The Secret Sisters - "Tennessee River Runs Low"

Photo by Abraham Rowe

It feels like it's been forever since the last album from The Secret Sisters. Not too many musicians start off the way Laura and Lydia did. In 2009 they showed up at an audition in Nashville. They had never performed together in public, and three months later they were signed to a major label. They opened for Levon Helm and Ray LaMontagne on their first ever tour. Then, in 2015, they were left without a label and were dealing with a lawsuit and potential bankruptcy. That led them to crowdsource their third album, and luckily for them, Brandi Carlile asked to produce.

"Tennessee River Runs Low" is the first single from that album. Without a major label, The Secret Sisters are finally allowed to develop their own sound. Their first album was pure classic country (and was mostly filled with classic country covers), their second was more of the same with just enough growth, and "Tennessee River Runs Low" moves in a great new direction. Don't get me wrong. It's still a Secret Sisters song. Their harmonizing is unmistakable, and it still has a classic country sound. But it's a but more modern, even jazzy. It's a great direction for a band I adore that could have made a perfectly fine career just working the same sound for decades.

You can watch the video for "Tennessee River Runs Low" below. The new album from The Secret Sisters, You Don't Own Me Anymore, will be out on June 9. The album is available for pre-order now via PledgeMusic. For more on The Secret Sisters, including tour dates, check out their website.