Barstool Stories: The Nude Party Live at Luck Mansion

all photos by Brooke Hamilton

The Nude Party is no stranger to house shows. The gangly group has packed themselves onto the small makeshift stage at the Luck Mansion and motioned everyone closer and closer. The old window units of the historic house nestled into the Lockeland Springs neighborhood of East Nashville can’t compete with all the bodies crammed into each corner. It’s hot. Really, really hot. But somehow, the band is fed as the crowd grows larger and sweatier. They smoothly transition from one song to the next, continuously captivating and charging the audience with pure, relentless energy. No one is afraid to shout out as the intensity heightens; each song is peppered with primal whoops and smatterings of applause. If you close your eyes, it sounds like a bootleg record that you stole from your dad, the coolest one in his collection: effortless and raw.

Before the show, drummer and percussionist Connor Mikita and Austin Brose took a walk down to the corner store with us to grab a cold Lagunitas beer and discuss the inception of their first full length album and transformation from local college band to ones to watch.

“We started in basements,” Brose said as we crossed the street to the 4 Stop Market on the corner of Woodland and 14th, “primarily at house shows…that’s kind of how we cut our teeth.” The Nude Party was a favorite during their time at university in Boone, NC, becoming the soundtrack for many fellow students’ and friends’ college careers. Their self-titled debut record is “an amalgamation of all of [them] putting together the most creative things [they] possibly could for the past three or four years” according to Brose.

Once you know the Nude Party is from North Carolina, you can see the ways in which the mountain culture has crept into each of their beings; I wouldn’t be surprised if the band van was full of Nalgene water bottles with clipped on carabiners or if a few of the guys used to go exclusively barefoot. But somehow, in an area that often leans towards more folk and roots music, the Nude Party captured a modern take on the essence of 60’s underground rock. We could easily be in a basement in Liverpool surrounded by Scouse accents, but the Nude Party is all-American, smack dab in the middle of AmericanaFest. 

Though both Brose and Mikita agree that Patton Magee (guitar/vocals) is usually the main lyricist of the group, their creation process as a band is described as nothing short of collaborative. This record is a direct product of their time cutting their teeth in college and now on the road and Brose agrees that “an overarching theme might just be the lifestyle of getting to do that”. Both also praise their “producer-landlord-best friend-spiritual guide-guru” Oakley Munson and engineer Matthew Cullen for their collaborative impact on the record, recorded outside of Woodstock, NY at Dreamland Studios.

There’s no doubt that the Nude Party is just getting started. Watch their full interview below and make it out to the Nude Party in person by visiting their site HERE.

Exclusive Video Premiere: Thomas Csorba's "Crooked Kind of Free"

We’ve had the privilege of watching Thomas Csorba transform over the last year since he won our Southwest Airlines Artist on the Rise contest and joined us out on the ranch to kick off our 2018 Luck Reunion. There’s no doubt that Csorba has something special and we feel lucky to be a small part of it with the premiere of his latest live video for “Crooked Kind of Free”. Watch the video and read what Csorba has to say about the song’s inception below.

by Thomas Csorba

This hasn’t been an easy few months. The social and political turbulence in this country has rattled me to my core. I’m an American man, twenty one years of age, and I’m trying to find my role in all of this - how to heal, how to grow, how to create meaningful work, and how to care for others. Honestly, I have very little desire to get political these days. Many of these political discourses on policy or party seem counterproductive - we seem to divide as a people, and I detest the idea of providing any fuel to that fire. I don’t know much, but I know this: all agree that humans deserve respect and care regardless of race, color, gender. It’s fundamental, isn’t it?

In that spirit, when I see people being harmed, I feel compelled to speak out. When I found out about the way families are being treated at our southern border, my heart broke in two. Surely this isn’t how we were made to live. Surely there’s another way to treat our neighbors.

I’m not sure what that looks like politically. I’m a songwriter, not a politician. Right now, I believe my role is to help build bridges between people and to paint this broken place in a way that inspires people to build those bridges. I hope this song doesn't come across as a pointing finger - but, instead, as a picture of a man processing through his role in this mess we've made.  I sincerely thank you for following along, listening, and engaging with my work.

Art matters. Our voice matters. Our neighbor matters.

I’m grateful to the Texas Gentlemen for helping me bring this song to life. Beau Bedford, who has been producing my new record, and the rest of the Gents have been the perfect crew to handle these songs. I can’t thank them enough. They’ve taken me under their wing, and I’ve been learning more than imaginable. My gratitude is unexplainable.

Cedric Burnside: Hard to Stay Cool

Cedric Burnside is telling a joke. Seated in the living room stage of the Luck Mansion in Nashville, the Mississippi Hill Country Blues artist seems almost to be in character as he tells the tawdry tale– perhaps drawing on the persona of his late grandfather, the iconic blues artist R.L. Burnside, who told the joke often throughout Cedric's young life.

