Category: new releases

Lydia Luce lets love guide through uncertainty on new song Yellow Dawn

The single Yellow Dawn is from the upcoming new album Garden Songs, out June 24, 2022. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Underneath the lush arrangements and spellbinding vocal melodies of Lydia Luce’s latest output lies a story of human persistence—the idea that we will carry on, letting hope and love guide us, in the face of an uncertain future. On June 24, Luce is set to release Garden Songs, a five-song EP sown from her time spent reconnecting with songwriting during an artist in residence on Orcas Island, just off the coast of Washington state; the first writing Luce had done since her 2021 album, Dark River. Luce shared “Yellow Dawn” from Garden Songs, a letter to herself that serves as a reminder to keep writing, creating, and believing. Most importantly, to keep going. (Lydia Luce, 2022)

“As an artist my job is to create, and it remains that even when I have no idea what I’ll do with the projects I make,” says Luce, giving listeners a rare glimpse into an all-too-common thought that passes through creative minds. “‘Yellow Dawn’ is the unknown that I must keep plunging into even when I’m unsure and afraid.” Luce’s beautiful metaphor is framed by an endearing refrain of “I will carry on, we will carry on, love will carry on.” “Yellow Dawn” is punctuated by a string quartet that includes Luce on viola, contributing a retro, unison arrangement vibe that furthers the song’s timelessness and complements Luce’s vocal delivery immaculately. Fans can hear “Yellow Dawn” now at this link and pre-order/pre-save Garden Songs ahead of its release right here.

Writing in such a picturesque setting helped her focus her attention on the world around her—quite literally in the case of the EP’s first song, “Matter of Time.” The summer before Luce landed on Orcas Island, the northwest suffered two brutal heat waves, and the extreme weather killed dozens. It got Luce thinking about the cognitive dissonance of wanting to be present in this remarkable place while grappling with how the same area was deadly to so many during a bout of extreme weather.

Luce turned to her impending wedding for “Vow,” which is the tale of the next step in a relationship that had been turbulent. The song lands on a moment of looking forward. Another love is at the heart of “Air Castle”—that of Luce’s great grandparents. Her father shared a book of their love letters, written between 1909 and 1920, while he was in California and she was in Georgia. The song captures how important it can be to feel like someone is in your corner, seeing the best of you and rooting for your triumph.

“Cosmic Flower” offers a series of similes, drawing a parallel between nature and love. It folds Luce’s passion and inspiration for the vastness of nature with those same feelings in her relationship. Written in a period of separation, Luce penned it on the side of a cliff—more literal than metaphorical. The EP ends with the aforementioned “Yellow Dawn,” summing up the feeling that propelled the writing and creation of Garden Songs. Persistence, in love and living, is a choice Luce continues to make, and the fruits of her carrying-on are on full display through this gorgeous musical window into her life.

In addition to her solo work, Luce created Lockeland Strings, a community arts organization that showcases local artists with a string quintet and performances of new contemporary classical pieces from local composers. They have been joined by Kacey Musgraves and Lucie Silvas, among others, and partners with nonprofits, including the ACLU of Tennessee, Girls Write Nashville and The Little Pantry That Could. She also plays viola as a session musician.

Garden Songs track list:
Matter of Time
Vow
Air Castle
Cosmic Flower
Yellow Dawn

Catch Lydia Luce on tour:
May 21 – Nashville, TN – The Blue Room: Lockeland Strings with Katy Kirby and most likely Devon Gilfillian and Liza Anne
June 9 Nashville, TN – Jaans House: Lockeland Strings Nicki Bluhm, Volunteer Department and more
June 26 – Fox Island, ME – Crab Tree
June 26 – North Haven Island, ME – CrabTree Session
June 30 – Plymouth, MA – The Spire
July 1 – Cape Cod, MA – Cultural Arts Center
July 2 – Portsmouth, NH – Music Hall
July 6 – Bristol, CT – Acousticool

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New book release: ‘Dream Town: An Archer Novel’ by David Baldacci

‘Dream Town’ is David Baldacci’s new novel in the Archer series. Photo: amazon

David Baldacci is a global #1 bestselling author, and one of the world’s favorite storytellers. His books are published in over forty-five languages and in more than eighty countries, with 150 million copies sold worldwide. His works have been adapted for both feature film and television. David Baldacci is also the cofounder, along with his wife, of the Wish You Well Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting literacy efforts across America. In his new book “Dream Town: An Archer Novel,” the third in the Archer series, private investigator and World War II veteran Aloysius Archer heads to Los Angeles, the city where dreams are made and shattered, and is ensnared in a lethal case. (amazon, 2022)

