Cinder Well - "Overgrown"

Cinder Well's latest single continues her move away from the doom folk she created while living in Ireland and into a more positive version now that she's back in her native Central California. Of course, positivity is relative, and "Overgrown" is hardly a sunny, Californian folk song. It's a lovely folk song that is a little sad, but hopeful. Plus, Amelia Baker's vocals are just stunning in this one. She has one of those timeless vocals that could have been at home coming out of a tube radio in the 1940's or a portable record player in the 1970's. On "Overgrown," Baker sounds modern while keeping a timeless quality.

You can listen to "Overgrown" below. Cadence is due out April 21 on Free Dirt Records, and can be pre-ordered here. For more on Cinder Well, check out the artist's website.

Haint Blue - "Another Year"

Photo by Rachel Verhaaren

"Another Year," the latest single from Haint Blue, is a powerful alt-folk song that is going to draw virtually all of our readers in. The song builds painfully slowly, starting off with just a quiet piano and drums. Oh, and then you'll notice this intense noise filling up the background. It's not quite feedback, but it's definitely the folk version of feedback brought in to amp up tension like this is a horror movie. The song slowly adds instruments and just keeps getting bigger and bigger until it just overflows with singer Mike Cohn's absurdly powerful voice exploding into your brain. All of this sounds like a painful, uncomfortable listen, and it is. But it's also incredibly gorgeous and somehow mainstream enough to possibly go huge. And then, just when you need the song to bring you somewhere safe, it just ends. Cohn says of "Another Year": There's a lot of rage/frustration in the song, the kind of frustration any adult feels when they grow up and realize that life's not going to be what they thought it would be (and that it has a habit of getting away from you). But there's also this softer, sadder, almost humorously self-aware part of it, too. That's why I like the song so much, it's a great (accidental) allegory to growing up."

We can't recommend this song enough.

You can watch the video for "Another Year" below. Haint Blue's new album, Overgrown, will be out on February 15. You can order a copy here. For more on Haint Blue, check out their website. Their current tour dates are below the video.

02/22 – New Deal Cafe – Greenbelt, MD

02/23 – Frozen Harbor Festival – Baltimore MD

03/04 – 49 West – Annapolis, MD

03/08 – Dante’s – Frostburg, MD

03/15 – Metro Gallery – Baltimore, MD (Album Release Show)

03/22 – Villain & Saint – Bethesda, MD

03/23 – Front Royal Brewery – Front Royal VA

Haint Blue - "Bear the Burden"

Photo by Rachel Verhaaren

Baltimore's Haint Blue might be releasing the first great album of 2019. Right now we can only hear one song off of it, but "Bear the Burden" is great. First, we all love a great backstory for an album. Overgrown is about frontman Mike Cohn's ten year struggle to flee the fundamentalist faith he was raised in and then overcoming drug addiction. The backstory aside, there is "Bear the Burden." The single goes through phases while remaining a solid whole. There is something for everyone who likes Americana here. There is plenty of traditional instrumentation, but it's also a completely fresh and modern take on the genre. Haint Blue keeps it poppy enough for the mainstream arena rocking folk fans, but it's also just odd enough for anyone who wants some experimentation in their music. It's a brilliant all-encompassing song, and you'll be able to tell everyone that you started listening to them way back when.

You can listen to "Bear the Burden" below. Overgrown, the new album from Haint Blue, will be out on February 15. For more on Haint Blue, be sure to check out their website. Current tour dates are below the song.


Saturday 2/23 @ Frozen Harbor Festival, Baltimore MD
Monday 3/4 @ 49 West, Annapolis, MD
Friday 3/8 @ Dante's, Frostburg, MD
Friday 3/15 @ Metro Gallery Baltimore, MD (Album Release Show)
Saturday 3/23 @ Front Royal Brewery, Front Royal VA