“My music, my everything...all started with Big Daddy (R.L),” Cedric shares with a grin. “I was definitely born into this.” Indeed, Cedric was around music from the start; picking up his first pair of drumsticks at seven years old. “As a kid, watching [my family] play...it was just so amazing. And so I kind of just really looked and learned for myself – I'd mimic what I'd see them do.”

Before long Cedric, who'd already been hanging around the clubs, found himself on the stage for the first time. “At just six or seven, when Big Daddy took a break at the juke joint to go drink moonshine or smoke a little doobie, I finally got the courage one night to just jump up on the drums.” At age ten, he and his uncle Gary, then 12, became unofficial regulars at the club. “They would have to hide us behind the beer coolers when the police came. We for sure weren't supposed to be in there.”

He went on tour at age 13, backing R.L. on the drums. “I didn't have the slightest idea. I'd say 'Big Daddy, what if they don't like it?'. And he'd say, 'don't worry about it, just do it. Do what you do at the juke joints and we'll be alright.' Sure enough, that's what I did – with all these butterflies – and after the first song people were clapping their hands; they liked what they were hearing. And so those butterflies went away.”

While the butterflies were fleeting, what remains at the core of Cedric's career are tokens of his family's memory; the most apparent being not only innate talent, but also a true sense of humor. “My brother, he passed in 2012, so he was one of my biggest fans. So I always think about him when I write music. And it doesn't necessarily make me sad anymore. These days it more encourages me. It inspires me.

While flattered by similarities drawn, Cedric doesn't want to rest on comparisons – which is evident in his latest album. Benton County Relic, a soulful, slowed down collection of blues-tinged tunes with a contemporary twist, shows that Burnside has come a long way, stretching his legs and showcasing his guitar skills – a new spin for those who know him as a blues drummer. But what remains at the core of his musicality, a nod to his hill country blues roots, is his dedication to staying true to his family's musical heritage.

“Not that I'm trying to fill my family shoes, because I think that's impossible, but I felt that very special music they created. That's all I was around my whole life. That's just who and what I am. I want to make my own mark, of course, but I also want to let people know – and show people – where I got it from. I'm proud to do that, and I'm just really looking forward to the future of writing new music.”

Check out Burnside's live performance of Hard To Stay Cool from the Luck Mansion.

Langhorne Slim at Luck Social

As dusk settled upon our Luck, TX ranch painting all the grasses gold and wild cacti pink, Langhorne Slim sauntered up to one of the corrals to serenade Willie’s horses. Quickly he had a full audience as three gathered round, nipping at his hat and seemingly stomping their hooves to the beat. After, we took to the back stoop of one of Willie’s hideouts to chat about inspiration, writing, and Vol. 2 of Lost at Last before kicking off our first Luck Social with an intimate set in the chapel. Read our full interview below.

Luck: First things first as we are here in Luck, TX - I’d love to talk to you a little bit about your experience here.

Langhorne: Luck is amazing. It’s full of bugs I’ve never seen! [laughs] Luck is what brought me back and re-energized my interest in SXSW honestly. We’d done it for many years when our band started…do the grind, have some really good times and really good shows but I kind of got burnt out on it. Then Matt and the Luck family started to do this and I was invited out one year…to have this be the main focus of what I was doing and to come out on this ranch - I mean as you can tell sitting here - it’s just such a peaceful, naturally beautiful place. Then you know that Willie Nelson is living right there and I’m not too proud to be a dork about that. I’ve gotten to see him play a number of times in much bigger places, but here - that’s really special. They just invite a lot of people that I’m both fans and friends of...homies from Nashville or just from around. In how I love Newport Folk Festival its similar and different, but it’s like a family reunion…u don’t feel the hierarchy or some of the bullshit that you do feel in some festivals or places. It brings out the genuine kindness in people for the day. This is what I want in my life, I don’t know who wouldn’t want that. It’s what you want for these sorts of events that you throw and for me and my music, I want to try and create and environment and an energy that is positive; that is inclusive; that is an elevation of vibration as opposed to the opposite. We have obviously an extraordinary amount of the opposite going on in our world right now. I think any little bit that any of us can do is a job well done.

photo via Langhorne Slim’s Facebook

Luck: I agree. With you and all the other people we invite we know you are making incredible art and want to share it for the root of the reason.

Langhorne: I appreciate that. I’ve certainly always felt in very good company. Like my favorite festivals where I’m excited and honored and grateful that I get to play.

Luck: We’ve talked a lot about Luck and trying to make it a source of comfortability and community and inspiration. Do you have a place personal to you that is a source of inspiration?