“Dream Town”– It is the eve of 1953, and Aloysius Archer is in Los Angeles to ring in the New Year with an old friend, aspiring actress Liberty Callahan, when their evening is interrupted by an acquaintance of Callahan’s: Eleanor Lamb, a screenwriter in dire straits. After a series of increasingly chilling events—mysterious phone calls, the same blue car loitering outside her house, and a bloody knife left in her sink—Eleanor fears that her life is in danger, and she wants to hire Archer to look into the matter. Archer suspects that Eleanor knows more than she is saying, but before he can officially take on her case, a dead body turns up inside of Eleanor’s home and Eleanor herself disappears.

Missing client or not, Archer is dead set on finding both the murderer and Eleanor. With the help of Callahan and his partner Willie Dash, he launches an investigation that will take him from mob-ridden Las Vegas to the glamorous world of Hollywood to the darkest corners of Los Angeles—a city in which beautiful faces are attached to cutthroat schemers, where the cops can be more corrupt than the criminals and where the powerful people responsible for his client’s disappearance will kill without a moment’s hesitation if they catch Archer on their trail.

New movie release: Escape The Field

Shane West (“Ryan”) and Theo Rossi (“Tyler”) in Escape The Field. Photo: Lionsgate, used with permission.

Coming out next week: Escape The Field – The fear is inescapable and the suspense nonstop in this gripping horror-thriller about six strangers who suddenly awaken in a remote, endless cornfield. Stripped of their possessions, they are left with only six items: a gun with a single bullet, matches, a lantern, a knife, a compass, and a flask of water. As mysterious sirens blare in the distance and traps appear at every turn, the group realizes they have been plunged into a cat-and-mouse game with an unseen evil, and survival depends upon solving a diabolical — and deadly — puzzle. In select theaters, on digital, and On Demand on May 6, 2022. (Lionsgate, 2022)

Lionsgate presents, an Anacapa Pictures and CR8IV DNA production, in association with Ingenious Media / Double Dutch International / Glanzrock Productions / Stormchaser Films / Richmond Pictures / LipSync.

Cities: New York (Cinema Village), Los Angeles (Lumiere Cinema), and key cities nationwide.
Cast: Jordan Claire Robbins, Theo Rossi, Tahirah Sharif, Julian Feder, Elena Juatco and Shane West
Directed by: Emerson Moore
Written by: Emerson Moore and Joshua Dobkin and Sean Wathen
Produced by: Andrew Davies Gans, Michael Philip, Jason Moring, Emerson Moore
Genre: Thriller
Rating: R
Running Time: 88 minutes

Escape The Field movie poster. Photo: Lionsgate, used with permission.

John Inghram balances vintage style with modern meaning on debut album

His debut album, John Inghram will be out May 13, 2022. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Within the first few seconds of its first song, John Inghram’s debut self-titled album gives off an unmistakable vintage vibe—swirling guitar arpeggios giving way to thumping drums and deep, perfectly-timed bass—but once he starts singing, the bigger picture quickly comes into focus. This is not just folk-rock nostalgia, but a well-crafted take on connecting modern experiences with old-school sounds, allowing listeners to feel in a more circular than linear fashion. Fans can check out “Palisades” now at this link and pre-order or pre-save John Inghram ahead of its May 13 release right here.  (John Inghram, 2022)

Glide Magazine premiered John Inghram album-opener “Palisades,” writing, “Backed by soulful organ and jagged guitar, Inghram brings together Americana, folk-rock, and a kind of laid back 70s rock sound to make for a song that feels reflective yet forward-thinking.” Like most people hearing Inghram’s brand of Appalachia-drenched songcraft, Glide went on to note just how well he delivers great lyrics via feel-good instrumentation. “With its lyrics that speak to living in the moment and embracing the present, Inghram proves once again to have a penchant for crafting smart tunes that resonate in a universal way and then complementing them with big guitar solos and an inviting, full-band sound.”

“My whole career has been about serving other people, and other people’s music,” Inghram explains, “And that is beautiful. But there was some piece that I felt was missing as a creative. I needed to serve my own original music with the creation of this album.” For Inghram, the past is a complicated topic. “Like a lot of my fellow musicians, I spent much of my 20s strung out, partying, and generally just made a lot of poor life choices,” he says. “A big part of making this album has been deciding that it’s not too late. All I’ve got is the now and I’m going for it.” With a breadth of musical knowledge and experience, Inghram finds his own unique musical mantra on this debut record. While it is always tempting to dwell on the past, or dream about the future, he challenges listeners to move into an existential, yet completely joyful mindset with him. “Now that I have a beautiful family, and life is better than I ever thought it could be,” he says, “I just want to make use of this moment and make sure I give everything I have to offer.”

