I don't understand some of these new meme concepts, but I gave it a shot.
Aug 4, 2020
Welcome Back From the Netherworld, Joey Allcorn
By Robert Dean
Joey Allcorn is a walking ghost. Stuck between the ether of our compromised reality, and a netherworld surrounded by spirits, Allcorn is a mystic, soothsayer, and as he's always said, born a few decades too late.
The music he writes isn't concerned with the current, what popular culture considers "country" whatever side of the traditionalist aisle you adhere to, instead, Allcorn, is a living relic. This man seeks out the forgotten players, who can tell you the names of the folks who etched their names in the walls of country music long ago. He's a historian and someone who keeps the keys to the past in his back pocket.
On his new e.p, The State of Heartbreak, Allcorn doesn't disappoint, because he's incapable of doing that, but instead leads the listener toward the dark halls of what we're looking for, internally. That's why his music works. You can hear it with your grandparents, believe it in a room full of buddies, but it's also malleable. It has depth. It's not a sad rehash like so many country traditionalists. Allcorn will always get the Hank Williams comparisons, but where's the harm in that? If you can yodel and howl, then yodel and howl, this music is from the back hills and the hollers, don't let the repressions of radio fool you, this is music that's appeared within the bacteria of his gut lining, the DNA twisting through his genome.
On this release, Allcorn toys with some Kris Kristofferson, some Leadbelly, and with a little Faron Young. Allcorn has never been shy about who he looks to as an influence, and all of his selections work in the spirit of The State of Heartbreak. It's hard to even have a critical ear toward Allcorn, you know what you're getting, and it's always consistent. He's like the video of the guy throwing basketballs two-handed and never missing. The timbre, the attitude, and the intent are forever stitched into the music, Allcorn is a perfectionist in that he's incapable of putting out a dud. He'd rather hide in the shadows.
For a while, Allcorn disappeared. He'd occasionally pop up on social media, reminding us through his various channels like "Honky Tonk Heroes" or his direct feed that he can rattle off more about country music that half the people whose names are hanging on the walls of the Opry. Having him back is fitting for the culture, he pays attention, he throws events, and his heart is always in the right place. Joey Allcorn is a hell of a singer and musician, but at the core of all things, he's a blue blood ambassador of country music who's done countless things to show old men they're not forgotten or to continually exercise the wrongs of the past.
We're lucky he's back in the saddle, the music needs more yodeling cowboys like him.
Grab a download of The State of Heartbreak off his site: joeyallcorn.com
Exclusive Video Premiere / Golden Shoals / “Everybody’s Singing”
We’ve got a new performance video premiere today from Golden Shoals. It’s an upbeat singalong tune sure to give you a pick-me-up during “these uncertain times.” “Everybody’s Singing” includes heartbreak (yes songs can have that and still be uplifting), great references to classic songs, fiddling, and fun… what’s not to love? It’s the first song off of their upcoming album (out Friday!) and a great introduction to this talented duo if you haven’t heard their first two releases.
From the band:
This song celebrates and rolls eyes at the wacky people and places we encounter as touring folk musicians - friends and contemporaries in cowboys costumes, white jumpsuits, and punk rock mullets; house parties, hotel conferences, and bluegrass bands playing ‘80’s songs. The chorus ties it all together with a collage of lines from well-worn folk and country songs you hear time and time again in this line of work. We gave this one a countrified production treatment, and I had a ton of fun playing faux-tele licks on a Gibson SG.
More information about the band and their forthcoming album below the video!
The road to Golden Shoals has been a long, fruitful journey for Amy Alvey and Mark Kilianski. The duo has toured on foot—gig to gig with backpacks and instrument cases—for weeks at a time; called Asheville, Boston, California, and New Jersey home; and lived in various moving vehicles on the road for the past seven years under different names and incarnations. After all of that, their new self-titled record, Golden Shoals , represents a fresh start for Alvey and Kilianski; one that is more inclusive of the inspirations they’ve taken in since beginning their musical journey. Out August 7th via Free Dirt Records , Golden Shoals contains twelve new songs which examine love and loss, personal growth, and political strife; all through an inward-facing lens and void of pretense or preachiness. Today, American Songwriter premiered “Love From Across The Border,” a rollicking, slide-guitar laden ode to empathy and righting the wrongs of the past. "Love From Across The Border” can be heard here and Golden Shoals can be pre-ordered here until its August 7th release.
Engineered and mixed by Matt Lohan and produced by Lohan, Alvey, and Kilianski, Golden Shoals features only one additional musician; Landon George’s upright bass and drums. Together, the aforementioned musicians wove a bright and intricate tapestry from only four threads. Golden Shoals opens with “Everybody’s Singing,” a straightforward country swing tune about some not so straightforward personalities. Alvey and Kilianski proclaim the song “celebrates and rolls eyes at the wacky people and places we encounter as touring folk musicians—friends and contemporaries in cowboys costumes, white jumpsuits, and punk rock mullets; house parties, hotel conferences, and bluegrass bands playing ‘80’s songs.”
The album ebbs and flows from the joyfully ironic opening track all the way to more emotional and understated tunes like “I’ll Fall In Love Again”; a gentle lament about wanting to be more than friends, to no avail. “Rather than cutting off our friendship, we worked through those difficult feelings, became better friends for it, and I moved on to new loves,” says Kilianski. “A couple of years after its inception, the song adopted a twist ending, turning the cliche country song trope of unrequited love on its head.” The album closes with “Sittin’ Pretty,” an incredibly self-aware take on the guilt and anxiety that bubble up when coming to grips with one’s born-with-it privilege. “The song ‘Sittin’ Pretty’ speaks to the powerlessness I feel when reading the news about the troubling issues in our society like wealth inequality, climate change, and school shootings,” says Alvey. “When touring full time, the thought of joining a protest march or becoming active in local politics feels impossible when most days you’re figuring out where you’re going to sleep that night after the show.”
The clever touch Golden Shoals leave on their songs is what sticks with listeners; a twist at the end, a smart rehashing of radio-hit lyrics, the upbeat but heavy introspective looks into the mirror. Their musical journey seems to have hit its stride, especially as Alvey and Kilianski dig in, unpack, and reevaluate their own stories, observations, trials, and successes. Their compassionate and thoughtful songwriting takes center stage in this new chapter of the band, while their undeniable musicianship continues to uplift and inspire the project. For this patient, tenacious band, the Shoals are indeed Golden, and ripe for more great music to come.
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