Award-winning Canadian soul-bluesman Matt Andersen recently announced the release of his upcoming album, Halfway Home by Morning (True North Records) — available worldwide Friday, March 22, 2019. This release will include upcoming singles, "Free Man" and "Quarter on the Ground,” which will both be released Friday, January 18, 2019.

Unbridled joy springs eternal from Halfway Home by Morning. His tenth full-length release, the album was recorded live off the floor in Nashville, Tennessee and deftly captures the New Brunswick-native’s long-signature and internationally celebrated sound: sweat-soaked soul meets incendiary rhythm and blues, with full doses of heartsick folk and Americana grit mixed in for good measure.

Nearly two decades into his storied career, Andersen’s room-shaking, heart-quaking voice has won him countless awards, including two European Blues Awards, seven Maple Blues Awards, an International Blues Challenge, a Canadian Independent Music Association nod and a JUNO Award nomination.

Andersen will support the release with a tour, beginning February 7, 2019, with dates in the US, UK and Europe, with more to be announced.

MATT ANDERSEN LIVE

February 7 // Winters, CA // The Palms Playhouse

February 8 // Buellton, CA // Standing Sun Wines

March 19 // Cologne, DE // Kulturkirche

March 20 // Utrecht, NL // TivoliVredenburg

March 22 // London, UK // Dingwalls

March 23 // Leeds, UK // Brudenell Social Club

March 24 // Glasgow, UK // The Blue Arrow

March 25 // Nottingham, UK // Bodega

March 29 // Baden, CH // Royal

March 30 // Mezzago, IT // Italian Blues River at Bloom Club

April 1 // Munich, DE // Technikum

April 2 // Hamburg, DE // Elbphilharmonie

April 3 // Berlin, DE // Passionskirche

While singer-songwriter Miko Marks is far from a newcomer to the music industry, her upcoming album, Our Country, will be her first release in 13 years. Set to release in March 2021, Our Country is the culmination of a dream - an actual, literal dream. A songwriter by trade, Marks’ own project has largely taken a backseat  over the past decade, as early success and heartbreak in her career made her somewhat disillusioned with the  music industry at large. Making her way to Music City -  Nashville, TN - in the early 2000s, Marks recalls the  struggles she faced as an African American independent  musician: “In trying to pursue the gates of Nashville, I  discovered that there were high fences made of stone,” Marks explains. While Marks received well-deserved accolades - "Nashville's Hottest New Country Star" by People Magazine and “Best New Country Artist” by New Music Weekly - her efforts to be  fully embraced by the industry in return proved to be elusive. This experience ultimately led her to pick up her life and move to California to start  anew, never giving up on the dream she was devoted to.

Today, Marks stands as a powerful embodiment of the underrepresented voices of Black women in country music specifically and a strong reminder of where the music is rooted. The morning after she awoke from a dream in which she recorded an album with co-producers Steve  Wyreman (Jay-Z, John Legend, Rihanna, Leon Bridges) and Justin Phipps (Founder of Redtone Records), a vision of what she was meant to  do snapped into focus. In the following months, the trio took a look at what was happening in the country they all loved and penned songs reflecting hard truths and the expansive emotions they were all feeling. The resulting album is a genre-fluid tapestry of songs woven together by Marks’ distinctive vocals. Rooted in sounds from country, blues, soul, and roots music, Our Country refuses to be put squarely into one box.

Marks will release her debut single from the album, “Ancestors,” on November 29, 2020, with a premiere on Apple Music’s Southern Craft  Radio. “We wrote Ancestors in 2020 as a call for spiritual strength and a return to our roots,” Marks says of the single. “We know that if our  ancestors survived the hardship and suffering they endured, their power to overcome is alive within us. These are difficult times: racial hatred  and violence, a global pandemic, economic hardship, our earth in crisis. But we have hope and strength that stretches back through the  generations, and will carry us forward,” she continues. Read more about Marks here and listen to “Ancestors” here.

Brooklyn-based artist and educator J.M. Clifford has announced his forthcoming LP, Trains, Thinkin’ and Drinkin’, with the release of its title track. Trains, Thinkin’ and Drinkin’ is out June 7 via Brooklyn Basement Records. While the title is a tongue-in-cheek reference to old bluegrass tropes, Clifford acknowledges they're recurring themes for a reason.

The album, recorded at Nashville’s Sound Emporium and produced by platinum recording artist Ron Pope, features contributions from some of the best session players in the bluegrass world, including Seth Taylor, Jeff Partin, Jeff Picker, and Bronwyn Keith-Hynes. Steeped in transformation, resilience, and exploration, Clifford's artistic journey resonates not only with his personal experiences. but also with the collective human spirit. By day, he is a dedicated NYC elementary school music teacher, committed to nurturing the next generation's creativity while instilling a deep appreciation for the transformative power of music.

Clifford has released two singles from the album - “Raised In The Ashes” and “Complicated Man.” “One of the joys of writing songs and making records is the fact that, at the end of the process, you’re left with this auditory journal that shows you what was going through your mind when those tunes came along,” Clifford says. “A theme that I address in this collection of songs is my evolving sense of spirituality and the conviction that we have a soul. I wasn’t raised in a particular faith tradition but I’ve spent plenty of time trying to orient myself and develop some understanding of what we’re all doing here and what the point of all of this is,” he adds.

LISTEN // WATCH (performance video): “RAISED IN THE ASHES”

LISTEN // WATCH (performance video): “COMPLICATED MAN”

Infused with influences from musical icons like Norman Blake, Gillian Welch, Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, and Tony Rice, Clifford's music is a testament to his unique ability to distill the complexities of life into timeless melodies.

From the heart of Brooklyn, he has graced stages alongside revered luminaries, engaging in collaborations with talents like Ron Pope and participating in esteemed events such as the Thomas Point Bluegrass Festival featuring The Infamous String Dusters and Dan Tyminski, the Highlands Bluegrass Festival with Cole Quest and the City Pickers, and more. Clifford’s songs have been featured in the 2022 and 2023 IBMA Songwriter Showcases. He was selected as a showcase artist at the 2023 IBMAs and was also a finalist in the Rocky Mountain Songwriter Showcase in 2023.

Trains, Thinkin’ and Drinkin’ is available for pre-save and pre-order HERE.

TRAINS, THINKIN’ AND DRINKIN’ TRACKLIST

Complicated Man

Old Brown Shoes

Sunburnt Sky

Cumberland Mornings

As It Was

Billy Goose

Raised In The Ashes

On My Mind

Trains, Thinkin’ and Drinkin’

Trains, Thinkin’ and Drinkin’ (Reprise)