Recorded at two different studios between 2020 and 2021, Bud Carroll and Justin Francis engineered John Inghram while Francis mixed and mastered it. It features Carroll and Adam Meisterhans on guitars, Randy Gilkey and Micah Hulscher on keys, and Sam Wiseman on drums. 

For nearly two decades, bassist, composer, and producer John Inghram has been making a name for himself as one of the most sought-after musicians in the Appalachian region, Mid-Atlantic, and beyond. John tours and performs regularly with Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. (2011 Winner of “America’s Got Talent”), jazz pianist Bob Thompson (Mountain Stage), bluegrass mandolinist Johnny Staats, and jam-band Fletcher’s Grove. In addition to these, John performs regularly on NPR’s Mountain Stage Radio Show and serves as the show’s assistant producer. He has also toured with and/or backed up musical luminaries such as Chuck Prophet, Vince Herman (Leftover Salmon), Joshua Hedley, Catherine Russell (Steely Dan, Bowie), Roosevelt Collier, Larry Coryell, Branford Marsalis, Janis Ian, Kathy Mattea, Kris Myers (Umphrey’s Mcgee), Patrick Sweany, Christian Lopez, and many more.

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Railroad Earth turns the page on new album All For The Song

The ten song, Anders Osborne-produced LP is available now. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Easing into their third decade as a band, jam-scene pioneers Railroad Earth have been hard at work keeping their bluegrass soul and rock and roll spirit alive and well. On April 22, the next chapter of RRE unfolded with the release of their new album All For The Song; a ten-song collection filled with tales of biblical road-trip rainstorms, Louisiana getaways, and losing their brother too soon. Since the completion of All For The Song, Railroad Earth has trickled out singles like “The Great Divide,” “It’s So Good,” and “Runnin’ Wild,” to the delight of fans and critics alike, slowly giving tastes of what the band refers to as their “destination” album produced in New Orleans by the Big Easy’s favorite guitar-slinging Swede, Anders Osborne. (Railroad Earth, 2022)

In 2018, Railroad Earth—Todd Sheaffer [lead vocals, acoustic guitar], Tim Carbone [violins, electric guitar, vocals], John Skehan [mandolin, bouzouki, piano, vocals], Carey Harmon [drums, percussion, vocals], and Andrew Altman [upright & electric bass]—bid farewell to founding member and lifelong friend Andy Goessling who passed away from cancer. His shadow loomed over the process as the guys retreated to New Orleans for the first time to record.

Another first, they recorded with Anders Osborne behind the board as producer. It might have been the gumbo, but the guys seamlessly absorbed the homegrown flavors of the Big Easy by osmosis, incorporating horns, blues harmonica, and the producer’s own perspective and guitar playing. “His enthusiasm is contagious,” exclaims Carey. “There are five producers in this band, so a strong-willed voice from the outside is usually pretty essential. Anders was the voice.” Todd agrees, “He brought a pure and striving soul, unforgettable laugh, rich palette of emotion, a great stash of guitars and amps, philosophical driftings, freedom, unguarded honesty, warmth, and love.”

All For The Song track list:
The Great Divide
Blues Highway
It’s So Good
Showers of Rain
Come And Go Moon
Runnin’ Wild
My Favorite Spot
Slippin’ Away
Driftin’ – The Bardo – Driftin’
All For The Song

Catch Railroad Earth on tour:
May 20 – Kansas City, MO – Bluegrass in the Bottoms
May 26 – Jersey City, NJ – White Eagle Hall
May 27-28 – Cumberland, MD – DelFest
May 29 – Thornville, OH – Dark Star Jubilee
June 23 – Eau Claire, WI – Blue Ox Music Festival
June 30-July 3 – Quincy, CA – High Sierra Music Festival
July 8 – Jay, VT – Jeezum Crow Festival
July 21-24 – North Plains, OR – Northwest String Summit
July 29 – Johnstown, PA – Flood City Music Festival
July 31 – Floyd, VA – FloydFest

New comic book release: ‘The Adventure of Reese Rabbit’ by Hunter Reese

‘The Adventure of Reese Rabbit’ features a fun-loving, energized, life-size bunny named Reese Rabbit. Photo: Hunter Reese, used with permission.

