Mainstream Country Makes Moves Into Americana
– – – – – – – – –
Mainstream country is not stupid. They see the rising tide of Americana artists cresting the country albums charts on a regular basis, the big Americana names selling out large venues and headlining festivals, and doing it all without the help of Music Row or corporate radio, and continuing to encroach into their overall market share. And whether its hedging their bets, hoping for big payouts, or a true appreciation for the music, they want in on the action.
We’ve already been witnessing this for a while with certain artists—the latitude that Chris Stapleton was afforded to record his breakout album Traveller being the most obvious illustration. But now the Americana movement inside the mainstream is showing signs of institutionalizing.
Big Machine Record’s favorite new toy, Midland, is a great example. Counterintuitive to what you would conventionally expect to see and hear from the same label that launched Taylor Swift and Florida Georgia Line, Midland’s taken a classic country sound with “Drinkin’ Problem,” and now made it into the Top 15 on country radio.
Forget the band’s authenticity problems, their success proves that the mainstream is willing to take a chance by putting time and money behind a band that sits well outside the industry’s cultural norms. It certainly helps to be well connected and look the part like the quaffed, refined, and calculated “ruggedness” of Midland does, but if it means better music making its way up the mainstream food chain, we shouldn’t be so quick to complain. MIdland has a classic country, Americana sound. Shane McAnally’s participation in writing “Drinkin’ Problem” proves this Americana push is an industry-wide effort, putting even the hottest names of the mainstream behind more Americana-style projects.
But this is not the only Big Machine artist looking to make waves with a more Americana style. Check out the long haired, bushy bearded Alex Williams with his retro, throwback album cover for his Big Machine Label Group debut out August 11th called Better Than Myself. Boasting to have tracked the entire album live in two days, promotional copy for the Pendleton, Indiana native espouses,
‘Better Than Myself’ is a distant cry from the sugary pop hybrids currently dominating country radio airwaves, and as far as Williams is concerned, that’s a good thing. He’s part of a new breed of upstart outsiders, writing music that at once sounds both modern and traditional, channeling the raw, authentic sound that’s made stars out of outlaw singers and red dirt rockers.
Upstart outsiders usually don’t make their way through the world via Big Machine, but perhaps it’s a new day. And unlike Midland, the Alex Williams story appears a little more authentic to himself. “I played some in Nashville and did the Broadway thing, and I played locally around Indiana some, too, but my first real gigs were in Texas,” says Williams. “I went down there because my cousin owned this shrimper bar on the Gulf coast where I could play. That was a big part of what got me so into Texas and all those Texas songwriters like Guy Clark, Jerry Jeff Walker, and Billy Joe Shaver.”
Again remember, this is a Big Machine artist saying these things. And previewing through the unreleased album, just like with Midland, the music hold up strongly, no matter the marketing angle behind it, or what label has their stamp on the back. Midland and Alex Williams both deserve strong consideration from traditional country and Americana fans.
Not to be outdone, Black River Entertainment—the home of Kelsea Ballerini—has announced their intentions to launch and entire Americana imprint as part of the label. On June 21st the label revealed they had signed established Americana act Carolina Story, and that was just the start of the foray into the subgenre.
“Americana music has a long history of celebrating the authenticity of life lived out through music,” said Black River CEO Gordon Kerr. “We are pleased to begin this journey forward as we celebrate, honor and embrace the art form of American Roots Music. Black River’s vision in establishing the studios, publishing house, management, and country and Christian labels has always been to ‘leave this place better than we found it,’ and adding Black River Americana to our label family is a natural next step in Black River Entertainment’s story.”
What does it really mean when mainstream labels talk about working with Americana acts? It means understanding there is a path forward for artists that don’t fit the standard radio single/arena touring mold. Big labels are beginning to recognize the commercial prowess of Americana, and see it as a lucrative enough opportunity financially to give it a shot.
The Big Machine Label Group recently shuttered the Dot Records imprint and let go numerous artists as part of the move. Scott Borchetta said their expansion had been too robust. But here is Big Machine and other big Music Row outfits willing to expand into the Americana realm, even if their rest of their roster is static, or even in contraction. They’ve looked at the future, and the future is Americana—or at least a world where it has a bigger place beside the mainstream.
