Posts Tagged ‘Shannon Wurst’
The Honey Dewdrops drop by
Friday, August 27th, 2010
The Honey Dewdrops
We told you a little earlier about the Fayetteville Roots Festival, which comes to Greenhouse Grille in Fayetteville on Sunday (Aug. 29).
So, maybe it’s time we told you about one of the bands. We asked a few questions of The Honey Dewdrops, and they were kind enough to answer them despite being quite busy on a tour through Colorado.
The Honey Dewdrops, the husband and wife duo of Kagey Parrish and Laura Wortman, perform at 8 p.m. Sunday.
Here’s what we wanted to know and what they had to say:
Kevin Kinder: “Tell me a little bit about your upcoming record, “These Old Roots.”
The Honey Dewdrops: Our new record is based around traditional or roots themes and sounds with nine original songs and one traditional. We write our own songs and we’re influenced by old country and Southern Appalachian mountain music — with this cd we take what we love about those styles (true stories, earthy instrumental work, harmony singing) and make something new. We recorded the songs live (no overdubs, punch ins, etc.) because we love the energy and in the moment sound you get listening to live recordings. It’s also nice to just play and sing the songs, that’s what we love to do.
KK: When will it be it released?
THD: It’s out now and will be for sale at Fayetteville Roots.
KK: Does it follow in the path of “If The Sun Will Shine,” [the band’s previous album] or does it take another direction?
THD: It follows “If the Sun Will Shine” in that it’s the two of us singing and playing songs we wrote. We feel like the duets are a great way to make music and we’re invested in exploring how that works, this is another duet cd. The sound of “These Old Roots” takes a slightly different direction because we focused on writing songs that take traditional sounds in a new or contemporary direction. Our goal was to take the older influences and write some new songs from the southern mountains. We weren’t going for bluegrass or old-time sound specifically. We’re interested in the energy and emotion from the old songs and how we can translate that today.
Tags: 3 Penny Acre, Fayetteville Roots Festival, Greenhouse Grille, Shannon Wurst, The Honey Dewdrops
Posted in Concert Reminders, Music Industry News, NWA Music News | No Comments »
Shannon Wurst goes solo, confessional
Friday, March 5th, 2010
Shannon Wurst
Shannon Wurst knows she had a good thing going in 3 Penny Acre.
Their sound was pure, fun and, as she says, representative of the Ozarks.
But she also knows her dream: to be a solo artist. So the Alma native, who has also had brief careers as a whitewater rafting guide and a dog musher, is going it alone.
On the heels of her amicable departure for the Northwest Arkansas folk band, Wurst will release her second solo album, “What’s More Honest Than A Song?” at a show tonight (March 5) at the Smoke & Barrel Tavern in Fayetteville.
Wurst will also use tonight’s show as the starting point for a tour that will take her to the West Coast, East Coast and everywhere in between. Her tour is with a group titled the Swamp Family Band, composed of a group of songwriters who will take turns backing each other’s songs while on the road.
Wurst classifies her sophomore effort as a more honest effort in than her first album, 2007′s “Sunday Pie,” in that she wrote most of the songs featured on the new album.
It’s also a green effort — all of the album packaging is made from recyclable material and Wurst has even included a few flower seeds to plant for everyone who buys the record.
Tonight’s show is expected to begin about 10 p.m.
Before you go, take a listen to a couple of Wurst’s new tracks. The first is a reworked version of a 3 Penny Acre track that supplies the album title, “White Walls,” about a friend’s recovery from alcoholism.
The second is the song “Ivory Bill,” which Wurst wrote for the Arkansas Heritage Commission and performed at schools across the state.
“White Walls”:
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“Ivory Bill”:
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Tags: 3 Penny Acre, Shannon Wurst, Smoke & Barrel
Posted in Concert Reminders, Listen Here First, NWA Music News, Read More Here | No Comments »
Concert Wrap – 3 Penny Acre, Feb. 12 @ GoodFolk
Saturday, February 13th, 2010
3 Penny Acre
We know that good things come to an end.
And one did on Friday night at GoodFolk Productions in Fayetteville, where local folk act 3 Penny Acre played their last set together as a quartet as guitarist/vocalist/banjo player Shannon Wurst has announced her intentions to pursue a solo career on a full-time basis.
It was just two years ago that the group came together, and I was at the first concert.
As playing 100 or so gigs per year will do to a band, the group that was onstage Friday night was a much improved version of their former self. Their interplay was crisp, their harmonies rich and their presence commanding.
The night included a set by Wurst as a solo artist and then a set by 3 Penny Acre as a trio, including members Bayard Blain on mandolin and guitar, Bryan Hembree on guitar and Bernice Hembree on upright bass, seemingly to prepare everyone for the inevitable split.
The four then converged for a combined set that culminated in hugs and bittersweet tributes.
Wurst’s solo tracks will be part of the album “What’s More Honest Than A Song,” which she intends to release later this month.
The songs played by 3 Penny Acre as a trio come courtesy of the album “Highway 71,” which is expected to be released in May.
The bulk of the songs played during their combined set were primarily from the band’s self-titled 2009 album.
This is a band of infinite charm and a knack for writing a story songs of depth and poignancy. That certainly won’t end as they go separate ways, but, considering some of the accolades the band has earned together, there is some uncertainty about the future.
Good things often do come to an end. Let’s hope that other good things can come from those ends.
Tags: 3 Penny Acre, GoodFolk Productions, Shannon Wurst
Posted in Concert Wrap, NWA Music News | 1 Comment »
