If It's Too Loud...

To celebrate Willie Nelson's ninetieth birthday, Sierra Ferrell recorded a cover of his duet with Ray Charles, "Seven Spanish Angels." The original is one of Nelson's more orchestral and bigger sounding songs. Ferrell's is much more stripped down and basic. While many of Ferrell's songs are vintage country sounding, her cover of "Seven Spanish Angels" adds in more electric guitar than we're used to from her. This is her covering a vintage country classic and adding just the slightest bit of rock to the track. Sierra Ferrell is becoming one of our favorite artists to hear a cover from, and her take on Willie Nelson and Ray Charles' classic is a perfect example of that. You can listen to Sierra Ferrell's cover of "Seven Spanish Angels" below. For more on Sierra Ferrell, check out the artist's website .

In the two or so years since I discovered Sierra Ferrell, she's become an absolute master of cover songs, which we definitely appreciate. Her latest is a cover of Neil Young's iconic "Harvest Moon" recorded for The Hippie Shake. It's just Ferrell and her guitar on the song, and it's basically perfect. Sure, "Harvest Moon" is probably Young's most covered and obvious song choice, but if you asked me what song Ferrell should cover of his, I'd choose this one. Ferrell makes it just a little bit more country (but that could just be her voice) and adds a little bit of whimsy to the song. It's one of Young's more hopeful and lovely songs, and it's just a perfect one for Ferrell to take a shot at, and she obviously knocks this one out of the park. You can watch Sierra Ferrell's version of "Harvest Moon" below. For more on Sierra Ferrell, check out the artist's website .

Photo by Mama Hot Dog John Anderson is a blind spot in my country music knowledge, but after hearing Sierra Ferrell's cover of his song "Years," I may need to change that. Ferrell has become an absolute master of cover songs, and her version of "Years" may be her most mainstream sounding song yet. While she has nailed that old timey country, jazz, bluegrass, folk, etc. sound that skirts on the edge of hokey without ever going too far, this is a straight up classic country song. Hearing Ferrell stay so true to the original without straying far from it shows a deep reverence for John Anderson's work that will have you wanting to check out the country legend's entire catalog. You can watch the video for Sierra Ferrell's version of "Years" below. Something Borrowed, Something New: A Tribute to John Anderson is due out August 5 on Easy Eye Sound, and can be pre-ordered here . For more on Sierra Ferrell, check out the artist's website .

Chances are we're going to cover most things Shakey Graves puts out, but if he's going to sing a duet with Sierra Ferrell we're definitely covering it. "Ready or Not" sounds like exactly what you'd expect a duet between Shakey Graves and Sierra Ferrell, but somehow better. The song sounds like a literal dream. It has this hazy, dreamlike quality to it not found in most folk/Americana... unless it's done by Shakey Graves. And then there is just the way that his voice and Ferrell's melt into each other. It's goosebump inducing to say the least. "Ready or Not" is as fun of a song as it is gorgeous. Buckle up and get ready to listen to this one! You can listen to "Ready or Not" below. The song is available via Shakey Graves' Bandcamp . For more on Shakey Graves, check out the artist's website . Ready or Not (feat. Sierra Ferrell) by Shakey Graves

I've only known about Sierra Ferrell for a little over a year now, but I've already been converted to a die hard fan. One of my favorite things about Ferrell is her love of releasing cover songs. Her latest is a cover of Ray LaMontagne's "Hey Me, Hey Mama." LaMontagne is one of those artists that I'm not too familiar with, but you definitely don't need to be to appreciate Ferrell's cover. The original is a downhome folk song, and obviously that's Ferrell's specialty. The cover is just Ferrell and her guitar stripping the song down to it's bare essentials. The original is only about twelve years old, so it's great to see an artist covering their contemporaries and/or peers. If you tend to like the folkier side of what we cover here, this is definitely for you. You can listen to Sierra Ferrell's cover of "Hey Me, Hey Mama" below. The song is available now as a download via Bandcamp . For more on Sierra Ferrell, check out the...

I'm not quite sure how it happened, but I stumbled onto Sierra Ferrell's song "Jeremiah" a little over a year ago. It was one of those times when you hear a song from a new artist and just drop everything to hear more. It's combination of classic country mixed with a little jazz and some 60's groovy cool absolutely sucked me in. Once she released covers of "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" and "Jingle Bell Rock" last year, I was completely smitten with Ferrell's music. And then Long Time Coming was finally released. I had such an anticipation for this album that it should have been a disappointment, but it wasn't. I don't think any album this year is as fun as Long Time Coming is. The songs on this album mix together classic country, traditional folk, and jazz into one of the warmest and most familiar sounds I've heard in years. Plus, Ferrell is balancing between the worlds of serious folk musician and having a little ...