June 30, 2017 @ 10:00 am
drinkin problems not authenticity problems
June 30, 2017 @ 12:49 pm
That’s actually one in the same. Their strategy of “let’s take 3 dudes from LA, a few of whom have successful office jobs, dress them up in western clothes, and create a country vocal trio who is marketed as being more country than anyone else out there” was very strategic in releasing as their first single a song about, what else, “Drinkin”. They knew very well that this subject sells well to the the pop country radio masses. It’s all part of the Big Machine / Midland marketing push.
July 1, 2017 @ 9:16 am
You have such a boner for critizing Midland, I’m beginning to question your authenticity.
July 3, 2017 @ 5:45 pm
Jimmy – what have I ever written about Midlan that you disagree with?
July 1, 2017 @ 3:49 pm
I’m not really concerned by an LA thing. Both Jaime Wyatt and Sam Outlaw are two LA artists putting out some awesome stuff. I think it’s when a label assembles three people and props them up by pure branding that’s the issue.
July 2, 2017 @ 10:00 am
Right now the L.A. and Southern California scene is really starting to churn out some great stuff, and it’s outside the hokey and put-on East Nashville hipster stuff.
July 3, 2017 @ 5:48 pm
Exactly Drew. Nothing wrong with LA, but mentioning it is important to the story here because the marketing is pushing them as Texans. Your last sentence hits the nail on the head.
June 30, 2017 @ 12:07 pm
not a fan of the word “Americana” I have seen it used too often to describe bland/sanitized reproductions of vintage Harley and route 66 type deco and a lot of the music described as Americana reminds me of that same deco. I really think what will happen when Americana is embraced by corporate country it will be in order to segregate traditional leaning country music into a ghetto for artists that can be sold to certain demographics and add to overall profits without there being any real danger of them affecting the mainstream business.
not explaining myself very well but im feeling that americana etc arnt the soution to traditional country’s problems they are more like baited traps.
June 30, 2017 @ 1:25 pm
I agree fully with what you’re saying here. “Americana” to me is a radio format, not a true genre. By classifying traditional country as such, it removes it further from the mainstream. Likewise, I don’t like that “Americana” has overtaken the blues scene like a giant amoeba, and encroached upon any sort of roots or folk rock groups. To me, it waters down the styles it absorbs more than it adds to them.
That is not to say that I do not enjoy artists categorized as such, so much as I think that the transition of the format into a full fledged genre has a problem of ghettoizing roots music and watering down the genres it pulls from.
July 6, 2017 @ 8:06 am
The #1 Thing To Know about Americana for YEARS has been and continues to be: It’s not a genre. It’s a format. And that’s a good thing. Formats can be WIDE (ie College Radio). The thing that’s impressive about Americana fans and artists and boosters is that they are by and large very knowledgable about the component genres of the format – bluegrass, blues, soul, country, etc. That makes for a healthy musical ecosystem, which is another good way to think of it.
June 30, 2017 @ 2:05 pm
Yeah it’s a fascinating but unexplainable genre. They love Dylan and Cash and Hank on the one hand, but then they go crazy over Mavis Staples, The Band, Gram Parsons as well. Then there’s a fascination with edgy bluegrass bands, but they reject most IBMA bands for being too bluegrass!
Lauderdale and Miller seem to be their unofficial spokesmen.
But they ignore Western Swing and most of the Honky Tonk artists which is why Dale started Ameripolitan.
Yeah that’s the 2 million dollar question…what is Americana. Never heard a straight answer that made sense.
July 1, 2017 @ 8:16 am
I do not ignore Western Swing and Honky Tonk.
July 1, 2017 @ 8:53 am
Why wouldn’t a roots music fan go crazy over Mavis Staples? As an example, she’s Tami Neilson’s idol. And saying Dylan on one hand and The Band on the other makes no sense to me, given how strongly they’re linked. And Gram Parsons is a quality gateway to traditional country music. Sin City is probably the first country ballad that I fell in love with.
I think Jim Lauderdale has made about 8 bluegrass albums, two of them with Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys. And there’s no small amount of real country amongst Buddy Miller five solo albums, although it’s been a good long while since we got one of those.