My name is Hunter Reese. I am a young writer who grew up in Southern California loving comic books; my favorites were the ones about superheroes. I am also a big fan of cartoons so I thought I would make some cartoony comics as well. Over the years I have written so many stories and characters and I thought it was time to finally bring them to life. This is the start of many issues of Reese Rabbit comics I plan to write as well as other comic books from multiple genres. “The Adventure of Reese Rabbit” is the first in the series. Read all about the adventures of a fun-loving, energized, life-sized bunny named Reese Rabbit as he travels through his animal-filled world. It is illustrated by Inggit Awalliyah. (Hunter Reese, 2022)

“The Adventure of Reese Rabbit” – This comic book is about an anthropomorphic bunny rabbit named Reese who lives in a carrot-shaped house within a city filled with other anthropomorphic animals. This particular issue focuses on Reese Rabbit and his best friend, Jack Houndsberg, trying to get rid of a rat that has made itself at home in Reese’s house.

Available now through CWS Book Store in paperback form or digital download. 

Sponsored Post

New movie release: British crime thriller Bluff

Bluff will be available on Amazon Prime beginning April 28, 2022. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Indie Rights, in association with Catharsis Films, is proud to present Bluff from writer-director Sheikh Shahnawaz in his feature directorial debut, starring Gurj Gill, Jason Adam, Nisaro Karim (24 Little Hours), James Jaysen Bryhan (Shadow and Bone) and Joe Egan (Sherlock Holmes) with music by Savfk. BLUFF will be available on Amazon Prime April 28, 2022. (Catharsis Films, 2022).

Detective Sergeant Daniel Miller is suspended from the London Metropolitan Police so that he can be secretly deployed to a small English town on an undercover assignment to uncover Britain’s major suppliers of heroin and crack cocaine. He poses as a heroin addict and manipulates an unsuspecting junkie into working with him so that he can infiltrate the local drug network and work his way up the supply chain. The line between duty and criminality begins to blur as Miller’s investigation becomes increasingly dangerous the closer he gets to finding the source of a drug trafficker. The truth will get you killed.

British-Bangladeshi screenwriter and producer Sheikh Shahnawaz is the director. He has written and directed a host of short films, including Friend Request (2015), Stalker (2016), Duality (2018), The Woods (2018) and Trick (2018) to name but a few. Bluff is the feature directorial debut by Sheikh Shahnawaz.

Michael Shaw’s debut album He Rode On

Michael Shaw’s debut album He Rode On will be out June 3, 2022. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Surrounded by the majestic beauty and rugged wilderness of the Northern Rockies, songwriter Michael Shaw worked as a horseman and wilderness ranger in Western Montana for more than a decade, patrolling the wildest reaches of Glacier National Park with his two horses, Pancho and Snuffy. Without knowing it at the time, that unpredictable natural landscape, and the isolation that goes along with it, shaped his upcoming debut album, He Rode On, bringing an unbridled authenticity to his music and truth in every lyrical reference—from living off the land to cheating death. Wide Open Country premiered the first taste of He Rode On with the hard-driving, honky-tonk lust story of “Cowboy Boots And A Little Country Dress.” (Michael Shaw, 2022)

“Cowboy Boots And A Little Country Dress” came about after Shaw and his cronies ventured to Elko, Nevada, for the “National Cowboy Poet Gathering”—a weekend which included an encounter with Canadian country artist Corb Lund’s guitar player and now-He Rode On producer Grant Siemens, Shaw learning the fine art of yodeling, having the legendary Ramblin’ Jack Elliot sign his guitar, and meeting the song’s muse while swing dancing at a country music concert. “It’s exactly what happened on our second night in Elko,” says Shaw. “In fact, nearly every idea from ‘Cowboy Boots’ is pulled directly from my experience that weekend.” Fans can relive the wild memories via the raucous Jerry Lee Lewis-meets-Dwight Yoakam vibe of “Cowboy Boots And A Little Country Dress” right now at this link. He Rode On is now available to pre-save or pre-order ahead of its June 3 release right here.  

