I first came across Raianne Richards and Mark Mandeville in a video for the KettlePotTrack sessions “On the Hill”. The way their voices melded together, the music was something like Gillian Welch and David Rawlings but a bit gentler. The harmonies were what really got me, then theres the clarinet, man I am sucker for a clarinet with an acoustic guitar. All I knew was that I was hooked. Earlier this year I was sent their record “Hard Times & Woes” and rather than re-summarize I’ll give you a quote “The two play off of one another with grace and poise…defined by impeccable and gorgeous harmonies, wonderful musicianship, great songwriting and smart choices in the arrangements.” So, there you go…

1) “Americana” has become the go to term for arguably every genre under the sun. How you do feel you as an artist falls under that umbrella? Where do you pull your inspiration from? What is the style of music that you most closely relate to?

RR: Americana is such a broad term. Try explaining it to someone in their 80s!! I enjoy this style and am so glad that it is gathering popularity with listeners as I feel it offers a rich sound and great lyric content which pop music has long left behind. The songs are about something! Mark and I are inspired mainly by the folk from the 1960s Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Kate Wolf, Joni Mitchell, Buffy St. Marie, Pete Seeger. Also Neil Young, Emmylou, and some of the early country singers Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Willy Nelson, Kristofferson, Cash. The singer or even song which hits the emotional nerve is what inspires me. You can’t just dance around these feelings, its better when you just go right for it even if its painful. That is the music that speaks to me most.

2) New England Americana and the Fest firmly plant their roots and morals in “community” and attempting to bring that community together in this big once a year event. The event is a culmination of a community of musicians and artists that is going on all year in other forums and gigs and so forth. What does that community mean to you and how does it effect you as an artist?

RR: Community is important to Mark and I in all aspects of our lives and a huge catalyst for our annual Massachusetts Walking Tour. The musical community from NEAF and the folk scene in general in Boston has been fairly welcoming to us even though we live an hour outside Boston. When you are not from a city it is hard to find out which rooms to try and through NEAF we have made friends who we can reach out to for advice. Also I think WUMB has become a great supporter of this scene as well.

3) Music  festivals, in general,  are fairly well known for surprise sit ins, improvisational jams and collaborations. If you could see any two of this year’s acts collaborate on stage at this year’s NEA Festival, who would you like to see?

RR: There are so many great players! I would be happy if any of these folks collaborated! We look forward to seeing some of the other acts who we haven’t laid eyes on in years. (The musicians curse… Hard to see other bands perform when you are always playing your own gigs.)

4) What local releases are you listening to right now that you think folks should be listening to as well? Any independent acts that really make you say “wow”? Friends that you want a broader audience to dig into?

RR: Dan Blakeslee has a lovely new album out that has been a long time coming. The work of Ian Fitzgerald never disappoints. Steve Pavao has some wonderful recordings with his teenage sons. We also love Kyle Swartzwelder out of Delaware and Rob McHale out of NC. Just listen to Patrick Coman’s show on saturdays on WUMB or attend the “for the sake of the song” roadshow events and you will hear how rich this scene is.

5) So, what do you have coming up either before or after the festival? Any shameless plugs you want to make whether it be shows, recordings, or anything at all?

RR: We will be hitting the road in late Oct for a few weeks and attending NERFA in Nov. where we have a Quad showcase. We were very honored to receive a showcase and look forward to joining a larger musical community.

Already thinking about recording new songs this winter.

Regional shows:

Sept 28 Artists In The Country Festival – Woodstock CT
Art show and Fundraiser for autism

Oct 4 – Oyster River Folk – Durham NH

Oct 25 – Breadbox – Willimantic CT 
OPENING FOR: The New American Mandolin Ensemble

Nov 7 – Sumner Knight Chapel – Keene NH
OPENING FOR: Tracy Grammer
This venue is a beautiful stone chapel in a graveyard. We will perform completely acoustic.

Nov 13-16 – NERFA – Kerhonkson NY
Quad Showcase

Nov 21 – Montague Bookmill – Montague MA
Featuring the MA Walking Tour ensemble with Mark Kilianski and Amy Alvey

Nov 22 – Vanilla Bean Cafe – Pomfret CT

http://markmandeville.com/