Your comments about traditional bluegrass, honky tonk and swing with respect to some in the Americana community are fair enough.
July 1, 2017 @ 9:33 am
Dude…..you misunderstand me on 17 levels! Chill out!!! Geez….I love all the above mentioned music. My vinyl collection is voluminous.I am merely making my observations on the so called Americana movement. I find it confusing to define given the seemingly bewildering amount of things included and the things excluded. I like Lauderdale and Miller ok. I
go to bluegrass festivals where people like Dailey and Vincent, Carl Jackson, Jerry Sally, Jd Crowe, Lonesome River Band, Grascals, Seldom Scene, Blue Highway, Steeldrivers all play. I never see these artists included in Americana. They are huge names in bluegrass. Crickets from Americana though. Yet they go crazy over OCMS, Trampled By Turtles, Lauderdale bluegrass albums, and many others. They embrace Hank Sr but ignore Jr and 111. They love Cash but don’t recognize Johnny Paycheck or Johnny Horton. Dude!!! Their contradictions are baffling to say the least.
Btw: I’m going to see Isbell tonite, yes Isbell the darling of Americana. So yeah, I like Americana artists but see the genre as a very strange and hypocritical mess.
July 1, 2017 @ 10:09 am
I am chilled. Just took some exception to you comment. You might want to think about chilling. And if I misunderstood you as you claim, maybe it’s not all my fault. And you seemed to miss that I agree with you with respect to traditional bluegrass, hard country and swing.
I think Lauderdale’s bluegrass are indeed bluegrass albums and they are a great combination of tradition and innovation. Moving the genre forward, as it were. And I think Buddy Miller’s solo albums are too easily dismissed by some real country fans. I don’t consider OCMS and TBT bluegrass, really, Especially TBT. I like them fine, though.
As far as Americana goes, I don’t even consider it a music genre. It’s a format. All it means to me is that if someone is tagged with that label, maybe I’ll like it. As a commenter on the old No Depression site once said, “When I say I listen to Americana music, it’s I’m lying about something but I don’t know what.” As far as the “Americana” artists that I like go, for the most, they represent where the roots rock that I liked in the 70’s/80’s went.
I saw Isbell last night. Don’t care if he’s the “darling of Americana.” I’ve been a fan since the my first listen of DBT’s Decoration Day album, when that fat kid that I saw on stage a year earlier at a DBT show blew me away with Outfit and the title track.
Unless you’ve heard already, you’re in for a special surprise treat in the covers department at the Isbell show. I know I was surprised.
July 1, 2017 @ 1:32 pm
Yeah the band, was for a time Bob Dylan’s backing band…. the band is awesome, they really started touching southern rock before allmans. Isbell loves the band too. Good article, just too bad every good thing must be consumed and digested by the man.
June 30, 2017 @ 2:54 pm
I’ve always found the word Americana to be insulting. Sort of like talking about old Frenchy music with the accordions. Not a nice way to talk about old or traditional music. I’ve never heard a satisfying definition for Americana either, beyond it being some loose collection of old-time music that the big record labels would like to smother with a pillow.
June 30, 2017 @ 4:15 pm
Don’t know how to react To this Trigger. Naturally on one end, I love it because country radio listeners will get a taste of the music we love . On the other side, will this be false hope? How much of artistic discretion will these artists have? Cautiously optimistic.. very cautious.
June 30, 2017 @ 4:34 pm
Yea what’s with this Americana? Made in America?? Vintage fetish? So far it sounds like folk music to me or dark sided soft music with acoustic guitar and occasional splash of steel guitar.
I’ve been on the fence with all these ‘Americana’ bands Trigger has been showcasing lately. I’m hoping something sounds good to me one of these days. Like finding out new music. We’ll see I suppose.
June 30, 2017 @ 4:52 pm
I just looked up Carolina Story on spotify/youtube. Heard some songs. Lmao. I dunno I guess I’m closed minded? Maybe sounds better live? It just sounds like sad folk music.
This music makes want to wonder into an enchanted forest and think about how sad my life is and how I’m going to deal with my journey ahead into the unknown.
Yea I mean it does sound better then what’s on the mainstream country radio.
July 3, 2017 @ 12:03 pm
Glad we could make you L your A off, Whiskey!
