Thanks to a Facebook posting by wonderful local singer/songwriter Cherie Call I was recently made aware of a most interesting new musical duo, The Civil Wars. The Civil Wars consist of a pair of singer/songwriters, Joy Williams and John Paul White. In a most serendipitous twist of fate they met when their names were drawn to work together at a songwriter's conference. They had immediate chemistry and decided to join forces to become a working singer/songwriter duo. This was less than 2 years ago. They recently released their first album “Barton Hollow”. It placed #12 on the Billboard Hot 200, #2 on the Billboard Folk Chart and #1 on iTunes. The reasons for this tremendous initial success are due to a combination of things. Most importantly would be the chemistry as mentioned. Their approach to songs is quite different within the folk, alt-country genres. They make much more use of dynamics than you would expect. They can be delicate at one moment and powerful the next. Their voices intertwine, weaving around and through a song in a complex, compelling manner. Their harmonies are exquisite. Their sound is very vocal oriented with accompaniments kept simple and non-intrusive. In short they've got something beautiful, new and unusual. They've also made full use of savvy marketing, offering free downloads that include a sound board recording from their second public outing called “Live At Eddie's Attic”. Their “Poison and Wine” played on an episode of Grey's Anatomy generating immediate internet interest. They've appeared on the Tonight Show and Taylor Swift lists them as one of her favorites. It sounds like a bit of luck may have entered in, but I think there's a lesson in here somewhere for other indie acts looking to expand their audience. Don't look for these folks to be on country radio any time soon. Be grateful that it's a whole new world and we need not depend on the radio to find good music. I just now purchased “Barton Hollow” from iTunes. It's cool to compare the same songs from the live setting and see how they've recorded them in studio. The instrumentation is somewhat fuller on the record but still restrained. The vocals are definitely their signature.
