Mark Mandeville & Raianne Richards Road May Rise Nobody’s Favorite
Followers of Gillian Welch & David Rawlings or Jason & Pharis Romero would do well to check out this Massachusetts duo, if they are still haven’t come to your attention. Loosely filed under ‘acoustic folky country’, their third studio album is a delightful collection of mainly original songs, recorded in Signature Sounds Studio by owner/producer Mark Thayer.
It’s a tonic for the times that are in it, although it was written and recorded pre-pandemic. Songs like There Will Come A Day and Road May Rise are imbued with hope for better times ahead.
Steeped in references to nature, the environment and dilemmas of modern life, their beautifully harmonised singing is soothing to the soul, despite the sometimes troubling subject matter. Mark plays guitars, harmonica and mandolin and takes most of the lead vocals, while Raianne plays ukulele, bass, whistle and clarinet and backing vocals. She sings lead on her love song Honey Bee, with uncluttered accompaniment of mandolin, guitar and bass. Mark returns the compliment on Hand I’ll Hold. Creating and performing music together for over ten years, their harmonies are intuitive and exquisite.
On this album they are joined by Peter Hart on pedal steel and dobro. His sensitive playing adds to the country feel of songs like Little By Little and Don’t Let Me Come Home A Stranger (the one cover song here, written by Robin Williams and previously recorded by Mary Black). The other guest is Doug Williamson, who contributes on various stringed instruments and most notably on piano on the title track. “When we are lost sometimes, often a road may rise ... along we follow.”
Review by Eilís Boland
Justin Farren Pretty Free Self Release
If you’re gonna do it, then you may as well do it right. This could be the mantra that was repeated throughout the creation and birth of this DIY project. Justin Farren is a new age free spirit who built his own home, works as a handyman and has released three prior albums since his debut surfaced back in 2004. It’s been seven years since the last release and these eleven tracks have been fermenting over this time, coming to full realisation this year.
The album was written, performed, recorded, produced and mixed at Farren’s home, with the artwork created by his wife, Kerry, from construction debris. She also contributes backing vocals on two tracks and also making an appearance is their daughter, Amelia, who brings her energy to the track, There’s No Such Thing As a Bad Day, a clever song that highlights the lyrical dexterity that Farren delivers. He is a very insightful writer and his ability to capture everyday small events, while turning them into life perspectives, is the sign of a talented and wise observer on the human condition. Whether writing from personal experience or penning character songs, his ability to turn a phrase brings these songs to life with a warmth that resonates upon repeated listening.
Opening song, A Little Less Time, is a look back at his relationship with wife Kerry and the progress they have made since meeting and becoming parents, the links that forge their future and that stretch back through family now gone; the insight to their loving relationship summed up in the lines, “always a little more love and always a little less time.”
Eyes Be Healed is a great story about prescription glasses and the hypocrisy of defining a set code for living to others. To believe in a self-made God that bends to the whims of a preacher-father, is no way to raise a child - “he started thinking maybe faith is a measure of how well you know something’s wrong and keep it inside.”
Two Wheel Drive And Japanese looks back at a youthful incident that saw Farren learn an important life lesson at the hands of a local cop, “some songs you sing to remind yourself of the people that you’ve been; this one goes out to a guy I never want to be again.”
My Uncle Bill is a family tribute to a man who was larger than life, an atheist who insisted on being buried in the local Church graveyard to an unabridged rendition of Free Bird. The song, Fixer Upper, is a look at what ages a relationship and sees it running out of road “ all the new is wearing off this place the same way it wore off of me,” while Last Year Was The Best Year is a reflective musing on time passing and the realisation that so much of memory is fleeting, “if everything I’ve known for certain was just passing by my window, Then I don’t mind that it’s leaving - I just hope you saw it too.”