I’m actually still laughing at your sad enchanted forest comment.
Boy, that’s good stuff right there!
July 7, 2017 @ 1:25 pm
I agree Whiskey_Pete. We’re all so anxious to reclaim Country that we open ourselves up to a sack of fool’s gold. Maybe Midland are authentic, but I don’t know enough about their roots to know. I’ve only watch a few videos including ‘Drinkin Problem.’ Not sold.
And I agree that what is being pushed as real Country sounds more like sad folk music.
June 30, 2017 @ 6:42 pm
From my perspective, Americana is pretty much a catch-all. Rock radio is mostly dead (other than “classic”), blues radio is pretty much nonexistent, country radio (other than “classic”) mostly refuses to play country music or bluegrass, and pop radio shifted hard toward urban styles. So, the sort of limp, lefty-folk, coffee house core of Americana wisely seized the opportunity to open the tent to incorporate all the roots music and variety of styles that had been abandoned by radio.
I enjoyed last year’s Americanafest so much that I’m going again this year. While most of the crowd was tripping over itself to see the “East Nashville” type offerings, I was comfortably enjoying acts like the Malpass Brothers (traditional country) and the O’Connor Band (which went on to win the bluegrass Grammy) in a nice, small venue. The Country Music Hall of Fame hosted acts like Dwight Yoakam, Del McCoury, and Margo Price that week, too.
June 30, 2017 @ 8:09 pm
The debate on what to call the genre ended with the new Ray Wylie Hubbard single. Alt. Country. Lucinda Williams herself guesting on vocals.
As far as this new music, well it remains to be seen. If it’s good, then great. I’m always down for an album of great songs. Image and all that other stuff comes later. Evaluate the music based on it’s own merits. That’s how it should be. If these people are just playing dress-up then it will show in the music. Nikki Lane and Lindi Ortega got crap for that exact thing but their tunes were undeniable so that settled that.
Most likely this attempt to horn in on the Roots music market will yield the same overproduced, vapid crap that you see on the CMA awards these days.
June 30, 2017 @ 10:09 pm
Labels are one side of the equation, management companies the other. Midland (Big Machine – dist. by UMG) is managed by Sandbox Entertainment, so is Shania Twain (Mercury – UMG), Little Big Town (Capitol Nashville – UMG), Kacey Musgraves (Mercury – UMG), Dan & Shay (Warner Brothers – WMG), newcomer Seth Ennis (Arista – Sony), luxury resort Blackberry Farms as well as the estates of Hank Williams & Johnny Cash.
Jason Owen, formerly in charge of Artist development and marketing at UMG Universal Music Group for 11 years founded Sandbox in 2010. Together with Shane McAnally and Shane’s company, they just relaunched Monument Records for Sony with Walker Hayes and Caitlyn Smith.
It’s a business and investing in “diversity” keeps you away from going bankrupt.
July 1, 2017 @ 5:08 am
In a not too distant future all Nashville labels will have Americana divisions.
In a not too distant future Americana will be streamlined, polished, over-produced with the help of Shane McAnally, Ashley Gorley & Ross Copperman.
The current Americana artists will be sidelined or have to play the Nashville game. “Country” radio will play a couple of “Americana” songs. The CMA will add a new category for “Americana” acts. The new “Americana” stars will sing with Kelsea Ballerini & Sam Hunt.
July 1, 2017 @ 6:02 am
This shit is going to produce some truly terrible music.
July 1, 2017 @ 6:43 am
Yep, that’s my thought, also. Think things are bad now? Just wait, the shit show is coming to your city. If you need a little zing in your zing zang…
July 1, 2017 @ 7:09 am
Good music is good music. I think this current movement is being driven by listeners who have matured and evolved in their musical taste (combined with the original core base). Big labels might try to fake it but these (key word) listeners won’t buy what’s not real. The good news is some real artist who desevre to be recognized might finally start seeing that as a result of this.
July 2, 2017 @ 4:50 am
Here is an article from yesterday WSJ on the renascence of rock in the south including Isbell and others. To my point above these are the crowds being drawn to acts like Stapleton and Simpson as well; imo.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-souths-rock-renaissance-1498858779
July 2, 2017 @ 10:31 am
It’s a shame all that good promotion is behind a paywall. We’ve all got to get paid, but a good example of the content that should be on the free side.
