins’ first LP is more than just a smart quip. Based on the soul baring revelations spread across the nine tracks that make up Things I Tell My Therapist, Collins was definitely working through some personal issues here. But the result is surprisingly relatable collection of songs that many will keep coming back to.
“If there is a message I would want someone to take away from the album, it would be ‘Life is messy, you get hurt, but you get to choose the kind of person you want to be, you get to choose to grow past the hurt and be a source of light for people if you want. It’s never too late to choose to put yourself first,’” said Collins recently.
Peter Donovan’s Video Featured on Under the Radar
or the past few years, Peter Donovan has made his name as a storyteller and songwriter in the world of indie Americana, playing with Seattle’s All The Real Girls and his side project The Rose Petals. Earlier this year, he broke off with his debut solo record, This Better Be Good, forging together influences from Americana, indie rock, pop songwriters, and ‘70s singer/songwriters. Today, he’s followed the record with a new video for one of its highlights, “Goodbye for Now,” premiering with Under the Radar.
“Goodbye for Now” finds Donovan offering his heartbroken goodbyes to a relationship, recalling the longing plaintive side of early Wilco married with the open-hearted vocal delivery of Conor Oberst. Yet, the result is less aching and melancholic than Donovan’s influences. Instead, he delivers a warm golden ray of wistful indie Americana, bolstered by hints of honky tonk piano, winding guitar, a pounding bridge, and sweet lyricism. Donovan spins a classic pop heartbreak tale, knowing the relationship was doomed to fail, but desperately trying to hold on to hope that his goodbye might not last forever.
Judy Banks Joins Ditty TV for 5 Questions
Joining us for 5 Questions this week is Judy Blank, an easy-to-love, heart-on-her-sleeve songwriter from Utrecht in the Netherlands. Blank’s newly-released EP Saddies continues to create a buzz with the premiere of a colorful new music video for “The Magic,” a standout track from the EP produced by Roy van Rosendaal.
The video was directed by Edgar Berry and features a host of Mexican punk rockers that Judy met while traveling. “I know they look pretty tough, but they were literally the sweetest guys ever,” says Blank. “This experience was one for the books; I really hope to make more videos in other parts of the world in the future.”