There really is not a weak track here and the co-production by Farren, Brian Chris Rodgers (drums, bass, vocals) and Aaron Smith (guitar, vocals) is very engaging and spacious. Farren plays acoustic & electric guitars, electric & upright bass, organ, piano, percussion and sings all the lead vocals. Guests on certain tracks include André Fylling (keys/organ), Sam Phelps (organ), Anna Tivel (violin, vocals).
One More Night is about the inherent dangers in a long-distance relationship and being away from home, while How’s Your Garden Grow is a meditation on generosity of spirit and the friendships that we develop “it’s not the blood in your veins, it's the way that it moves - it’s the kindness you choose.”
The song, Worthy Of the Sea is a lovely ballad written for his daughter about steering your own course in life and believing in yourself, “and you can pay for some illusion of safe harbour, and you can stow away on someone else’s dreams, it’s best to chart your course and buy a load of lumber, and build a boat you know is worthy of the sea - You are worthy of the sea.”
This is a superbly crafted album, elegant in its messages and writing, enhanced by some excellent musicianship. Highly recommended.
Review by Paul McGee
Beki Hemingway Earth & Asphalt Self Release
This new release marks the seventh foray into the musical marketplace for an artist that has always followed her creative muse. Never one to pander to commercial constraints, Beki is one of those artists who very occasionally come along and find their way into your memory, with her compelling vocal delivery and a passion that shapes her rich tone and stokes the fires that burn at her creative core.
On her early records, all pumped up with a new wave energy and a rock sensibility, Beki laid down plenty of markers that she was not one for leaving quietly. You find yourself humming her song lyrics or melodies in the strangest moments, unguarded and spontaneous. Such are the joys of life, the little pleasures that keep you smiling and breathing in the sweet air.
Kicking off with the high tempo rocker, Birmingham, sees Beki and the band firing on all engines and delivering on full throttle as a statement of real intent - all sass and stirring vocal attack. This is celebratory music, having a good time, dancing across the floor and whippin’ up one hell of a party.
Following with, Lay Your Burdens Down, we are given an authentic slice of Americana with a message to reach out to one another and banish feelings of doubt and uncertainty. Shape Of My Face has a slow rhythm and looks at ageing gracefully, having the perspective to focus on real things that last. Hurricane is a blues number about a storm that previously visited Beki when she lived in Wexford, but is as much a metaphor for memories of a stormy relationship. The blues influenced vocal delivery convinces totally that the internal storms are strong, while the musicians deliver with appropriately atmospheric playing.
Cinderella Twin is about youthful memories, exploring fledgling love and a Denver drive-in that took on the pulse of all life was offering and growing up, sticking together through it all. Equally, California, brings up reflections and dreams of the past, an old car rekindling past journeys and the innocence of wishing on the next rainbow. The pedal steel of Ben Waligoske frames the sweetly sad melody and laid-back arrangement.
We’re Not Going Anywhere is a statement of true love between Beki and husband Randy, a commitment to stay the course and stand together against whatever cards that life deals, “Fasten your seatbelt, throw out the spare, cause we’re not going anywhere.”
Down the Line is pure Americana, a rocker that sparkles and fires out energy in all directions, a big, bold sound that asks to share the journey to better times and being strong to ‘be the difference between a real friend and a contact; walk me through it, don’t be afraid to fight.’
Cost Me Everything is a real tour de force with simple acoustic guitar and pedal steel introducing a wonderful vocal performance that channels painful angst and interprets that emotion of risking it all for someone else. Beki delivers a killer performance and once the full band kick into the mood, she takes it all up a notch to really pull out all the stops. A country blues sound that delivers such a powerful punch.
Death And Taxes has a fine, slow tempo and a message not to focus on what has passed, to learn from insight and look to the light in living these days with purpose. Some nice guitar and keyboards swell the melody and lift the arrangement to engaging heights. Final song, Comfort, is pure Country Gospel and sounds like an old traditional tune, such is the authentic delivery and song arrangement – ‘may we be mindful of wonderful truth, that our deeds are not our true worth.’ Tim Cotterell excelling on fiddle.