Langhorne: I do and I don’t. I’ve got a very special house in Nashville that definitely offers an energy for creativity and yet I feel like because I’ve been on the run and on the road my entire adult life, I feel almost more comfortable in that zone than I do at home. I’ll have fellow traveling musicians stay there and they’ll be like, “I wrote nine songs while I was at your house on the toilet!” and it’s that kind of place. There’s a spot that I go to in upstate New York called Old Soul. One of my dear friend’s brother, Kenny Siegal, runs it. He’s produced and co-produced the last few records of mine and my band’s. It’s just nice to be isolated out there, there’s a certain vibe out there that I like very much but also that I kind of don’t like... but it seems to kick it out of me. He helps if there’s songs that I’m struggling to finish or put pieces together. So that would be a place...but I’m always amazed if I read an interview and someone’s got a straight answer for that. Don’t get me wrong, some songs are very hard work...but a lot of it seems to come from a place that I’m not sure we have words for in our language. I don’t take any real credit for a lot of those songs…[they] almost feel like you are a vessel for this thing. If you’re awake enough or fortunate enough to be there to capture it, then there it is. That could be taking a pee, walking down the street, it doesn’t need to be sunset or anything like that.

Luck: Right, you have to be open to receive it.

Langhorne: Right! Love of course. Heartbreak of course. I wish that wasn’t the case. The middle parts of the relationship, they can be hard.

Luck: - to make poetic

Langhorne: Yeah sometimes I think. The beginnings and the ends, they seem to produce songs.

Luck: So you write when inspiration strikes you?

Langhorne: I do. I admire but I’ve never been one of these guys or girls who sits down at 9 o’clock in the morning and has a schedule like “oh I’m going to write a song a day”. I admire that and I envy that but, no. I’ve never done that. I’ve definitely written on command for my own self. I’m neurotic in general, but if I’m about to make a new record - which I am about to record a new record in about a month - I get into this frenzy or fear that I don’t have enough music. You could have a hundred songs and if you don’t have 10 or 15 real good ones, you don’t have a great record.

Luck: So will this record be Volume 2?

Langhorne: This will be Volume 2. A lot of that is written and I’d like to write more for it and see what happens. Sometimes it’s you sitting there working on it but it usually stems from, for me, a melody or a line that comes from elsewhere. Perhaps overheard on the street or something that I believe is more other-dimensional or spiritual in nature.

Luck: Will Volume 2 continue on the story from Vol. 1?

Langhorne: It’s hard to say. I don’t think Volume 1 was a downer at all...definitely kind of folksy, homespun, for lack of better terms which is exactly what I wanted. Surprisingly even to myself, I’m really craving an upbeat “Wild Thing” “Sugar Sugar” kind of vibe. I don’t have those songs yet.

Luck: We need that right now.

Langhorne: It’s interesting you know, there are songs that are so poetic and they don’t waste a word. And then there’s songs in my opinion [like] “Wild Thing” that says it all and they don’t say that much. I’m interested in maybe trying to get into that zone a little bit.

Luck: Are you going to play any new stuff tonight?

Langhorne: It depends on if you know my new record. I will play new stuff, old stuff, in between stuff, and probably some newer songs that weren’t on Volume 1. This is the very end of this tour. I’m taking a month off just to concentrate on writing for the record.

Luck: Do you guys already have a record date?

Langhorne: We probably do, I know it’s next month.

Luck: Will it be in Nashville?

Langhorne: It’s looking like it’s going to be about two hours outside of New Orleans in Cajun country. I believe it’s in Lafayette.

Luck: That’s a good source of inspiration.

Langhorne: Yeah I could have given you that answer. That music, I don’t know how for a Jewish boy from outside of Philly but Cajun music and a lot of music that comes out of Louisiana, soul music and R&B music has been as much if not more of an influence for me … well you know it’s all the same to me. It’s all punk rock. Old folk music, country music, rhythm and blues music, punk rock, rock and roll, it’s, in its rawest form, it’s the animal within. And that’s what I strive to unleash.

Langhorne Slim is hard at work on Lost at Last Vol. 2. We can’t wait for more tunes, but until then click here to listen to Vol. 1 and find Slim on tour.

Mountain Man's "Magic Ship"

all photos by Brooke Hamilton

Mountain Man joined us last week at the Luck Mansion in Nashville, TN for one of their first shows in the past year - leading up to the release of their new record, Magic Ship, available everywhere now. As Amelia Meath, Alex Sauser-Monnig, and Molly Erin Sarle took the makeshift stage in the Mansion’s converted living room for a completely unplugged set, guests piled into the room; leaning against door frames, sitting on the floor, and even spilling into the carpeted performance space. The trio’s other-worldly voices echoed throughout the room as the heat climbed and sweat-drenched audience members took in the intimate and spiritual performance.

Silence washed over the Mansion until Mountain Man sliced through the stillness with the sweet caress of their fine-tuned harmonies. Their humor and honesty kept each soul enchanted, never breaking their focus on the music. When it was all over, it felt as if we had all been cleansed in a truly communal experience of meditation or prayer; all concentrated on honoring songs, stories, laughter, and a simple spot to share them.

Luck: How did you guys get started?

Amelia: We met in college.

