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Diane Cluck — whose Boneset LP was a favorite last year —  is among the perfect group of artists to pay homage to folk great Karen Dalton this month. Not only are Patty Griffin, Isobel Campbell, Josephine Foster and others offering a nod to their influence, though: they’re giving a voice to Dalton’s unsung words, whose own LPs consisted of cover songs in her lifetime. The new set, Remembering Mountains, features unearthed lyrics lent by fellow folk legend and Dalton friend Peter Walker to living songwriters providing new original music. Cluck’s sparse take on “This Is Our Love” is a standout, complete with a prescient moment aptly fitting of this project, the poignant line: “A choir of angels with no song / A winding road, steep and long.” Hear it above.

 

Here’s “Yellow Eyes,” the first single off Rayland Baxter’s new record. That last name might ring a bell, and for good reason: his father, Bucky Baxter, has performed standout turns on guitar with the likes of Bob Dylan (Time Out of Mind, Unplugged) and Ryan Adams (fan favorite “Dear Chicago”) to name a few. His dad’s a fine side man, for sure, but that’s just a side note to him backing up Rayland in the lead role for this set. Despite the cut’s bittersweet subject matter, a midtempo groove, hits of twang lead guitar, and a sunny melody lend it a more summertime, back porch feel. Baxter sums up those opposing vibes quite well on the bridge: “All in all it’s a beautiful day.” Even with the shades drawn, humming this tune certainly lets a little more light into the room. Imaginary Man comes out on August 14th.

We last heard Laura Burhenn’s Mynabirds with the 2012 studio LP Generals and an equally rousing live set at our SXSW show. Now she returns with a record said to be “steeped in break-up themes,” and — per this first glimpse at Lovers Know — she’s left some of the previous palette behind as well. Teaming up this time with producer/Black English frontman Bradley Hanan Carter, Burhenn enlists a kaleidoscopic bed of synths on “Semantics,” a buoyant and undeniably catchy bit of post-romance transcendence. Promising stuff indeed; hear it above.

Kristian Matsson starts out in familiar territory on this one, the title track to The Tallest Man On Earth’s next album, Dark Bird Is Home. “Sagres” felt like a “Song For Zula”-esque turn toward echo and synth-washed sounds, but the Swedish troubadour goes back inward this round. Until the coda, that is: an unexpected, jubilant rush that makes the previous solo-acoustic minutes feel like a contemplative run-up toward some kind of assured transcendence. Underneath any such pomp and circumstance, though, is a fine bit of indelible melody from the Tallest Man. Hear it above.

“The Glow” was the first track among four on our introduction to Esmé Patterson last spring. And while that unfolding arrangement from Woman to Woman did the tune justice in studio form, this live take — featuring Paleo‘s David Strackany on a ramshackle drum kit — lets the cut breathe further, filling it with even more awkward pauses and dynamic nuance. This tune was inspired by Brian Wilson’s “Caroline, No,” and there are other men-penned love songs that warranted a fresh take on her debut here. Patterson & co. are on tour with William Elliott Whitmore right now.

They have been known for epic collaborative live sets at their Largo home base for years, but now the Los Angeles collective starring siblings Sara and Sean Watkins are finally putting out a record. Along with an incredible lineup (Fiona Apple, Benmont Tench, Don Heffington, Greg Leisz, and Sebastian Steinberg), the Watkins Family Hour will release their debut LP on July 24th, the same day they’ll head out on a dozen summer tour dates. Featured on the set are 11 covers by the likes of Roger Miller, Bob Dylan, Lindsey Buckingham, and others, reworked Watkins-style with a rotating cast on lead vocals. Check out the trailer above and tracklist below: [Read more…]