Sierra Ferrell Photo by Ken Sears This weekend saw the triumphant return of the Green River Festival after the obvious year off. It was a month later than it has been in the past and at a brand new location, but you never would have known based on how smoothly things ran. It was a weekend of fantastic music filled with respectful, joyous music fans. Nothing could have run more smoothly, with the exception of a little too much sound overlap between some of the stages. Here were my musical highlights for the weekend! (Note: I was unable to attend Friday night, and I'm not including any artist I only saw a few songs of). Bella White This one can't be a surprise to anyone who has been reading If It's Too Loud... over the past few months. I've gone fully into rabid fan mode on Bella White, but with good reason. At only twenty years old, her stage presence and banter makes it feel like she's been doing this for decades longer than she's been alive. While last year...

With the Green River Festival returning August 27-29, we're going to highlight some of the lesser known artists playing that we're most excited to see. The bottom of the poster at any festival contains some gems you don't want to miss, and especially so this year at Green River! When we first discovered Sierra Ferrell late last year, we only had two songs and desperately craved more. Her blend of classic country with a little humor and plenty of joy mixed with jazz and a groovy 60's vibe is basically exactly what we want. Then she released covers of "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" and "Jingle Bell Rock" and we were hooked completely. Since then we've been devouring everything she releases, from covers to a guest appearance on a song from Melissa Carper, to finally new original songs. Her tour dates have been exclusively on days that didn't work for me, but luckily she's performing next weekend at the Green River Festival. Ferrell ...

Photo by Alysse Gafkjen Just when we start thinking we couldn't possibly be more excited for the upcoming album from Sierra Ferrell, she goes and releases a song like "Bells of Every Chapel." This new single has this impossible amount of charm and is gloriously old timey country. It's the kind of old timey country that could very easily fall into hokey territory, but Ferrell is a master of dancing on the line just before hokey and making music that is fun. How much fun is "Bells of Every Chapel?" It includes some bird sounds towards the beginning that sound like they could be out of a classic early Disney animated movie, and it works perfectly. I have no idea how Ferrell can pull off music this enjoyable and charming without crossing the line into overdoing it, but she's a master of this trick. Plus, she brings in Billy Strings for some back-up. In a Facebook post, Sierra Ferrell says of the new song: "The way this song came about is kinda funny. I ...

Every now and then I worry that I'm going to burn myself out from Sierra Ferrell before her album comes out. "Maybe she's really not that great of an artist" I'll think to myself. And then she releases a song like "In Dreams" and I realize I'm not overhyping her at all. "In Dreams" is this whimsical country song that is both vintage sounding and modern at the same time. You're going to hear some classic Dolly Parton in this one, and that's never a bad thing. As vintage as it may sound, it's not going to sound anything like country or any Americana that you've heard before. Ferrell truly has a sound all her own while feeling familiar and comforting. Plus, Sarah Jarosz joins in for backing vocals just in case you were still on the fence about listening. You can listen to "In Dreams" below. Long Time Coming is due out August 20 on Rounder Records. You can pre-order/pre-save a copy here . For more on Sierra Ferrell, ch...

Despite Jeff and I having fairly similar tastes in music, our top ten albums of the year tend to be wildly different, with only one album on both of our lists. It's only June, and we've only heard three original songs from her (although we have extensively covered her cover songs), but it's safe to predict that this year it will be from Sierra Ferrell. Her new single, "The Sea," is this completely original blend of old timey country, jazz, cabaret, and even a little show tunes. Ok... more than a little. It's an amazingly fun song that is also a brilliant tune. Everything about "The Sea" is perfect. Not many songs can be fun and haunting, but Ferrell pulls it off. "The Sea" is a tiny bit over the top at times (like I said, it includes elements of show tunes and cabaret) but Ferrell just exudes such a sense of charm that you can't help but be completely won over. In the YouTube description of the video, Sierra Ferrell says of the new song...

Photo by Alyssa Gafkjen New blog favorite Sierra Ferrell continues embarrassing me with her greater knowledge of classic country than I have. Her latest is a cover of The Stanley Brother's "I Just Think I'll Go Away." The original is a classic honky tonk crooner along the lines of Hank Williams, just with more banjo. Ferrell's version keeps the classic country vibe, but adds a lot more modern soul in. I mean, a lot more. The cover adds some Drive-By Truckers style keys and Ferrell is absolutely belting the song out at her very best Janis Joplin level. If you've been on the fence with joining us on the Sierra Ferrell bandwagon, we'll scootch over some because you're gonna want on after this one. You can watch the video for Sierra Ferrell's cover of "I Just Think I'll Go Away" below. Sierra Ferrell's album is scheduled for release this summer on Rounder Records. For more on Sierra Ferrell, check out the artist's website .

At the risk of this site becoming an unofficial Sierra Ferrell fan page, here's her doing a cover of Bob Dylan's "Walkin' Down the Line." Recorded as part of her recent livestream series, her version keeps the classic folk sound and feel of the original. Of course, Dylan songs aren't usually referred to as bouncy, but in Ferrell's hands "Walkin' Down the Line" turns into an upbeat cheery folk song. There is so much joy in the performance of this song that it's impossible not to get sucked into it. If anything, this reminds me more of Spirit Family Reunion than Bob Dylan. You can watch Sierra Ferrell covering "Walkin' Down the Line" below. For more on Sierra Ferrell, check out the artist's website .