Alex: In rural Vermont. Bennington, VT.

Amelia: We began a band, we were actively a band for about 3 years

Alex: Yeah! 2009 to about 2012.

Amelia: And then we took a band nap.

Alex: Yeah we took a looooong nap.

Amelia: Like mini bears. And now, it’s springtime!

Molly: Or, Or! Amelia heard me singing, downstairs in this house, this like hippie lady house in college. Lots of armpit hair and lace.

Amelia: Darn tootin’.

Molly: [The house was] called Dewey at Bennington College campus and [Amelia] came down and started singing the song with me…I taught it to her, and she then taught it to Alex, and we all sang it together and felt the magic.

Amelia: We felt the good vibes.

Luck: After your long hibernation - what was the spark that made you get back together?

Alex: We all moved to the same place. For a while we were living in different zones. I was living in the mountains in NC; Amelia was in Durham; Molly was at a Zen center in California and scootin’ around. We all ended up in NC like two or three years ago. At that time we started to hang out all together again and then gradually [started] singing a little bit together. We played together at Eaux Claires festival last year and that was the sort of feeling out of the band waters. It felt really good, so we decided to give it more attention.

Luck: Can you tell me about your writing process?

Amelia: It’s the most fun writing process of all time. In that we all hang out alone and get tiny songs and then we bring them to each other. Usually it either becomes a Mountain Man song or we’re all like, “Hm, that’s an interesting song,” [laughs] and we don’t sing it together. But usually one of us starts singing and then pretty immediately the others find our parts and it becomes a song.

Molly: I think we all have separate writing processes, but the way Mountain Man writes is usually pretty consistent.

Amelia: Oddly it still works that they all hold hands in smalls ways.

Luck: Are you able to tell if it’s one of you that brought the initial snippet, whose it is after it’s finished? Like, “Oh this is Amelia’s, this is Molly’s, etc”?

Molly: Usually we come with a pretty fully formed skeleton.

Alex: To my ear and to your ears, and probably to our close friends’ ears, it’s obvious who wrote what song

Amelia: Yeah it’s usually lyrics and melody at least…if not guitar parts.

As shown to us at the Luck Mansion, one of Mountain Man’s greatest strengths is the ability to transition from songs that feel so sacred to humorous comments on everyday life. Amelia introduced their song “Underwear” saying that her husband is constantly on the search for the perfect pair of undies. Listen to “Underwear”  live from the Luck Mansion below.

Luck: Do you guys have a recent song that is a favorite to play?

Amelia: You know, I think tonight might be the third time we’ve played in a year?

[all laugh and agree] One show was just to a pond.

Alex: A scum pond.

Luck: What a lucky scum pond.

Amelia: The scum pond was really fun. Many frogs in it.

Molly: And a pair of geese that were nesting, they were lucky too.

Amelia: And a sad dying fountain.

Molly: And possibly a dead deer.

Amelia: There was once a dead deer.

Molly: In the pond.

Amelia: Now it has become the pond…But I really like “Boat”.

Alex: I really like “Boat” too.

Molly: Yeah...just all of them.

Amelia: and “Boat” is on our new record! (listen here)

Mountain Man wasn’t just sleeping during their long band nap, they were busy singing background vocals for Feist and Hiss Golden Messenger, and touring with the likes of the Decemberists and Jónsi as each took on different musical paths. Both Amelia and Molly were in another Bennington-formed band BOBBY; Alex most recently released a 7” called “Fantasy Boyfriend” through her solo project ASM; and Amelia has been hard at work as one half of the duo Sylvan Esso.

Luck: Can you talk about how singing for other bands has influenced you now as a collective artist?

Molly: I think if anything, singing with other bands has just made me notice, or see more clearly, the strength that already exists in this band. It’s always been so easy to make music together. Going into playing with other people or singing backup for other people made me realize that that’s not always the case.

Amelia: Mountain Man has always been a really intimate self-portrait of ourselves and of each other. This new iteration of it just feels like a self-portrait with a lot more self-knowledge.

Luck: With everything that’s on the horizon is there anything we should be looking out for?

Amelia: We have a tour in October…the end of October. We’re so excited, we haven’t toured in a long time. We have a record coming out Sept. 21st. It’s called “Magic Ship”.

It might seem intuitive that “Magic Ship” would be about magic, and though it certainly is full of musical mysticism, the direct title comes from Molly’s beloved cat of the same name.



Molly: She’s incredible.

Amelia: She is. Truly the sexiest cat I’ve ever seen. It’s real.

When asked about the over-arching theme of their first record in almost ten years, Mountain Man responded in a half-whisper, quickly but clearly: “Spells".

Molly: Every song feels transformative to me in a certain way. You feel a certain way when you begin to listen to it and you feel another way once the song is over.

Luck: so I would guess that making this record is very transformative?

Amelia: Yeah it was very chill-ly transformative. It was kind of one of those nice whirlwind record-makings where it wasn’t like where you go into the studio and everything’s so hard...you just feel like trash until you’re done.