July 2, 2017 @ 11:46 am
By Neil Shah
Updated June 30, 2017 6:33 p.m. ET
31 COMMENTS
Rock ‘n’ roll hasn’t ruled American pop culture for decades, but in the South, it’s enjoying a renaissance.
From the garage-punk bands of Nashville to Atlanta’s metal-heads, Southern rock scenes are flourishing, sprouting new acts, clubs and publications. The new acts are different from their predecessors: They are multi-ethnic and tackle thorny subjects with a centrist voice. Rather than hiding their accents, they take pride in their Southernness and flaunt it. Musically, they’ve splintered into a variety of styles, from retro-soul and revved-up Lynyrd Skynyrd-esque rock to punk.
“Southern rock has gone from being music made by white guys with accents like mine to being this multicultural thing that crosses so many genres,” says Chuck Reece, editor-in-chief of the Bitter Southerner, a Southern music and culture magazine whose digital audience has grown to more than 100,000 monthly viewers since its launch in 2013.
The South has long been a wellspring of American popular music, from New Orleans jazz to Memphis rock and roll to Atlanta rap. The latest rock revival shows how dramatically this region’s demographic and economic landscape is changing. In the past decade, the South has seen more growth in Hispanics, Asians and mixed-race Americans than any region, says William Frey, a Brookings Institution demographer. There’s also been an infusion of young people from New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and rural parts of the Midwest into Southern cities, drawn by a strong regional economy and lower living costs. This “blend of lifestyles, backgrounds and origins will keep the region on the cutting edge of cultural change,” Mr. Frey says.
Lee Bains III & the Glory Fires: from left, Eric Wallace, Adam Williamson, Lee Bains III and Blake Williamson.
Lee Bains III & the Glory Fires: from left, Eric Wallace, Adam Williamson, Lee Bains III and Blake Williamson. PHOTO: WES FRAZER FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Among notable Southern acts are Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires of Birmingham, Ala.; Bitter, a punk band with two transgender members and a Latina lead singer; and Alabama Shakes, led by powerhouse Brittany Howard, who is biracial.
The popularity of homegrown Southern acts has fueled a broad expansion in the live-music scene. In 2015, The Bowery Presents, a New York-based concert promoter, partnered with musician-entrepreneur Brian Teasley to open Birmingham’s 500-capacity club Saturn. The new venue is a step up from Mr. Teasley’s earlier 250-capacity room, Bottletree. “It’s unbelievable how much the demand for great music has grown here in the last 10 years,” Mr. Teasley says.
Bigger bands like TV on the Radio “didn’t come here in anywhere near the frequency that they do now,” Mr. Teasley says. Meanwhile, Birmingham’s music-business infrastructure has grown—more bands, labels, blogs, record stores and venues, such as the 1,300-capacity Iron City, he says.
Louisville, Ky., has also seen expansion. Zanzabar, a favorite local venue, recently doubled its capacity and now accommodates nearly 400 people. Co-owner Jon Wettig says he hopes an apartment the venue owns next door will entice more bands to come through.
In Nashville, Live Nation , the country’s biggest concert promoter, has been bulking up. It now runs the city’s Ascend Amphitheater and Carl Black Chevy Woods Amphitheater. Rival AEG Presents is planning to open two new music establishments—a 4,000-capacity venue and a 600-capacity one—in downtown Nashville as part of a new entertainment district.
Jordan Smith, 28 years old, founder of Nashville group Diarrhea Planet, moved there from central Indiana in 2007. His band has four lead guitarists—evoking the signature multiple guitars of Skynyrd, yet also sounding, at times, like Van Halen. Initially, Diarrhea Planet had difficulty getting gigs because Nashville bookers deemed its members transplants, Mr. Smith says. (Their name—they were a joke band at first—didn’t help.) Now, Nashville’s scene boasts bands from a dizzying array of rock subgenres, Mr. Smith says.