This past Sunday saw another edition of Sierra Ferrell's Pick Your Poison Virtual Concert Series. The theme for this one was Calypso, and it included a cover of Faron Young's 1958 song "Alone With You." Faron Young is an artist I had never heard of before Ferrell's cover, but he was a classic country singer and producer. Ferrell's cover is pretty spot on, and it's just pure classic country. She does inject the song with her own spark, which is what draws us to her music so intensely. She and her band seem to be having an absolute blast, which is what we really want with this type of cover. Plus, they stray from the original with a funkier outro, so stay tuned for that. You can watch Sierra Ferrell's take on "Alone With You" below. The third and final installment of the Pick Your Poison Virtual Concert Series is May 16 with the theme of Jazz Night at the Basement. You can get a ticket here . For more on Sierra Ferrell, check out the artist...

Photo via Facebook Ever since discovering Sierra Ferrell in late 2020, we've been craving more music from her. Unfortunately it seems to be forever since we've heard anything new, so we'll take anything we can find. Ferrell has started a virtual three night concert series called "Pick Your Poison." The first night was back on April 18 and was "Honky Tonk night at American Legion" themed. A few videos have been released from that performance, and one is a cover of Charley Pride's "Snakes Crawl at Night." It's about as perfect as you'd expect from Sierra Ferrell. It's a fun cover that lets Ferrell show off her classic country chops. You can tell how much fun she and her band are having, and that's what we truly want with a cover. Plus, the video is just the right level of over the top from the classic country costumes to the American flag made from Christmas lights as the backdrop.  You can watch Sierra Ferrell covering "...

The Green River Festival is always a highlight of any year. They've just released the line-up for the 2021 edition, and somehow this is just the initial line up. It's safe to say that this is by far their most exciting line-up ever! As always it skews heavily towards folk/Americana, but they've truly outdone themselves this year. Headliners for the three days are Jon Bastiste, Shakey Graves, and Ani Difraco, which would be thrilling enough. The other announced bands include long time If It's Too Loud... favorites like Drive-By Truckers, Deer Tick, and JD McPherson, alongside more newly discovered favorites like Sierra Ferrell, Twisted Pine, Rachel Baiman, and Bella White (who I just discovered over the weekend and haven't even had a chance to post about yet!) Plus, there are other artists we're big on like Valerie June, Mandolin Orange, Bonny Light Horseman, Charlie Parr, and Rebirth Brass Band that are all playing.  Green River Festival will run August 27-29 at...

Photo by Aisha Golliher When you call your upcoming album Daddy's Country Gold , you're opening yourself up to comparisons. The title just sounds like a cassette of country classics you'd buy at a convenience store or truck stop. Melissa Carper backs that sound up. Her latest single, "Back When," is indeed country gold. Except for the modern recording, it sounds like a song that could have come out any time between the 1950's and 1970's. It's going to immediately make you think of artists like Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton, and Hank Williams. Carper does inject a little more jazz and soul into her voice, giving songs like "Back When" such a classic and timeless vibe. Plus, another newfound blog favorite, Sierra Ferrell, joins her on this one for some additional vocals, and it's just as perfect as it sounds! Melissa Carper says of the new song:  "A lot of my songs are based on my real life experiences and with 'Back When' every si...

Just as we discover Nashville's Sierra Ferrell (and become completely obsessed with her music), she releases two new Christmas songs. Ferrell has covered two of the most iconic and beloved Christmas songs of the rock 'n' roll era: Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" and Bobby Helms' "Jingle Bell Rock." Ferrell's versions are completely perfect. They may lean more heavily towards country than the originals, but they have such a perfect vintage 50's feel to them, they sound like they could be from that time period, with just enough of a modern vibe to make them feel current. These are going to end up being must haves for every Christmas playlist you put together for years to come. You can listen to Sierra Ferrell's take on "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" below. The Christmas double single is available now via Bandcamp . For more on Sierra Ferrell, check out the artist's website . Rockin' Around...

Before you listen to the two new songs from Nashville's Sierra Ferrell, you should probably sit down. Make sure you're not doing anything that requires too much of your focus, because you're going to need it for these songs. "Jeremiah" is country, but it's country not really like anything you've heard before. There's just the slightest hint of jazz, and maybe some groovy 60's vibe poking around in there. But, despite how unique it is, there is something familiar and mainstream about it.  And then you'll hear "Why'd Ya Do It.' As much mainstream as "Jeremiah" may have, "Why'd Ya Do It" is a strange song. It has some Eastern European influences, skirting into gypsy music territory. It's almost like Gogol Bordello were influenced more by country than punk. But, there is still some pretty serious mainstream appeal here. It could be because of Sierra Ferrell's voice. As odd and unique as her music may be,...