Jan 28, 2025
Jan 3, 2025
Tour Date Drop
Dec 23, 2024
Aug 5, 2024
More Monday Memes: Red Clay Strays, Americana, Jerry Reed
May 22, 2024
AI Illustrated Americana Songs
If you can't figure some of these out, the song list is at the end.
Chris Knight - Down the River
Jason Isbell - Cover Me Up
Turnpike Troubadours - Gin, Smoke, and Lies
Steve Earle - Copperhead Road
Sturgill Simpson - You Can Have the Crown
John Cougar Mellencamp - Jack and Diane
Apr 17, 2024
Civil War Movie Country Memes
Feb 23, 2024
New Americana Band Vows to Stay Apolitical Until They’re Popular
Up-and-coming Americana group The Red Lions are making waves with more than just their music. The four-piece out of Homewood, AL are impressing with their streaming numbers for their self released debut record and selling out rooms across the south, but their approach to songwriting is also turning some heads.
The four-piece has deftly stayed clear of being labeled by writing songs only about work, drinking and love, while steering away from any sort of signifiers or coded terms that might out them as Democrats or Republicans. “We love and respect all our fans and welcome them into our big tent, at least until we’re popular. Then 50% of them can kiss our asses!” laughed drummer Laura Lofton.
The Red Lions’ music also avoids classification. Blending country, rock, pop, folk, soul, hard rock, southern rock, indie rock, outlaw country, and R&B in perfectly equal parts in every song, the band literally can barely be described. Despite being impossible to market, they’ve managed to get a couple of songs to over 100k streams on Spotify, including “Coal Mining and Liquor” and “Laid Off at the Paper Mill.”
While the band has gained a great deal of traction on streaming platforms, they’re having a hard time finding a touring partner. “We had one potential supporting tour for a major band, but they were gonna make us sign a social intersectionality pact or some shit. And another big singer wanted us to get tiny MAGA tattoos to come aboard. So we’re mostly opening for ourselves so far.” said Sparkman.
When asked about the band’s plans after passing their threshold of “success,” bassist Reed Wilkes chimed in. “Shortly after crossing 100,000 monthly listeners, we will go into the studio and write an album in which we write ham-fisted lyrics railing against whatever the current Presidential administration is, while leaning into EDM and other styles our original fans don’t care for, so they’ll have to say ‘their first album is actually good’ when somebody mentions us for the rest of their lives.”
At press time, The Red Lions were being ambivalent about their lunch plans.
Nov 1, 2023
Where's Your Seat?
Apr 4, 2023
More Free Ways to Help Your Favorite Indie Musicians!
Feb 7, 2023
Sadly...
Jan 25, 2023
Top 10 Ways to Become an Americana Singer
Dec 9, 2022
Innovative Americana Singer Writes Song About Rural Melancholia
Up and coming Americana singer/songwriter Louis Reynolds is ready to level up in a big way. The Austin newcomer will drop his debut single “Dust on the Silo” next Friday and is anticipating a massive response. The reason for this optimism? “Dust on the Silo” breaks new ground in the sometimes stodgy and predictable genre with its sorrowful tale of rural melancholia, a subject he says is untouched by the rest of Americana and roots rocks’ stalwarts.
The song, a 3 minute and 23 second, mid-tempo, Lumineers-esque anthem, digs into the financial and emotional hardships of an Arkansas turnip farmer enduring a severe drought. While sketchy on detail accuracy and mediocre with the guitar work, Reynolds manages to squeeze a great deal of grit and passion from his slightly above average voice, making “Dust on the Silo” a definite single to be heard by people with ears.
“Authenticity is so important in this style of music,” smiled Reynolds, sipping a whiskey sour on the balcony of his East Austin apartment. “I want my fans to know that I feel what they’re going through; I’ve read all about the coal miners on Oxyclean pills and truck drivers crying in a Love’s parking lot. This shit is real!”
At press time, Reynolds was getting his beard trimmed at a hip barber shop for the single photo shoot, while sipping a pour over coffee.
Feb 1, 2022
Tuesday Morning Memes: Merle Haggard, Shooter Jennings, Walker Hayes
Sep 24, 2021
Fiddle & Steel Band Not Sure What Genre They Are
A new band out of Alabama, Ohatchee, is facing a difficult question as they navigate the terrain of the touring band life. When booking shows, which they still do without management, they are often met with the question: What genre are you? The band has no idea.