What unites the new crop of bands is their inclusive definition of Southernness. “The whole sweep of changes from the first era of Southern rock to where we are now has a lot to do with the younger generation becoming more comfortable living in diverse environments,” Bitter Southerner’s Mr. Reece says. Atlanta’s Bitter, which formed a year ago, sometimes sings in Spanish; its Houston-born singer and songwriter Maritza Nuñez, 21, a first-generation Mexican-American, loves Shakira and Courtney Love. Asked about “Southern rock,” which typically evokes older white bands, drummer Zo Chapman says: “We’re rock, and we’re from the South… You better put our picture in the dictionary.”
Atlanta’s Bitter, which formed a year ago, sometimes sings in Spanish
Atlanta’s Bitter, which formed a year ago, sometimes sings in Spanish PHOTO: NICOLE C. KIBERT
Perhaps the region’s biggest breakout group is Alabama Shakes, based in Athens, Ala., who won Grammy awards in 2016 for Best Rock Performance and Best Alternative Music Album. The band has racked up nearly 1.7 million in album units, including sales and streams, says Nielsen Music. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, another thriving act, debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard chart last month with their new album, “The Nashville Sound.”
Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes performs in New Orleans.
Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes performs in New Orleans. PHOTO: AMY HARRIS/INVISION/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Armed with social media, even isolated Southern bands can build fan bases. Riley Gale, the 31-year-old frontman of Dallas punk-metal band Power Trip, says touring is expensive for “land-locked” Texas bands since it takes nine hours just to drive west from Dallas to El Paso. Streaming services and social-media postings help bands get attention and pack shows. “The signal has been boosted,” he says.
The Glory Fires, who fuse classic-rock, punk and soul, released their third album on Friday. Frontman Lee Bains III, 32, an English-literature major who wears a baseball cap and holds a construction job, says his first concert was seeing the Allman Brothers Band. Yet he calls Atlanta rap duo OutKast his Beatles. “The South doesn’t sound one way,” he says. “It’s a multitude.” On “Whitewash,” a new song, he rejects white privilege, saying he doesn’t want “power over anybody.”
Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires, “The Company Man”
The Glory Fires are the latest in a line of unashamedly Southern rockers. Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote “Sweet Home Alabama” in response to Neil Young’s criticisms of the region. Drive-By Truckers, who revived Southern rock in the 2000s, took pride in Southerness but also challenged the region’s troubled history. On “The Weeds Downtown,” from the Glory Fires’ 2014 album, “Dereconstructed,” Mr. Bains tries to convince his now-wife to move back to Birmingham: “I know that Birmingham gets you down / But look what it raised you up to be.”
Seventies acts like the Charlie Daniels Band defended the South at a time when it was poor, largely rural and frequently disdained in other parts of the country. By the time pop, hair metal and hip-hop dominated in the 1980s and early 1990s, Southern accents had become a career obstacle. “Everybody was trying to run from their Southerness,” says Mike Cooley, co-leader of Drive-By Truckers.
The Nashville band Diarrhea Planet with Jordan Smith, left, and Brent Toler.
The Nashville band Diarrhea Planet with Jordan Smith, left, and Brent Toler. PHOTO: TIM MOSENFELDER/GETTY IMAGES
Today’s bands “speak loud and proud with their accents,” Mr. Cooley says. Being Southern has been an asset for Birmingham’s St. Paul and the Broken Bones. Just three years after forming in 2012, the soul-rock group, popular in the U.S. and Europe and fronted by the energetic, bespectacled singer Paul Janeway, opened up for the Rolling Stones.
When the band first started, fellow musicians and fans questioned how they succeeded being from a small Southern city like Birmingham, Mr. Janeway says. “Now it’s like, ‘Y’all from Alabama!’ ” He laughs. “It’s kind of beautiful.”
July 1, 2017 @ 7:15 am
Isnt Big Machine owned by those tools that sing ‘Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy’?
July 1, 2017 @ 7:27 am
Americana is a synonym for American.(Americana music = American music) This is why it applies to pretty much everything from art to music. Anything big record labels do is evil. They only want to be richer and more powerful while everyone under their rule suffers.
July 1, 2017 @ 11:54 am
When I hear the word “Americana” I think of lame, slightly better than mainstream country. I don’t like the term at all. That being said, I don’t have a better one. Actually, I liked alt.country better. It probably leaned more to the alt than the country.