The album was produced by Randy Kirkman and Conor Brady in Dublin and Dundalk studios. Randy creates much of the music and assists on lyrics, harmony vocals, tambourine and all guitar parts, both acoustic and electric, apart from Shape Of My Face, which features Conor Brady on lead guitar and separately, Sammy Horner who plays some superb baritone guitar on Lay Your Burdens Down.
Drums are played by Dennis Holt on all eleven tracks and bass duties are shared by Mark Robertson (4 songs), Chris ‘Scooter’ Bland (4 songs) and Mike Bradburn (3 songs). Ben Waligoske plays beautifully on dobro/pedal steel (3 songs) and Cian Boylan adds impressive keyboards (5 songs). while Jana Holland and Scott Smith add harmony vocals on separate tracks.
Special mention also for the album design, which evokes the spirit of the title and compliments the songs so perfectly, with the dual image of open highway and desert, stretching to the horizon; looking back through the rear-view mirror as much as looking forward towards the future.
This is a very compelling album, packed with great tunes and terrific vocal delivery. A highly recommended purchase.
Review by Paul McGee
Rodney Rice Same Shirt, Different Day Self Release
Coming from a coal mining town in West Virginia is a start in life that’s going to inform your personal perspectives and channel some strong opinions when it comes to the working man and his given lot in life.
Rodney Rice grew up in this environment and the same sense of community and honest toil to be found in this blue-collar ethic and mind-set, is directly transferrable into a music community of like-minded souls. It informs a songwriter and offers encouragement and support in carving out a career, expressing his emotions and airing his feelings on a whole range of different issues and topics.
On this 12-track album, one song that sums up those early beginnings and the arrival of Rice into music media circles is Company Town, which speaks of “Mister Massey what have you done, you took fathers, brothers and sons, Wives are crying forever alone, waiting on husbands who'll never be home.” It echoes a young John Prine and his song, Paradise from 1971, which called out the Peabody Coal Company. Here, Rice is shooting his arrow at Massey Energy, the coal company entwined in the 2010 mine disaster in Raleigh County, West Virginia, in which 29 miners died.
Armed with songs of conscience, Rice displays a witty writing style with more than a hint of irony in his words. Opening track, Ain’t Got a Dollar, is an attack on a country that sends its poorer classes off to war only to disown them upon their return. Next track, Hard Life, has the lines, “Come sit with me by the river, Time is just like water passing by, Some will say you’re a fool to take the fight, But it’s a fool who doesn't even try.” Empathy for the struggle is very much present and an important part of the writing.
Free At Last is a tale of marriage and divorce with the lines “We stood up and said our vows of always and forever, Now all I got is a long divorce and some ugly Christmas sweaters.” With fiddle, mandolin and dobro stirring up a good ole’ Country rhythm, this track follows a similar road to Walk Across Texas and Right To Be Wrong, with lost relationships and women that have packed up and left the relationship.
Pillage And Plunder deals with the pollution generated on our planet by humankind and Middle Management Blues addresses the life-sucking reality of working in the corporate world for Rice. Once again, he’s missing the girl in Can’t Get Over Her, with the wry comment in the superb country arrangement and excellent pedal steel playing, “So make it a double gin, The futures looking so damn dim, And I can't get over her, While she’s lying next to him.”
However, he can always rely on the sage advice of his Mother to fall back upon - in Memoirs Of Our Youth, he reflects “Remember those your passing going up; you gonna pass them coming down - always do what’s right, because what you do comes back around.”
The abiding message on last track, Don’t Look Back, is that of embracing the future and learning from mistakes made.
The core musicians are Rice on acoustic guitar, harmonica and lead vocals, Rick Richards (drums), Andre Moran (acoustic, electric, baritone, resonator, hi-strung, slide guitar, organ, piano, wood drum and percussion) and Mark Hallman (Hammond b3, octave mandolin, upright piano, backing vocals, bass, tambourine, mandola).