Molly: And your tonsils get all pus-y.

Amelia: That’s the worst. This one was pretty chill. It was kind of like a spell, in that we all got together and we were like, “Oh we got it, we made it!”. Yeah. Chillest birth of all time.

Listen to “Magic Ship” below and make sure to catch Mountain Man on tour this fall.

Sources: Echo Park Rising - LA's Neighborhood Music and Arts Festival

photos by Vivien Best

Echo Park may seem like an unlikely place for the Luck Family to land, but even cowboys and outlaws made it in and out of Hollywood eventually. The Los Angeles neighborhood of Echo Park, just south of Silver Lake, has been home to music legends like Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon, and Gram Parsons over the years. It's rumored that the "Burrito King" restaurant down the street from the park on Sunset Blvd. is the very spot that influenced the Flying Burrito Brothers' name. Zevon's song "Carmelita" (also recorded by Flaco Jimenez, Dwight Yoakam, and Linda Ronstadt) recalls his time in the neighborhood: "I hear Mariachi static on my radio/And the tubes they glow in the dark/And I'm there with her in Ensenada/And I'm here in Echo Park". In recent years, Echo Park has quickly evolved into what has been called one of the hottest areas of the city. Eight-year-old Echo Park Rising, the community’s landmark music and arts festival founded by Liz Garo (founder of the local venue, the Echo) and KamranV (Chamber of Commerce President), has become a source of inspiration and evolution within LA’s creative landscape. We attended the fest with our friends at Mountain Valley Spring Water last weekend to dig into the community and culture of Echo Park that has come to serve as a vibrant source for creativity in LA.

Liz Garo and KamranV

When asked “How do you Echo Park?”, attendees, artists, and festival founders alike focused on the tight-knit community. Founder KamranV explained, “It’s a complete neighborhood effort, and everyone’s contributing in many different ways. It is that personal care that makes it continue.” Everyone from local businesses, musicians, artists, law enforcement, members of the community, and officials pitch in and get involved to make Echo Park Rising happen. The festival is free to attend and features over 600 acts and 120 businesses from the neighborhood and surrounding communities. This year’s music roster included electronic DJs, indie rock, rap, and even country with the Grand Ole Echo showcase.

Jocelyn Romo

The Grand Ole Echo (GOE), self-described as LA's "country and not so country music showcase", bridges the gap from the seemingly separated Texas and Nashville music scenes to that of Los Angeles. GOE's Jocelyn Romo reminded us that country roots run deep in California: "This is is about as Western as you can get, literally. Its very easy to forget that there’s a great community for country music, for anything from like very traditional stuff to something a little bit more far out like Gram Parsons...that was all very much centered in California." GOE is just one of many widely varying showcases and events throughout the three day festival, including drawing workshops, free yoga and movement classes, wildlife walks around Echo Park Lake, and even a DJ workshop for kids.

As Echo Park and Echo Park Rising grow simultaneously, one constant remains in local venue the Echo. Liz Garo opened the venue in 2001, ten years before the launch of Echo Park Rising. Over the years the venue, alongside its festival extension, has grown into a staple for up and coming local acts and touring indie bands (including a few of our #LuckFamily members like Aaron Lee Tasjan and Cut Worms). Artist Theresa Wayman of Warpaint, popularly known as TT, has been living in Echo Park for over a decade and recalls the Echo as an establishment that marked the community long before it gained popularity: "...It didn’t seem like anything was going to be happening down there or up here. There weren’t that many great restaurants up here on Sunset, and things were just really different. But the Echo was there. The Echo was happening, Echoplex was happening...I think that’s a really big point of interest and also has been establishing the culture here for so long."

Theresa Wayman

Both the festival and the neighborhood are becoming permanent additions in the creative tapestry of Los Angeles. Like every creative hub, Echo Park is experiencing growing pains; but with the rising popularity of the festival and the supportive community, it continues to thrive. Fest attendee Paulina Ruiz said, “Echo Park is young and its happening and it’s changing, but that doesn’t mean that the youth is not going to survive here.” Echo Park Rising founder Liz Garo agreed and commented on the uniqueness of her community: “I think like a lot of the neighborhoods in LA it has a good mix of the old and new. There’s a lot of history here. It’s pretty diverse still but at the same time there’s new businesses coming. I think it’s a good little microcosm of what LA is, or can be, just with the different mix of people and different businesses and the independent culture.” And there’s no doubt about it, Echo Park is on the rise.

“I just spread love. I try to spread as much positivity to the world as possible. I’m just trying to give back to the world just like my father gave back to me.” - Nathan Kiseve

“I think you do Echo Park with kindness. Kindness to all types of people, all shapes and sizes...that’s how you do Echo Park.” - Holland Belle

“I do Echo Park by doing what the fuck I want and staying hydrated.” - Hoddy Base

“All day every day.” - Shelli Louise

“10pm. Little Joy. Tonight.” - Andrew Martin

”It seems really cool and urban.” - Selma Jama

“I live here and I like to walk and run around the community and eat at the local restaurants. It’s why I moved here.” - Eleanore Guthrie

“How do you do Echo Park? You just cruise.”