“We play the good kind of music,” laughed twangy lead singer/guitarist Hap Lorring. “Anyway that’s what an annoying positive fan of the band always comments online and I think it’s dopey as hell, but then again, I don’t know what genre we are.”
The quintet features a steel guitarist, fiddle player, drummer, bassist, and lead guitarist/vocalist and play what might be described as “a mixture of ballads and dance tunes of a sort of music originating in the rural southern US,” but that’s more than a mouthful to tell club owners and event planners.
Some fans of Ohatchee have called the group “Americana,” but the guys aren’t even sure what that is. “Isn’t that just an adjective to describe those roadside attractions like ‘World’s Longest CVS Receipt’ or ‘Largest Ball of Chewed Up Gum in Nebraska?’”
“We’re not folk either,” said Lorring. “I listened to some popular folk songs on Spotify, and we don’t clap and sing ‘ohhhh’ that often. I’m really at a loss here.”
“My grandfather said ‘Boy, ya’ll are just good ol’ country music’,” said lead songwriter and bassist Chad Logan. “But he’s senile. I listened to country radio and we don’t even have a rapper in the band so we must not be country.” Logan went on to say that Ohatchee doesn’t employ a DJ and doesn’t write songs about picking up a girl in a bar and driving out to the country with her to make love in a sixty-thousand dollar pickup truck. They also lack programmed beats, six pack abs, and mediocrity, so nope, not country.
Whatever the hell they are, Ohatchee rolls on to play the Kudzu and Possum Festival in Winona, MS this weekend.
Sep 14, 2021
The Road Less Traveled
Aug 13, 2021
Bearded Poser Can’t Decide Whether to Move to Nashville or Austin
Bearded poser Louis Reynolds has a decision to make. The burgeoning Americana and/or folk and/or pop-country songwriter is weighing the positives and negatives of cities to move to and genres to shoehorn himself into.
While skilled at writing in none of his options, Reynolds possesses a slightly above average voice and, most importantly, a spectacular beard. The 6’2” former college badminton star, after finding no path to pursuing the sport professionally, picked up an acoustic guitar and learned Snow Patrol’s “Chasing Cars” and was smitten.
Bankrolled by his parents’ eight figure net worth, Reynolds began formulating his plan to become an artist a star in whatever style of music would have him.
“I’ll only have to adapt my look to fit in, err, I mean look the part of either a country singer or an Americana singer. You know, either go sleek and stylish with the beard, or look like I just came down out of the mountains with half an elk on my back.” laughed Reynolds. “Pretty much the same for my fashion choices.”
When asked if he was studying the different styles of music to see where his writing style most organically fit, Reynolds answered “Let’s see. Would I rather rub elbows with Jordan Davis and Sam Hunt, or Cody Jinks and Tyler Childers? Makes you think, y’know.”
“Oh yeah, writing,” he continued. “Either write about trucks used for fun or trucks used for work; no big deal. And the women are either wearing shorts and have their feet on the dash or are sad and working in a Tulsa cafe. It’s pretty simple stuff.”
At press time, Louis Reynolds was trying on stupid hats and checking horribly overpriced apartment listings in trendy parts of Austin and Nashville.
Jul 14, 2021
Country Songs Backward
Nov 13, 2020
Man Unable to Grow Beard Kicked Out of Americana Band
“My beard is patchy.” said a despondent Sandifer. “I can’t help my damn genetics.”
Sandifer told us that no complaints were ever made about his ability to keep the bottom steady in the band’s songs about unions, farms, William Gay novels, Donald Trump, and kudzu. His appearance and hygiene, besides the follicular challenge, were never an issue either.
“I took my monthly shower like the rest of them,” he explained. “And my clothes all came from the Salvation Army store in whatever town we’d played, along with t-shirts from bands who opened for us.” He also told us there were no issues with his politics.
He went on to say that though Farmer Union never gave him a formal reason for the release, he’s certain it’s because the “other three dudes look like they just walked out of the woods with an axe and a blue ox.” “I’ve tried everything, oils, lotions, massages, testosterone therapy… nothing worked.” said Matt. “The best I could do was a sad goatee, a busted mustache and weird patches of hair on my cheeks - I looked like a peeping Tom.”
“I thought Americana was supposed to be about substance, and not image …or marching to the beat of what other roots bands do,” said a disgusted Sandifer. “F*** those guys.”
At press time, Farmer Union was smoking weed by a dumpster in Belleville.