That’s a lot of firepower in the studio before you introduce the additional players who contributed as follows - Tom Crail (upright bass, 2 tracks), Woody Woodruff (electric guitar, 2 tracks), Austin De Lone (Wurlitzer, 1 track), Erik Telford (trumpet, 1 track), Marcus Cardwell (tenor sax, 1 track), David Carroll Eddie Dickerson (fiddle, 1 track), Jeff Plankenhorn (dobro, 1 track), Mike Hardwick (pedal steel, 1 track) and Bonnie Whitmore (backing vocals, 2 tracks).
The entire project was produced, recorded and mixed by Andre Moran at the Congress House Studio Austin, TX with assistant engineer Craig Delony. It was mastered by Mark Hallman.
So, a fine cast of players, all supporting a strong talent in Rodney Rice and this album is worth all the hard work, planning and writing. It’s his second release, following on from 2014’s playfully titled, EMPTY POCKETS AND A TROUBLED MIND. The musicianship is of the highest quality and the loose, country roots sound marries very well with the focus and intent of Rodney Rice – inspiring in many ways.
Review by Paul McGee
Bob Hillman Inside & Terrified Self Release
I had not heard of this artist until he contacted Lonesome Highway to submit this EP of five songs for review. I’m very glad that he decided to share his music and back story. Between 1999 and 2003, Bob Hillman released three albums and enjoyed a degree of success, touring his music and supporting a variety of headline artists. However, the momentum stalled and this led to Bob taking a step away from the music to experience the world of “real jobs.” As a San Francisco singer/songwriter, the urge to get back on the horse again and see what lies over the hill is a feeling that never fully leaves, and he returned to his music in 2016.
The titles of his last two releases, LOST SOUL(2016) and SOME OF UsS ARE FREE, SOME OF US ARE LOST (2019), give the impression of, well, being lost – but nothing could be further from the truth. There is both a fertile mind and bright imagination at play here and the song-writing is quite superb. Bathing the tracks in soft melodies, Hillman sings in a gentle, soothing voice that creates an atmosphere of quiet calm, transporting the listener back to memories of younger days. His guitar skills are also very evident and the years spent on the live circuit have certainly honed his performing talents.
A ‘can-do’ attitude will get you far and Hillman basically taught himself the ins-and-outs of home recording, mastering all technical aspects and, over a few months during the Covid-19 lockdown, he brought these songs to fruition. Although the influence of the current pandemic is present in the songs, they also have a life of their own in the message and the superb interaction between musicians. This Is Wild Land reflects on the now deserted highways and roads since the pandemic lockdown and the return of nature to claim the vacated spaces, while In Terms Of Lunar Cycles (It’s A Lonely Phase), sings of the need to re-assess, take stock and view the present in the greater scheme of things.
I Often Dream Of Candlelight (Maria) is written to a loved one, recognising a growing anxiety, manifest during restless sleep, that the virus brings into all of our emotions and feelings; “The fear that you will have to face the future, fully awake.” Inside and Terrified is on similar ground with the suspicions of others impacting upon even the most innocent activities, in this case a drive with his children, turning into “Strangers advise we are now jeopardizing, the safety of their neighbourhood.”
Now I’m In Favour Of A Wall is a song title that is open to misinterpretation, but then again, this could be intentional. The use of irony can pass us by like a fast train and the metaphor of a wall, in terms of self-isolation, is a strong one - something that has occupied the thoughts of many during the Government advice to stay at home. Self-preservation is a primal urge and the “ill-advised celebration” that is still happening in our cities and communities is no succour to those who strive to feel safe from the risk of infection with their daily routines.
