Fresh Tracks: Ethan Setiawan “Boundless” Featured Track Music Features Track Reviews by Brian Carroll - January 4, 20240 A number of years back I fell hard and deep into the world of acoustic instrumental music. It has always been there and played a more peripheral role in my musical life. I knew a handful of fiddle tunes and enjoyed a good bluegrass jam, but never fully lived in that world until a collection of contemporary roots musicians started releasing projects that grabbed me. Ethan Setiawan was one such musician. Ethan is like Renaissance master painter. The 8 strings of his mandolin as his brush and the air is the canvas he paints with an ethereal palette of moods and colors. "Boundless" may be quick in its length, but pulls you deep into its sonic landscape. Trickling tremolo drenched in
Song Premiere: “The Bathtub Song,” by Meaghan Collins Featured Track Music Features by Ken Templeton - October 3, 20220 Every day, people say to each other some variation of this exchange: “How’s it going?” “Good! How about you?” “Good, thanks!” And there is no doubt that for a significant number of people it is not, in fact, good. But there’s an unspoken social agreement to put on a happy face. And so we go home and feel isolated. And we’re sure that we’re the only ones. Meaghan Collins’s new song, “The Bathtub Song,” gets right at those feelings of isolation. Meaghan was born and raised in Boston and now makes her home in Asheville, NC. Our friend Lisa Bastoni painted scenes for the video of “The Bathtub Song,” which we are so excited to premiere on Red Line Roots. (Shout out to Abby Altman
Song Premiere: “Big Dig,” by The Still Point Featured Track Music Features Reviews by Ken Templeton - March 18, 20220 At Red Line Roots, we pay attention to community. This whole thing started when Brian decided to lift up some of the artists he admired in Boston by writing about their work. Brian lives in Vermont now, and I live in North Carolina. So, our definition of what RLR is about has shifted a bit over the past few years. We will always love Boston, but we’re also mindful of our new communities and making sure to attend to what’s happening in our respective backyards. This time of year, my backyard is full of songbirds and Brian’s is full of snow. Anyway, imagine my delight when I received an email about The Still Point’s new record, Full Circle. Hayes Cummings,
Fresh Track: “The Hitter,” by Mark Erelli Featured Track Music Features by Ken Templeton - July 9, 20190 Bart Giamatti’s essay “The Green Fields of the Mind,” begins with the perfect description of baseball: “It breaks your heart. It was designed to break your heart.” Any Red Sox fan born before, say, 1990, could attest to that. For most Sox fans, a few names can make that heartache come rushing back. Bucky Dent. Mookie Wilson. Aaron Boone. But the reason baseball is so beautifully designed to be heartbreaking is that there is always hope. Carlton Fisk waving the ball fair, Pedro coming out of the bullpen, Big Papi hitting in the clutch. All we need is the ball to bounce our way, a little bit of luck, and we’re rolling. Mark Erelli’s new song, “The Hitter,” is a
Peep This: Mile Twelve Covers “Rocket Man” Featured Track Music Features by Brian Carroll - October 11, 20180 Bluegrass phenoms Mile Twelve are no strangers to the allure of taking a song performed in one genre and adapting it to their progressive bluegrass stylings. But, to tackle a titan of piano drive pop rock and making the tune their own, well that is quite an undertaking. The pleasantness of singer Evan Murphy's voice should never be unrecognized. I mean, I just love this dude's voice and how naturally it rises and falls...and his range while it seems effortless is something really impressive. The slow plod of the banjo, entry of a few high bass notes. This band knows how to build the excitement around a song. By the time that the chorus rolls around you are unaware of the
Song Premiere: “Barefoot Sailors” (Live), Session Americana Featured Track Music Features by Ken Templeton - May 16, 20180 Tomorrow, Session Americana will release its latest album, Live at the Haybarn Theatre. The opening track on the album is one of our favorites, so it’s a special pleasure to premiere the song here on Red Line Roots. We got to chat with Ry Cavanaugh back in March during the crowdfunding campaign for the album. The band has been in Europe for the past month or so, but they are back with a string of shows at Lizard Lounge this week (5/17, 5/18, 5/19) and just announced a residency at City Winery in September and October. So, they’ve been busy. “Barefoot Sailors” is one of those songs that gets under your skin and you just have to hear it again
Song Premiere: “Patricia,” by Reed Turchi Featured Track Music Features by Ken Templeton - May 15, 20180 Reed Turchi’s latest album, Just A Little More Faith, came out in April and it’s a real pleasure to premiere “Patricia” here on Red Line Roots. Turchi wrote the song, “about my grandmother, Patricia. When we toured through Baltimore in rainy fall 2016 we visited her in the hospital, a few days before she died and she asked me to write a song to remember her by.” Man, what a gift of a song. With each listen, you hear some other small aspect that you missed before. Patricia starts with a lopey slide guitar, patient and brooding. It’s so understated that it makes you sit up and listen. And then those lyrics--so timeless and immediate at the same time--get me
Song Premiere: “Gas Station,” by Super Doppler Featured Track Music Features by Ken Templeton - April 18, 2018April 19, 20180 There was a time when in order to get from point A to B, you had to sometimes ask directions. Super Doppler’s new song, “Gas Station,” riffs on that reality of a time gone by, pulling out the situation to develop a metaphor about knowing where you’re headed in life. The opening line, “Will somebody show me the way back home?” sung by Neal Friedman feels plaintive and searching, but then the song launches into a grooving, upbeat tune. “Gas Station,” which will be released on Spotify on Thursday, April 19, has a sense of location and dislocation, being unsure of where you are and where you fit, but being grounded in familiar landmarks and ways of knowing. I really
Singled Out: Gretchen Peters “Disappearing Act” Featured Track Music Features by Brian Carroll - April 13, 20180 Who: Gretchen Peters From: Nashville, TN Song: “Disappearing Act” Latest Record: "Dancing with the Beast" (releasing on May 18th) What About It: "The more Instagrammed and Photoshopped the world becomes, the more I’m drawn to women who don’t give a f*ck. That’s where the truth is. There’s a brutal honesty in this character that I love - she's one part Zora Neale Hurston, one part my mom, and - I hope - one part me.” Gretchen’s new album Dancing With The Beast will be released on May 18th.
Singled Out: Bobbo Byrnes “Angelia” Featured Track Interviews Music Features by Brian Carroll - March 29, 2018March 29, 20180 Who: Bobbo Byrnes From: California Song: "Angelia" Latest record: Two Sides To This Town coming out June 28, 2018 What about it: "Angelia is the muse to carry you away from what's dragging you down. If you're not liking what you're seeing in the mirror - do something, be the person of your dreams. This often means leaving the comfortableness of your current situation." - Bobbo Byrnes Bobbo is doing a lot of good in the world with his music. The new album is titled "Two Sides To This Town" and the idea grew out of the divisions we're seeing politically in the world. (it's also a lyric in one of the songs). He will be playing a few shows in the next month and a half in California before