Atlanta-based folk duo Heart Hunters are premiering their song “Angels” exclusively for readers of The Boot. Press play below to listen. Husband and wife Drew de Man and Brianna Blackbird wrote “Angels” — described by the pair as a “hymn for a broken country”…
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Glide Magazine Streams New Chuck Westmoreland Album
Portland, Or.-based Americana singer-songwriter Chuck Westmoreland has shared the first single & video from his forthcoming LP Long Winter Rodeo at No Depression, who praised it in saying that “fans of the late Jason Molina’s musical endeavors will find a familiarity in Westmoreland’s work…this is no-frills Americana of the highest order.”
The mind is the greatest escape. Chuck Westmoreland should know. Having already garnered acclaim from Noisey, the AV Club, & more with his eponymous 2016 debut, and having shared stages with the likes of Justin Townes Earle and Whitney Rose, Westmoreland is poised for a breakout with his forthcoming second album Long Winter Rodeo. Proud owner of a Portland, Ore., bar named The Red Fox, which he compares to the creepy watering holes of Twin Peaks, Westmoreland weaves his story songs from years of regulars shuffling through his doors, his characters drawing from a deep, personal well, while also pulling bits and pieces from his relationship with bar patrons with all the understanding of an old friend.
“He knows that there’s nowhere to go when you’re gone / There ain’t no direction,” Westmoreland sings with desolate beauty on Long Winter Rodeo’s title cut. Inspired by the real-life Tygh Ridge Rodeo Grounds (featured prominently in Westmoreland’s “Sharp Rocks” video), the sparse track unveils a simple love story. “A guy falls for this woman,” he says, “but she’s already with somebody else.” In an act of serendipity, the two finally end up together. Ultimately, it’s a hopeful tale, though one laced with an inescapable sadness. The song’s guitars ebb and flow beneath Westmoreland’s vocals, walking the line of solemnity and jubilee. “In the morning, you can see the outline of the rodeo, but it’s shrouded in mist—a lonely, desperate looking thing,” he says, detailing the colossal presence of the song’s Tygh Ridge backdrop. “When you drive by it after you’re done fishing, the fog is all burned off, and it turns into the most beautiful place you’ve ever seen. Every single mountain in Oregon is visible standing there in the arena.”
Americana UK Streams New Album From Charlie Overbey
The deep and growling Charlie Overbey has LA written all over him, and his new album ‘Broken Arrow’ takes his mixture of music honed through decades on the country and punk rock scenes and gives it a modern day Outlaw twist. There may even be a subtle nod to Neil Young. The album features a number of great guests including the wonderful Miranda Lee Richards on first track ‘Slip Away’ and the awesome Mastersons on the chippy and bouncy ‘Outlaws’. Americana-UK is more than proud to be able to offer the first listen opportunity for ‘Broken Arrow’– it’s out everywhere on the 20th, but you’ll hear it here first today.
No Depression Features New Track From Chuck Westmoreland
“With each of these songs I was hoping to create a little world that I could crawl into. Those are the kinds of songs I really love and obsess over.”
Chuck Westmoreland has announced the release of his sophomore LP Long Winter Rodeo, a collection of country-tinged character sketches displaying a songwriting prowess that recalls the introspective storytelling of Taylor Goldsmith and the brutal honesty of John Moreland.
With plenty of ebb and flow between sparse acoustic instrumentation and driving electric guitars, there is a majestic grandeur permeating Long Winter Rodeo which is led by a strong songwriting foundation, especially on tracks such as the album’s searing bookend, “Slaughtered.” “I’m ready to go,” Westmoreland sings, “and I’m ready for salvation.” Armed with only a guitar, his voice cuts to the bone, conjuring a romantic tale inspired by his grandparents, who lived on the Texas-Louisiana state line. It’s a story about a hired hand working the land for an older couple, whose daughter happens to be away at college. He’s 19, young and rugged. Not only does he grow fond of his employers but of the many photos of their daughter along the walls. “It’s in a very genuine way,” Westmoreland clarifies. “He doesn’t meet her for years. Time goes by, and her parents get sick. She finally comes back for her dad’s funeral, and he ends up holding her hand and being with her in her time of mourning.”
PopMatters Premieres New Single From Leslie Tom
With her new single, Leslie Tom poses the question: “Are You Ready For Some Hanky Panky?” The artist’s frisky play on words is actually in tribute to Hank Williams, taking listeners straight back to a 1950s honky-tonk with its classic country sound. Featuring jazz-infused electric guitar riffs and old-school pedal steel licks, Tom exchanges verses with Dean Miller as they dish the dirt on Williams’ life and times. The “hanky panky” under the spotlight comes in at the chorus, where Tom and Miller ask their audience the question in an energetic ode to the country legend.
Glide Magazine Reviews Great Peacock’s New LP
There are times where a band’s name and album cover provide little or no indication of what to expect. And when said references offer an image that’s the exact opposite of the music that accompanies those initial impressions, it may dissuade any initial encounter. The fact is, Great Peacock’s handle and the peacock covered skull head that adorns the cover of the band’s new album Gran Pavo Real offer no real reason to give any further thought to the music that may reside within…