Aided by the talents of producer (and bass player) Jonny Flaugher, Hillman reached out to a number of musicians who were very willing to lend their time to recording themselves remotely and leaving their stamp upon the project. In addition to Jonny Flaugher on bass, there is Jay Bellerose on drums, David Levita on nylon-string guitar and Maria Taylor on harmony vocals. All contribute beautifully understated parts to the melodies and song arrangements. Perhaps the future is indeed here in terms of this recording process, with remote input and never getting the opportunity to play together in the same room, defining the way forward.
In addition to this core group, Paul Cartwright contributes on violin, Oliver Kraus on cello, Christof Knoche on clarinet, Jordan Katz on trumpet and Jon Gilutin on piano.
It’s a real tribute to the overall mixing and mastering, that the ensemble interplay sounds as if it was recorded in a central space. A very interesting artist and a release that is worthy of a wide audience.
Review by Paul McGee
Chamomile and Whiskey Red Clay Heart Self Release
Founding members of Chamomile and Whiskey Marie Borgman and Koda Kerl, both natives of Nelson County, Virginia, christened the roots band after mixing chamomile tea and bourbon whiskey for an evening tipple. They reached agreement that the label was the definite description of where their music was coming from.
RED CLAY HEART is their third album and is very much in the present and a critique on both personal and wider social issues presently working themselves out. Karl takes the lead vocal and plays guitar with backing vocals and killer fiddle playing from Borgman. The album combines rowdy and muscular outpourings songs, with more laid back but equally considered slow burning ballads.
The rollicking opener Way Back dwells on Kerl’s controlled small-town upbringing and its frustrations. Hard Time Honey ebbs and flows with heavy strummed guitar, sweeping violins and snappy support vocals. Another Wake is the most powerful statement on the album. Kerl recalls the tragic loss of life following a shocking incident in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017, when white supremacists drove a car through a crowd of peaceful protesters, resulting in the death of Heather Heyer and injury to many others. Dead Bird, the first single from the album, was written by Robert St. Ours from Hackensaw Boys, a close friend of the both Kerl and Borgman.
RED CLAY HEART delivers nine well-constructed songs, written from the heart and featuring lyrics that capture the moment perfectly.
Review by Declan Culliton
Strays Don’t Sleep A Short Film for a Long Story Self Release
Neilson Hubbard’s name appears quite regularly on albums landing at Lonesome Highway HQ and, without exception, it is quality guaranteed. His production credits include albums by Mary Gauthier, Sam Baker, Caroline Spence and Amy Speace. He has seven solo albums in his own back catalogue and is a member of side projects Buffalo Blood and The Orphan Brigade. His latest recording is from another band that he fronts with Matthew Ryan. Strays Don’t Sleep recorded two previous albums, LOVE DON’T OWE YOU ANYTHING and their self-titled album, both of which landed in 2006. His partner in crime Matthew Ryan can also boast no fewer than eighteen solo albums.
A SHORT FILM FOR A LONG STORY is a four-track mini EP of songs co-written by the two in October of 2019. The pandemic and the Presidential election were the motivators to record and release the album. The fifteen-year gap between these songs and the band’s previous release is unexplained, but appears to be due to a falling out between Ryan and Hubbard. Fortunately, time does heal and these songs are both reflective and optimistic.
The opening song I Walked Away considers that parting, fifteen years later. Ryan’s gravely vocals introduce the song before being joined by Hubbard’s vocal in the background.” I got so fucking close to the edge that I thought I’d never see myself again” Ryan admits in reflecting on their breakup. A Woman Running, the instrumental that follows, reflects on that period between parting and reuniting. Couldn’t Be Happier is upbeat and hopeful (“I want to party like it’s 1999”) with a rhythm recalling early career U2. The closer Hope Is A Love Song is an uncompleted song they were working on in 2005. It’s a fitting and heartening ending to the album.