“I usually play music in Echo Park and love on all the people.” - Gabrielle Wortman

“Having fun.” - Kayla Lotterer

“How do I Echo Park? Drinking lots of liquids.” - Christina Benson

”I Echo Park by only going to the Holloway. Echo Park is young and and its happening and it’s changing but that doesn’t mean that the youth is not going to survive here.” -Paulina Ruiz

“Trying to stay cool in this fucking heat.” - Jason Rosen from Smoke Season

“Just by having fun, having a good time.” - Melanie Robles

Window Flowers: The Thrift Store Find That Made the Record

Liz Cooper and the Stampede just released their latest full length album, Window Flowers, last week and we can't get enough. All throughout this spring and summer tour - including their show at Luck Reunion - one thing has remained exactly the same: the technicolor floral jumpsuit Liz wears on stage. Now, with the release of Window Flowers, we see how the jumpsuit comes into play with her album art as well. Read below to hear Liz tell the tale of the jumpsuit, share her experiences with the album release, and expand on current life.

by Liz Cooper

Oh, the places this jumper has been…

But for real, who was the previous owner of this psychedelic pant-dress-thing and where has it been? I played a She Shreds showcase last year in Nashville opening for Bermuda Triangle and as soon as I heard those gals would be sporting Hawaiian shirts, I decided to join in on the fun and find myself something festive. The jumper found me, peaking out of a clump of pastels and strange textures in the corner of a local thrift store. There were no tags and no price so it became mine for a whopping thirty dollars as a joke. Since that show, the joke has become not a joke and it’s quickly taken over my life. 

These days I’m hanging out in hotel lobby’s floating across America eating mushy continental breakfasts and drinking luke warm crappy coffee. The van rides are long and not far between but we keep ourselves entertained with good music, riddles, day dreaming and fun snacks. The road is a wild place filled with adventure and the jumper is a great ice breaker for old farmers and truck drivers at gas stations to give me that “damn hippy” look and ask me if I’m joining the circus. We ARE in our own circus I suppose.  

When I’m home in Nashville I’m busy hanging out with my Pennock People, making art with Posture Dan and playing music with my friends in the East Nashville community. I’ve been writing a lot on the piano recently and am staying up far too late under the spell of the upright and my next door neighbors very bright and very fluorescent light shining in giving me a wiiiild hair. You can probably catch me at the salad bar at the Turnip Truck or chatting with my favorite cashier there who wears a pin that I relate to very much: I’m only smiling because I have no idea whats happening.

I’m finally sitting in my Nashville home relaxing after the craziness of our release show. Posture Dan and I, along with our lovely friends, Kate and Doug Hall and Abigail Dempsey succeeded in creating a flowery blue room wonderland for the release of our debut record, Window Flowers. We made at least 30 Home Depot trips to buy pvc piping, chicken scratch and infinite masking tape to make trippy flowers emulating my beloved jumper. So many friends joined in to help create this dreamland and it was all inspired by this dang flowery mystery jumper that has become part of me. It was all meant to be. 

Images via lizcooperandthestampede.com

Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul

Aretha Franklin, the unforgettable vocalist and songwriter who dominated the charts starting in the late 60s and who never relinquished her throne, has passed away, her publicist confirms to the Associated Press. She was 76 years old. 

Take a little time today to honor this legend with us. 

Watch Aretha make our godfather Willie's song "Night Life" sound oh, so sweet...

Enjoy her 2017 A Brand New Me and "This is Aretha Franklin" Playlists on Spotify below:

On Glorietta with Matthew Logan Vasquez

One would think that playing your second set ever as a band would be a daunting task. And playing your second set ever at the renowned Newport Folk Festival? Seemingly unheard of. And yet a task that the members of “supergroup” Glorietta (Noah Gundersen, Kelsey Wilson of Wild Child, David Ramirez, Adrian Quesada of Brownout and Black Pumas, Matthew Logan Vasquez, and Jason Blum) are quite capable of executing. We caught up with Matthew Logan Vasquez at his show in Bend, Oregon at the Volcanic Theater Pub to discuss that second set, what’s on the horizon for Glorietta, and even a few band fables on pizza, cannabis, and ghosts.

LJ: Tell us all about Newport, essentially making your public debut (other than a warmup set in NJ the previous night) at America’s most famous festival, Newport Folk. Go big or go home right?