He Rode On leads with “Bad Honky Tonker,” a sly anthem described by Shaw as “the bastard love child of Keith Richards and Dwight Yoakam.” “Outlaw’s Refuge” follows, written when Shaw was living along tribal wilderness on the Flathead Indian Reservation, making homemade wine, hunting, and fishing, and harvesting the fat of the land. Carrying on that independent streak, the song “Billy” is inspired by his long-time friendship with a wilderness muleskinner who leads his life in an inimitable fashion. Through his time living in rural places all across Western Montana, including an off-the-grid cabin without running water or electricity, to his stint as a National Parks Service Backcountry Ranger, to seven winters as the lone caretaker of an isolated horse ranch on the Blackfoot River—and all of the rambunctious extracurriculars in between—Shaw’s captivating songwriting can be directly traced to his own experiences in the West. Yet his stories are universal, whether he is delivering a rowdy barroom anthem or a meditative song about the loss of a loved one. With a swagger in his vocal and a sharp eye for detail, Shaw brings authenticity to He Rode On, as everything he references on the album is rooted in truth.

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New album release: Barton Stanley David’s Crest

Barton Stanley David’s new album Crest will be out April 22 via Kenshire Records. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

After nearly a decade of recording and performing in New York City, fifth-generation Texan Barton Stanley David decided it was time to return home. However, a fresh romance developed around the same time that left him torn between his grand return to the Lone Star State and Marketa, a Czech immigrant living in the Bronx who stole his heart. Eventually, love won out, with the pair now married and living in Dallas, but the road back to Texas inspired the first track on BSD’s upcoming album Crest, set for release on April 22, 2022. “Cicada” instantly conveys a sense of longing in a lush expanse of acoustic guitar, anthemic drums, and expressive vocals, landing somewhere between Americana and 90s alternative. “The city’s made of promises,” he sings on the album’s visceral opener. “But I’m too old to wait.” Central Track premiered “Cicada,” writing, “With a spacious and clean sound, Barton and his studio players sound confident and bright here. It’s great folky pop that gets right to the point.” Fans can hear “Cicada” and watch the video here. (Barton Stanley David, 2022)

Upon his return to Texas, with live music lost to the pandemic, Barton Stanley David formed Kenshire Records with executive producer Shane Stein and began recording remotely with Grammy-winning engineer Dave Schiffman (Tom Petty, Adele, The Killers) mixing from Los Angeles. Studio sessions finally began in January of 2021 with Jeff Saenz at Modern Electric in Dallas. However, tragedy struck six months into recording when Saenz lost both arms following a freak accident with a downed power line in his front yard. Remarkably, Jeff Saenz has since returned to producing at Modern Electric, which he owns, and his story has been featured in Rolling Stone and The Dallas Morning News.

With Saenz still hospitalized and the Dallas community rallying around the widely beloved producer, Barton eventually turned to Scarlett Deering, a young engineer and violinist (The Eagles) managing the late Charley Pride’s studio to complete the album. Other notable contributors to Crest include legendary mastering engineer Howie Weinberg (Nirvana, Jeff Buckley) and additional mixers Matt Pence (Jason Isbell, Elle King) and Roman Klun (Sarah MacLachlan). Drummer Matt Young (White Denim) turns in a break-out performance, along with bassist Chris Anderson (Martin Sexton), pianist Ben Fisher, and David playing many of the instruments himself.

Thematically, Crest is a heavy but hopeful ride: the soaring alt-rock conviction of “All Ways,” chamber pop showstopper “Evelyn,” reincarnation themed closer “And The Crowd Goes Wild Again,” even ‘90s-tinged break-up ballad “If I Didn’t Tell You First” rings with a certain triumph. Still, at the album’s heart, there is a bracing. “Collectively, I think there is a feeling that we are at the crest of a societal and spiritual wave that is about to break,” the Texas songwriter says. “We paddled out on a sea of circumstance that brought us here,” he sings on the title track, “And a storm is coming clear.”

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New movie release: Reed’s Point

Reed’s Point is now available on digital and DVD. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Reed’s Point is a psychological-thriller/creature-feature that tells of Sarah and Alex, two survivors of an RV crash near the New Jersey Pine Barrens. On the anniversary of the accident, Sarah and Alex drive to Reed’s Point to investigate the crash site. Things quickly go downhill as they find themselves stuck in the woods unsure of who they can trust and questioning if monsters really do exist. Written by Tricia Aurand, Suzanne DeLaurentiis and Sandy Lo, and directed by Dale Fabrigar (D-Railed), Reed’s Point stars Sasha Anne, Julia Kelly, Evan Adams, Madison Ekstrand, Anthony Jensen, Joseph Almani, Lanett Tachel, and veteran actor Joe Estevez (Soultaker, No Code of Conduct). (Uncork’d Entertainment, 2022)

Reed’s Point
Genre: Horror/Fantasy
Run time: 1hr 17 min
Release date: April 12, 2022
Available on digital and DVD.
Amazon, Google Play, YouTube, Vudu,