Artists often find songwriting a more painless means of communication than the spoken word. The suitably titled A SHORT FILM FOR A LONG STORY is very much a reconciliation project, suggesting two previously very close friends testing the waters in an attempt to rekindle that companionship. The signals suggest a successful venture with these intimate and minimalist tracks and the prospect of future recordings from Strays Don’t Sleep. In the meantime, just savour these most enjoyable and image provoking songs.
Review by Declan Culliton
E.Z. Shakes The Spirit Pow Pow Sound
Raised by hippie Christian parents in small town Illinois, Zach Siebert’s spiritual upbringing exposed him to gospel and old-time country music throughout the course of his childhood. Those influences, both musically and culturally, are present in both the lyrics and sound of his band E.Z.Shakes. Originally formed as an acoustic duo act with pedal steel and banjo player Todd T.Hicks in 2017, Seibert recruited three other players to flesh out and add swagger and electrify his dark and brooding songs. Those additional musicians are John Furr (electric guitar), Stanford Gardner (percussion) and Jim Taylor (bass). THE SPIRIT is their second full album following on from THE WOLF from 2018, having previously released two mini albums.
You’re left in little doubt where Seibert’s coming from on the open track The Spirit. His raspy torn vocals deliver a sermon that grabs your attention from the get go. ‘What you do in darkness, will be shown in light’, he warns, ably supported by stinging guitars and guarded percussion. It’s the type of song that has you reaching for the repeat button. The sentiment expressed on that first track surfaces regularly across the eleven tracks on the album. Recollections of a strong, well-intentioned parental upbringing and the loss of his father are recalled on Thirteen, as are wayward times on Grove St. The challenge of clinging to his faith are addressed on the thundering Making Mistakes, as are self-abuse and bad choices on the reflective and broody Killing Time.
The album was self-produced by John Furr and mixed by Mitch Easter (R.E.M, Pavement) at his Fidelitorium Studios in Kernersville, North Carolina. The result is a skilled balance between crystal clear vocals and the playing that supports them. THE SPIRIT is an autobiographical arsenal of impressive and convincing Bible Belt tales brought to song. Well worth investigating, satisfaction guaranteed.
Review by Declan Culliton
Strung Like A Horse Whoa! Transoceanic
A four-piece band that defy categorisation, Strung Like A Horse have released their debut album WHOA! On first spin, the variation of music on the twelve tracks could leave the listener with the impression that they had just played a compilation album.
Strung Like a Horse are fronted by Chattanooga resident Clayton Maselle, who is lead vocalist and guitarist. Eric ‘Crispy’ Crisp plays drums and percussion. Tyler Martelli is on keyboards and lead guitar; Dan Pinson plays bass and Paddy King adds fiddle. They tour extensively and have performed with Old Crow Medicine Show, Shooter Jennings, Charlie Daniels and Travis Tritt.
The catchy and funky power poppy Till The Wheels Fall Off and Crazy Like Me are contrasted by the gloriously trashy Glowin’ And Gold In Their Souls. They also find room for tender ballads with both I Was Born Here and Without You. Nikki Bluhm came on board to share her splendid vocals with Maselle on the soulful Cold & Lonesome. Lookin’ For Love is unadulterated bluegrass, showcasing their instrumental skills.
The album kicks off with the defiant Fuck What They Think and closes with a radio edit of the same song retitled Forget What They Think. With such a mismatch of influences thrown into the mix, the end result could have been disastrous. On the contrary, the album works spectacularly well. The energy and cohesive playing, well honed by protracted touring, shines brightly throughout. The CD includes a twenty page plus booklet with hand written lyrics and stunning artwork and is well worth tracking down. Matt Ross - Spang (Margo Price, Jason Isbell, John Prine, Drive By Truckers) oversaw the production duties at Sound Emporium Studio A in Nashville and the mixing at Sam Phillips Recording in Memphis.
WHOA! is an intoxicating genre-hopping delight that will appeal equally to lovers of The Carter Family as it will to fans of The New York Dolls.
Review by Declan Culliton