brandi carlile + hozier @ hinterland

brandi carlile + hozier @ hinterland

Apologies if the headline of this photo set made you think we had a round 2 duet featuring Hozier and Brandi Carlile a la Bonnaroo 2019 at Hinterland Music Festival this year. Our photographers were roaming the grounds a little more and captured these two performances from the crowd, so there are a few less angles to share with you. But the lighting and the audience have truly captured the mood on this, a truly intimate experience at a very large music festival.

alex lahey @ outside lands music festival

alex lahey @ outside lands music festival

In May 2018, we got our first true chance to see Alex Lahey perform live. Not only were we enchanted by her set in the mid-day heat at Sasquatch Music Festival, but it left us wanting more. Her appearance at 2019’s Outside Lands was one for the books, as she played a pretty packed Panhandle stage early on Sunday and had us reinvigorated for the remainder of the festivities.

Keep up with Alex Lahey here.

most captivating new music videos of august 2019

most captivating new music videos of august 2019

August has been a beautiful, hot, wonderful month and we are so grateful to have so much new art available to us! We continue our monthly installment of the visual soundtrack, a Youtube playlist of new music videos that we love! Most – if not all – of these videos were released this month, so if you’re looking for new releases, this is your most up-to-date list. Check it out daily for the rest of the month for new additions, and come back anytime to relive August 2019!

mxtmoon portraits @ outside lands

mxtmoon portraits @ outside lands

It’s wonderful what some fresh air can do for you. We caught up with mxtmoon at Outside Lands festival for a few quick portrait shots, and found this fun little backdrop on the perimeter of the polo field. How fun to duck into some trees and feel like you’re the only ones in the field! (Aside from Mavis Staples singing and preaching to the masses in the background. What an incredible weekend!)

Keep up with mxtmoon here.

a conversation with janet labelle

a conversation with janet labelle

For our first episode of season 2, we had a chat with singer/songwriter Janet Labelle. Of course we dove into the topic of aliens, but you best believe we got deep before that. Be sure to listen through to the end for August show dates!

0:00    Intro
0:11     EZVisibility.com
0:22    Dbl-take.com
0:33    imperfectfifth.com/merch
1:05 Janet Labelle intro
2:21 Music therapy
4:16 The Beach Boys
6:43 “I Only See You”
15:33 “Dude (Looks Like a Lady)”

17:57 Hannah Hailey
23:09 aliens
23:25 “The Twilight Zone
25:00 Area 51
28:50 4TH Street Recording

31:04 Avery reunion shows
Asbury Park 8/16
Jersey City 8/17
31:34 Rockwood Music Hall, 8/26

Keep up with Janet Labelle here.

beth bombara, evergreen

beth bombara, evergreen

On Friday, Americana rock musician Beth Bombara released her new 10-track full-length, titled Evergreen. With robust vocals that float around the Sarah Mclachlin range more often than not, we’re captivated by her well-developed sound. “I Only Cry When I’m Alone” sheds some uncomfortable light on covering up our metaphorical bruises when we are in pain. It lays out the propensity to make things seem perfect, and the truth that many of us face: We hide our hurt from others when support is much more important. And the emotion doesn’t run cold with the first track, either. “Upside Down” presents a feeling of dark nostalgia on hard times, a hard topic masked a bit by the upbeat tempo. “Anymore” slows it down considerably for us, but brings a sense of empowerment with the existence of newly-induced boundaries.

“Tenderhearted” definitely has more of your run-of-the-mill country love track flare to it, while “Growing Wings” presents a bittersweet view on change. “Does It Echo?” is interestingly composed, the strings played in a way that brings the instrumentals to the forefront of the track for the first time since we pressed “play” on Evergreen. That’s not to say we don’t hold her vocals in very high regard, but there is so much beauty in the composition that it seems to have been the driving force in the writing of this particular song. “Good News” picks the momentum back up, leading us into the title track, freeing percussion and a vivid descriptors giving life to the lyrics.

While “Criminal Tongue” does its best to blend some incredibly sassy blues instrumentals in, we can’t help but wonder if the track is a proper nod to modern day politics, or if the song tells of a more specific tale. If that’s the case, we’re clambering to find the inspiration for this one! Bombara rounds out the album with “All Good Things”, a proper tempo slowdown that has quite sincere and introspective lyrics. The way the melody plays out makes it feel like a traditional ballad, with all of the energy and emotion that Pink has provided in recent releases. Wouldn’t you agree?

Try the album on for size below!

Keep up with Beth Bombara here.