Matthew Logan Vasquez (MLV): It was great, it was all the stress. But the real set with the complete action was at Newport with Adrian. It was killer man, a whole lot of fun. Got the quirks out - spent two days at the Delta Spirit rehearsal space/studio that Kelly Winrich has taken over in Brooklyn. We rehearsed for like 12 hours straight… if I knew where the rebel bases were, I would have told! Yeah it went really great, everything was super fun, it was a dream. I love that quad stage at Newport, it’s been really fun.

LJ: You've had some great sets up in Newport.  

(MLV): Yeah yeah! I’ve played with Delta Spirit, Middle Brother, did my own set in 16 on the Quad stage and now this - it's been great, so killer.

LJ: You will have to let us all know how you are gonna top that in 2019.

(MLV): I don’t know? I’m through climbing shit, but I don't know. I have another record actually finished and recorded (This will be MLV’s 3rd LP) and that's gonna come out in next year, probably February some time “Lighten Up” is what's called.

LJ: A message we all could use right about now

(MLV): *chuckles*That's what I was telling myself.

LJ: How is it looking back at home, living across the seas?

(MLV): I feel a lot safer in Oslo, definitely. It’s give and take… with my adult vices I can’t really get the brands of tequila I enjoy, in turn I guess I drink less which is probably for the better. And they stopped selling American Spirit cigarettes. They found the color that they thought would be the ugliest color and they made the most uniform font for every cigarette so it all looks the same, super simplist, minimalist font. Now every pack of cigarettes look super cool like Scandinavians do and they stopped selling my brand.

LJ: Have you found a worthy successor?

(MLV): No no, I have to quit again, I quit for two years but when I moved to Oslo it became the good cultural break when everyone is speaking their second language in a group conversation and then it shifts back to Norwegian, I just take a cigarette and let them speak Norwegian. It’s not their fault..and then [eventually] I'll come back and they will engage.

LJ: It’s like tapping out of the wrestling match.

(MLV): Yeah yeah I’m out!

LJ: Now you are coming to the other side of the US to play Pickathon (The band’s final shows until the October tour). Besides Adrian (who also played with his band Black Pumas at Pickathon this year), none of y’all have played Pickathon, correct?

(MLV): That’s right, we're all really excited to play. Adrian is actually good friends with one of the co-founders, and is really the reason why we are even going.

LJ: We both live in Austin, the live music capital of the world, but sometimes it's nice to get outside of your backyard and find a new home. Folks like Shakey Graves, Shinyribs… Pickathon has been tapping into the Austin scene for a while now.

(MLV): Yeah you know it’s a lot to bring to the table coming from Austin. A mountain of different types of genres of music and everyone's playing at the edge of their ability. I think thats why its the live music capital of the world because it's definitely the most entertaining types to watch. You are coming from a punk esthetic, playing in dirty places, but being really proficient at your instrument and caring how you play.

LJ: At Pickathon you are playing two sets over a couple days. That's unusual for most fests.

(MLV): There’s only one other that I know of, High Sierra Music Festival in California, which is still my favorite festival only cause I haven’t been to Pickathon yet apparently. I love that opportunity, sometimes the first set is the good set and then you celebrate the second and you go a little too down the down off the deep end. Or sometimes it works the other way, but I’m thinking that it's in the woods and we are in the Pacific NW that people’s uh… viewing experience will be a bit enhanced, so to speak, so that usually creates a pretty willing audience to kinda go wherever you wanna go.

LJ: Some magical sets have occured in those woods, you all are gonna have a blast playing up there.

(MLV): We’re are down as hell.

LJ: How do you approach playing 2 different sets over a festival, do you switch it up or just see how the crowd rolls with it, and whatever energy they give you’ll give back?  

(MLV): The thing about our set and what we are doing with Glorietta is that we have six songwriters on stage and 5 of us sing our own songs within a band. Anytime you are singing you have 5 other front men and women, pushing you to be the best leader and at the same time you feel the support of everyone behind having a good time [and] you pushing it forward. That energy I think is a pretty welcome thing with an audience, so as been described to me, at Pickathon.

LJ: Does it take the pressure off? I mean, you are playing with a team of all-stars right?

(MLV): Yeah I mean, there’s no real pressure but yeah I guess so, it's really just a party on stage. Noah and Kelsey are calling out the songs, everyone's kinda gauging the audience as we play and “oh” we’re gonna play this one now, that sounds like a fun idea and we play it.

LJ: You are ready for the audibles?

(MLV): Oh yeah, that's what the 12 hours of rehearsal will get ya.

LJ: Most of the band comes from Austin with the exception of Noah who’s from the Pacific Northwest. Many of you have been hanging on the Austin scene & you are all friends. It’s like going on tour with family, right?

(MLV): It’s hilariously fun, Jud Johnson (Drums) and Brendan Bond (Bass) who are my MLV guys.. I knew they would be solid and take it seriously, so it’s very locked down in that respect.  It's a lot of look at each other for who takes on the next solo. A very Texas/Nashville kind of thing where you can turn and go *hey* and everybody's ready to roll like that, which is super fun, it's a party on stage.