July 2, 2017 @ 11:07 am
Americana means nothing. why do they include people like Mumford, Richard Thompson and Van Morrison? (all have been or will be given awards by the Americana Music Association)
July 2, 2017 @ 11:40 am
If Americana is a genre then it wouldn’t matter where the artist is from, would it?
July 3, 2017 @ 4:51 pm
if words have meaning it would.
Brits making ‘americana’ is an oxymoron.
July 4, 2017 @ 5:13 am
It took the Stones to introduce U.S. kids to the music of Jimmy Reed, Howlin Wolf, Muddy Waters, Slim Harpo and other blues artists. The Brits along with most European audiences knew American Roots music far better than we did and still do.
July 4, 2017 @ 8:56 am
Again, if it’s a genre, a sound, or a type of music, then it doesn’t matter where you’re from. For example, you don’t have to be from the delta to play delta blues. Ninety-nine percent of Chicago Blues artist were not from Chicago.
July 1, 2017 @ 7:31 am
I like the term “roots music” more than Americana. I think of it as honest music showcasing the influence of traditional genres. It could mean anything from George Jones to decidedly non-American music like The Pogues. As long as it is good and from the heart instead of the checkbook.
July 1, 2017 @ 8:19 am
Will be interesting to see how this plays out. I think I will continue supporting artists I love no matter what their label “Americana” or ???. I too prefer “Alt-country” to Americana or I think roots music is descriptive for some groups. Seeing groups live and buying their CDs from them is the best way to support them IMHO.
July 1, 2017 @ 3:51 pm
No issues with “Americana” on my end. I think of it more as a blend of three areas – two of which don’t really have a home in the traditional channel labels: roots, folk rock, and alt-country. It’s an easy way to describe what I listen to. I think the danger for the americana label is when it starts straying too much into indie rock.
July 1, 2017 @ 4:18 pm
I’ve always thought of “Alt-Country” as something very specific and narrowly defined, basically Old 97’s (probably my favorite band in the world) and the first two Wilco albums. Maybe because of my age and growing up in era of “college rock.” Alt-Country was a better term than “Y’allternative” though, which I used to hear a lot back in the 90s too.
July 2, 2017 @ 7:12 pm
Country is Country it shouldn’t have to assume a new identity, like Alternative, just because imposters stole it. This noise, like FGL, should find a different name since it’s NOT Country.
July 3, 2017 @ 1:38 am
I totally agree, Collin. But when I tell people who don’t really follow music too closely that I like Country, they don’t think I mean Turnpike Troubadours and Jason Boland (they’ve never even heard of them). They think it exactly means FGL and some garbage they saw on American Idol.
July 3, 2017 @ 5:43 am
I know what you mean. Until those imposters are forced to find their own genre there will be confusion. However, I prefer to tell people I listen to Real Country and not that Fake Crap like FGL. It’s important we explain it this way way so we can spread the truth.
July 6, 2017 @ 4:17 pm
I just say I don’t like that country they play on the radio.
July 1, 2017 @ 6:50 pm
Trigger,
Why have you never written an article about, or even mentioned Jake Hooker and The Outsiders?
July 2, 2017 @ 9:57 am
I see similar questions like this all the time. I have written about THOUSANDS of artists. I could write about a thousand more, and there would still be a thousand that I’ve never written about. That’s just the nature of music. Just because I haven’t written about an artist doesn’t mean I don’t support them, I don’t like them, etc. It just means I haven’t written about them as one guy with limited time and financial resources.
Specific to Jake Hooker, the primary reason is he hasn’t put out a new album in over half a decade. My artist features are done through album reviews so readers have relevant way to follow up with whatever they read. If artists want pub, they need to do things to create interest in their music. I’m definitely aware of Jake Hooker, and hopefully he will be featured here in the future.
July 2, 2017 @ 3:08 pm
I wasn’t griping, just curious. Jake is a hardcore Country act, who’s not a fake or a hipster. He’s a Texas boy, the real deal.
I wish he were more prominent, but you’ve got a great point about not having new music.
