I just recently discovered The White Buffalo while trolling Last.fm of fellow friends and neighbors and I must say it has been a pretty good find. I listened to a couple of tracks from his website and then immediately zipped over to eMusic and picked up his Hogtied Revisited album that was released in March of this year.
The video included below is for “Love Song #1″ which is from “The White Buffalo EP” which I believe is from 2005. 2005!?! Yes, this guy has slipped past this Americana/Alt-Country fiend…but no longer. This “White Buffalo” or Jake Smith as he is known to his friends is now on my radar. This song is also streaming on his website homepage along with 2 others – so get a listen on and then zip over for an album if you enjoy it as much as me.
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I don’t remember who sent me this “blast from the past” album from FatCat Recording artist Curtis Harvey. It might have been one of these You Crazy Dreamers bloggers, so I thought I would put a bit of finger to keyboard for it.
The album “Box of Stones” is a new release (Nov. 3rd here in North America, rest of planet still pending I think) and is choke full of acoustic country folk that is just a bit more country than folk. Almost like the album cover, I believe it speaks to another time of sephia toned whiskey joints and live roots music. The sound created seems both personal and full of energy (even if it is a bit down tempo at times) with Harvey’s blood and guts built right in. It is said that he recorded the entire album in his basement with few takes – just took it as it was. I think that is why it seems full of that energy – it is really him, not his recording mixed and reproduced 50 times till it’s a fraction of the sound it once was. A song like “Borrowed Time” has a straight forward structure but seems like was put together like it was happening all at once. It might be the collection of sounds in the background, but I don’t know – it just sounds that way. You can also have a songs like “Joking” or “Words” which are more in the vein of a back porch tribute to a previous time while at the same time being quite beautiful.
Another great track I found on the album is the sing a long “Oldertoo” which is a bit up tempo and brings a bit of kick to the step of this sad bastard. It brings in banjo and an easy sound…I think it could just be the leg slapping (or what is reminiscent of a lite version of “foot stompin’ honky tonk”) – that track is included below, see for yourself!
Sidenote and recommendation: I do know I have kind of beat the vibe of “Americana past” into the ground for this post. I have noticed with today’s indie music landscape where there is a country folk artist on every indie label’s roster (and maybe Harvey is FatCat’s resident guy with a guitar), Harvey brings a country worth considering. With that, Curtis Harvey’s album is definitely worth a few spins, especially while sitting back with a favourite beverage of choice.
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There is something about European Folk – it is soo good. This example by Signe Tollefsen provides the beauty of strings and Tollefsen’s almost classically trained voice with lazy banjo of a rocking chair on the prairies of Oklahoma. Definitely a song of the day here folks – this “half American in Amsterdam” provides you a gorgeous bit of European Americana. This could be the next big thing (as big as indie Americana singer songwriters can be…). Highly Recommended.
So “Song o’ The Day” is kinda my thing around here the last few weeks. Sorry folks for the sporadic posting, life simply getting in the way for all of us!!
Well being the Canadian around these parts I always seem to be pushing my brethren, but that is because I keep being impressed by the talent from the “Great White North”. Today’s selection is Matt Epp who I also might be attached to as he is from one of my hometowns of Winnipeg, Manitoba (he’s a “pegger”). While I tended to overlook what was in my own backyard while living there, I seem to see more talent now that it is no longer underneath my own nose. Matt Epp has a new album coming out called “Safe or Free” this November and the track “This Old House” is the lead off single. It is a bit of singer-songwriter with shavings of Alt-Country adorning his duet with Eliza Gilkyson. It is also a Ryan Adams’ style ballad including a harmonica feature at midway (love that damn harmonica). Hope you like as much as I do!
“Song o’ Day” is from the duo Wentworth Kersey’s “(O)” album and is the opening track “Adore”. It is a track that fits its title very well, it is a pining lament in true troubadour style.
The duo of Joe Kersey Sampson and Jeffrey Wentworth Stevens make up WK and bring an overall Americana tinged psych-folk to the table. The music is something that would make a great soundtrack for a Quentin Tarantino movie (when he decided to make a serious movie). While I would say the sound is basically “folk” it is soo much more – it has so many textures, auras of rolling Appalachian valleys and a modern day Mexi-Cali conquistadors – all with a slight bit of ambient flowing through it all (yes, you will get the odd floating DJ scratch in the distance).
Wentworth Kersey also have a bit of an interesting project in the release of their EPs. The track included is from thier 2nd EP “(O)” which was preceded by “O” and we will (hopefully) soon see the third installment “((O))”.
So not exactly new news, but just can’t stop listening to that Joe Pug EP that he is offering on his website – for free!! My song of the day is the magnificent “A Thousand Men”.
The song is timeless and not so simply great, it is pug alone strumming his guitar while singing the fact that “…every good idea, kills at least a thousand men…” – and despite what you may think, the good majority of us all are still in triple digits and are not getting out without a fight.
Enjoy the track – also hit up good friend Adrian over at “I Pick My Nose” Blog for a nice live version HERE.
I can’t believe it’s almost going to be a year since I was first introduced to Cory Chisel and The Wandering Sons via Miles Nielsen. Cory was on tour with Joshua James, as many of you know one of my favorite singers. Running late that night I missed Cory’s performance but had a chance encounter with Miles at the bar. Let’s just say that it’s one of those nights that goes down in the books. I don’t know if looking back now it was one of those nights that changes the direction of your life and you look back with joy or if you’d just wish you could have the last year back. In any case, the one positive thing is that at the end of it all I found some really great new artist and amazing music. Miles recently released his solo album, which by the way is solid, you must pick it up if you ever have a chance.
If you haven’t heard of Cory Chisel, prepares yourselves because you will. He’s scheduled to release an album this year (details below) but you can go to his website and download Brand new song “Born Again” available now here for a limited time. All you need to do is sign up your email in exchange.
“The songs on Death Won’t Send A Letter were recorded primarily at Blackbird Studios in Nashville, TN with Chisel’s backing vocalist/keyboard player Adriel Harris and “Little Jack” Lawrence (The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather) on initial tracking. Cory, Adriel and Little Jack were then joined by Jack’s longtime collaborator Patrick Keeler (The Raconteurs, The Greenhornes) on drums. With Patrick and Jack’s driving rhythm section the albums’ sound took on a grittier hue. And in Brendan Benson Cory found a writing and arranging partner that birthed the lead album track “Born Again.” Carl Broemel from My Morning Jacket also contributes on guitar.
The album, released on Black Seal/Sony BMG Music, follows up Cory Chisel & the Wandering Sons’ 2008 live EP Cabin Ghosts, which Chisel co-produced with Tony Berg.
Cory Chisel and The Wandering Sons’ Death Won’t Send A Letter will be released September 29th of 2009 in the US.”
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