LJ: Speaking of a big party, tour ends in Texas!

(MLV): We have to wait until December to play Texas, It’s killing me!  I’m playing a September (29th) show at Hotel Vegas and hopefully I’ll be able to bring up some of the guys.

LJ: Y’all are kinda of the superfriends of music. Who’s who? What’s your powers?

(MLV): Superbuds! Noah is the sex symbol *laughs* Jason is the chef and wizard and the unknown. David Ramirez is the wild card -

LJ: *chuckles*  that sounds about right.

(MLV):  He’ll close any bar he walks into no problem. Adrian Quesada is like... infinite positivity, possibilities and is just a champion. Kelsey is the person who sees around the curve and has a suggestion before anyone had a thought about the problem. I guess that leaves me, I’m the guy that, I’m like Samuel L Jackson in the Avengers movie, I’m the guy that's gonna trick all of these people to work together. I just want to say gnarly shit before I put someone down!  

LJ: The LP comes out August 24, and a tour in October with the final show in Austin in December and then Glorietta is on the shelf.

(MLV): Then its gone, with the wind

LJ: Well it would make sense that if there was a Glorietta reunion, it would have to be at Luck Reunion.

(MLV): Yeah that would take a lot of begging!  I think we're just...it was a house party that we made a record out of and then we decided to put it out on the road. It's like the amount of organization it takes six people’s careers to be in one place at the same time, it's a fucking miracle. So if we're all at SXSW who knows?  Otherwise if we are all at a festival at same time maybe something magical can happen. But leave as a place we make a brotherhood together and we share a moment, make some intimacy and then be able to give that to people.

LJ: Sometimes it's ok to make magic once or twice and then let it go. And go on making new magic in other ways, something you're pretty accustomed to.

(MLV): Yeah absolutely, always continue to tilt your own wheel to find your place.

LJ: Well we will be watching.

Glorietta played to a packed house at the Pickathon Woods Stage on Friday. An energetic set featuring songs from the new Glorietta record, their own projects and a hell raising cover of Garth Brooks “Friends In Low Places” to finish. Glorietta will criss-cross the country for 12 dates with a final three shows in Texas this coming December.

For tour dates & LP pre-order:

https://www.gloriettamusic.com

On Rodney Crowell by John Paul White

by John Paul White

The first time I met Rodney Crowell, I don’t even remember it. He does. He told me that when the Civil Wars were standing at the center platform at the Grammys preparing to go up and perform, his seat was next to it. He quipped, “Let me hold that guitar for ya.” He says I looked him in the face and smiled. I have absolutely no recollection of that at all. If I hadn’t been wired to the gills with adrenaline, I would’ve probably giggled and blushed like a child. And given him the guitar. 

Mr. Crowell (he’ll hate that I call him that) has always been the gold standard for me as a singer/songwriter. I’ve always looked to artists like him - and Emmylou, and Rosanne, and Kris, among others - as a beacon by which to navigate. They mastered the delicate balancing act between country and pop, between craft and commerciality, between gravitas and humor. He’s one of the people that showed me that you don’t necessarily have to fit. As a matter of fact, he proved that those that don’t fit can thrive. They most definitely can matter. 
 

His songs are so carefully crafted, so painstakingly articulated - but also seemingly effortless and conversational. His lyrics could exist on their own as poetry, but thank the heavens they don’t. When they’re paired with his timeless melodies and crafty voice, they carry a weight that no mere words can imbue. It’s a bar that all my songs fail to meet - but I’ll never stop trying. 
 

The first time I heard his voice, I was a kid on some Tennessee backroad in my dad’s pickup - and Rodney was seamlessly blending harmonies with Emmylou Harris on the radio as a member of the fabled Hot Band. The last time I heard it, he was blending his voice with mine. It’s hard to believe that when I call him a role model, a hero, a touchstone - I can now add the title “friend”. I’m soaking up every square inch of every moment I spend at his knee. Cause one day I wanna grow up and be Rodney Crowell. 
 

One can dream.

You can pickup Rodney's new album "Acoustic Classics" today HERE: 

Or Stream it today on Spotify. 

What We're Listening To: The Nude Party

Though this may be their first release, you'd never know the Nude Party was just getting started. Their self-titled record dropped this weekend and we can't get enough. The Stones-esque full length is full of great tunes like "Live Like Me" and "Charlie's Sheep". Don't miss out on this North Carolina-based group, listen to the full record below. 

Devon Gilfillian - Troublemaker (Live at the Smoakstack)

Check out the latest from Devon Gilfillian: a live video of his latest single, "Troublemaker" from Smoakstack Studios in Nashville, TN. Featuring Jonathan Smalt (drums), Taylor Thompson (bass), Carson Cody (keys), Abigail Dempsey (background vocals), and Maureen Murphy (background vocals), Devon and co. take us through a gritty, soulful, and groovy version of "Troublemaker". Try not to bob your head, I dare ya.