July 1, 2017 @ 8:04 pm
I don’t know if he’s written an article on him or not, but I’m pretty sure Jake was mentioned in an article about the Ameripolitan Awards in Austin where he was nominated for an award. That might have been a year or two ago
July 2, 2017 @ 11:08 am
Authenticity is a crutch
July 3, 2017 @ 8:07 am
Sonically Midland may as well be Waylon compared to FGL and Sam Hunt. Il take their slick California country over hickhop EDM spring break crap and pedestrian try-hard singer-songwriter crap authentic or not. Sing a decent fucking song and I wont care who/what you are.
Also I fucking hate Americana fans. All they want to talk about is Gram fuckin’ Parsons and fuckin’ Bob Dylan when talking about COUNTRY music. Urban black or dance musuc culture infecting country music was bad enough but I dont think I can handle a swarm of these oh-so-deep-and-introspective hipster NPR Americana types. I cant even mention Townes without some jackoff chiming in about how ‘important’ Van Zandts ‘visceral poetics’ were in their life. FUCK OFF!
July 3, 2017 @ 11:55 am
LOL ! There are definitely some just like you describe. Fortunately, there are also some regular music fans,too. For instance, the evening I watched acts like Sam Bush and Tim O’Brien, the people across the table from me were telling me about a positive experience they had booking Cody Jinks.
July 3, 2017 @ 12:32 pm
Trigger, thanks for the write up. Very interesting article, indeed. I’m curious to see how it all plays out with mainstream country labels delving into the Americana world. I don’t understand why so many bang their hands trying to define Americana. I guess that’s just what we all do. We have to put labels on things. I’ve just always either liked a band/artist or not. It’s all about the songs for me. I don’t think it’s as black and white as people will try to make it out to be. Every band’s path is unique. Every story with it’s own mountains and valleys. Our story with how we/Black River found one another is a very interesting one. One I would love to chat with you about at some point. Just as no one band is the same, every label isn’t the same. Some will make a move into the format for the dollar and a piece of the pie. Others, like Black River, truly do care about allowing their artists to create the best art they can. Whatever that looks like. In our case, for nearly ten years we’ve just hit the road, worked hard, tried to write the best songs we can, just being us. We’ve always been told we were “left of center” by many on music row. That’s just fine by us as we have always just been ourselves and wouldn’t know any different way. It took us years to hone our sound (and we still are) and I’d be the first to admit that we have yet to get that down on record. We’re glad to have the opportunity to be a part of what our new label home is doing. We’re looking forward to going into the studio later this month to try to capture the magic and make a great record. That’s all we can do. Thanks again for the article. Hope to chat down the road.
Ben
Carolina Story
July 4, 2017 @ 2:35 am
Ben Roberts,
You spoke about the article briefly, and then shamelessly plugged your project in the majority of your comment. If all of the artist’s that read this site (daily) did that, it would be flooded with “look at me, look at me”, instead of honest opinions/arguments about the music/articles. Don’t hijack the comment section like that. Not cool. People have to pay to advertise on this site in order to benefit from it’s traffic.
As far as the article, I don’t give a fuck what you label it as long as its good. Anything these major labels touch will inevitably turn to shit. History repeats itself. Well written as usual Trigger. Sorry for being grumpy.
July 4, 2017 @ 7:36 am
I didn’t feel like Ben Robert’s shamelessly plugged anything, but perhaps I’m not as grumpy as you are at the moment 🙂 . It’s his face at the top of the article and he’s mentioned here, and I’m glad he joined the discussion. I always appreciate when artists pipe up in the comments.
I feel like the impact of what this mainstream move into Americana will be is very much yet to be determined. But it is something we should keep our eyes on.
July 4, 2017 @ 8:21 am
Damn. I just woke up and read my response. I read the article yesterday morning, and then read all of the comments last night. Between a stoned day of attempting to write and a nice night of scanning the site I must’ve gotten lost in the comments. Seems I couldn’t even get thru a Monday without being a total moron. My apologies.
July 6, 2017 @ 5:54 pm
Isn’t “Americana” a name someone put there to describe a certain segment of the listeners out there? I mean when someone asks me what kind of music I like I say, “lots of stuff, blues, acoustic music, bluegrass, old time, soul music, country-but not that stuff they play on the radio, singer / songwriter, jam bands, roots rock.” Now I can just say, “Oh you know I like that Americana kind of music.”.