31 Days
until May 20th
until May 20th
THE CONNELLS:
The Connells, one of North Carolina’s most successful indie rock bands, have new music on the way for the first time since 2001. They’ll break their recording hiatus with “Steadman’s Wake,” a new 11-song album that will be released September 24th, 2021.
Beyond the fact that “Steadman’s Wake” is the group’s first new release in over 20 years, it is the first Connells’ album to feature their two newest members, guitarist Mike Ayers and drummer Rob Ladd (who have been in the lineup since 2002 and 2012, respectively), and the band’s first record made up of songs contributed solely by Mike Connell, who happens to take on a more prominent role as vocalist.
Three Connells albums made the Billboard 200 charts in America, but their biggest commercial success came overseas. “’74- ’75,” a pensive and moody ballad from 1993’s Giordano-produced LP “Ring,” reached the top-10 in 11 different European countries in the mid-1990s (including No. 1 in Sweden and Norway).
BOY NAMED BANJO:
In a time when the popular choice is to chase the double yellow line down the road to country radio, Boy Named Banjo thrives on its fringes. The Nashville-raised five-piece is a fusion of contemporary country, Americana and folk-rock stacked on a foundation of bluegrass.
“We’re trying to find our own niche within popular country music today,” says Sam McCullough (drums). “But not straight down the middle.”
The band is currently out on the road playing some of country music’s largest festivals including Dierks Bentley’s Seven Peaks, Country Jam, and they recently made their CMA Fest debut playing at the Ascend Amphitheatre Nighttime Concert. They head out on the road this fall as direct support to multi- PLATINUM singer/songwriter, Kip Moore on his Fire on Wheels Tour.
