minor mine - out of heaven

i'm always excited to get international tunes, and this is no exception. here is a dark and creepy music video, featuring scarecrows and tall raven people, for the new tune 'out of heaven' by driving folk rock group minor mine of thessaloniki, greece. this song is the lead number off of their new album of the same name. understated electric guitar and organ pulse under a voice and words saturated with an old world dread. minor mine has played with americans murder by death on their european outings, and the billing makes sense.



listen to more tunes from minor mine here. check out a few more live performances and formal videos on their youtube channel.

blacktop desert - sea of fields and flame

lofi indie folk-pop out of charleston, sc, blacktop desert's songs impart a lonesomeness and distance, with dark piano driven production laying back in a haze of tape fuzz. it sounds the way a desert of black top looks, passing outside your car window on a solitary drive. the accompanying videos express that as well.





hear more blacktop desert here. like the previous three posts, these videos are courtesy of sarah murphy, check out her youtube channel for more music.

the judy chops - home and jealous hearted me

the judy chops out of staunton, va are likely one of the harder working bands in the shenandoah valley. able to appeal to all audiences, the chops play a pretty full show schedule dealing out renditions of traditional folk, jazz and blues as well as original tunes. this post features a couple of their originals, one live and one in narrative video format.





both videos are by sarah murphy. the video for 'home' was an entry in harrisonburg, va's super gr8 film festival. learn more about the judy chops here.

jonny fritz (AKA corndawg) - holy water

i love this guy, i have been following his strange career for years. i remember a show where he walked out of the coffee shop he was playing in mid song, not missing a word, getting the crowd to follow, in order to leave behind a rude audience member, who was interrupting the intimate vibe of the evening. he was playing an un-amplified, upholstered electric guitar. afterwards he sold t-shirts airbrushed with portraits of dead children. this performance, at the blue nile in harrisonburg, va, is a little different, featuring the full country style band and decidedly less wacky approach he has favored more recently.



learn more about the corndawg right here. video by sarah murphy.

sarah murphy - mama said

sarah murphy of harrisonburg, virginia, performs a heartfelt original tune in a strong clear voice. not only does she do this, but she also films a lot of other bands. i'm gonna make a series of posts from her youtube channel. check that out for a bunch of live and otherwise videos of a variety of bands.

the modern folk music of america.

jonathan livingston greyskull - great justice/tiny men

ambient droney instrumental music from the man who also makes hip hop and goes by the name satellite high. if you follow him on twitter you've already seen him tweet about this like 50 times haha.


sit back relax and zone out to it. also check out his raps here.

picardy III - a savior

confessional folk rock with intimate, graceful production from picardy III, AKA james summers, of austin, TX. james has toured extensively as the drummer of the whiskey priest while quietly self producing albums as a singer songwriter in his own right. the folks at rainboot records in the UK took an interest and are releasing his newest work, 'a savior' on their imprint. the album vacillates from quiet reflections with shimmering harmonies to more anthemic heart-on-the-sleeve numbers, with big choruses and swelling guitars.


grab the new record in a variety of formats here for eight to fifteen bucks, and explore this site to find james' other releases as name-your-price downloads.

shenandoah alley - squirrel gravy and live at larkin arts

here they are, two EPs worth of ripping blue ridge mountain bluegrass from the shenandoah valley's shenandoah alley (haha). some of my very best friends here getting together to make some tunes that make you think of those bright leaves in the appalachian fall, cold tea, hot whiskey, lightning bugs and a bonfire inside of an old washing machine. i loves these boys and their tunes.

unfortunately, digital copies of these aren't available for purchase, so listen online, or if you want one, hassle the band at one of their shows in the harrisonburg area or on their facebook.

dr. muskrat and his mississippi mudsteppas - the spasm

here is some jug band tunes from dr. muskrat and his mississippi mudsteppas, a video of whom i've featured here before. this band includes kat wodke, one of MFOA's very first contributors. this is a classic and well performed jug band revival album, in the vein of early old crow medicine show, mother mccree's uptown jug champions, and the carolina chocolate drops. it includes well worn jug numbers such as 'tear it down' and one of my personal favorites, 'st. louis blues', alongside some original numbers. give this thing a spin and dance a little jig.


also at dr. muskrat's bandcamp is the following pretty album of acoustic ambient music called the application


both are available as completely free downloads, shuffle yourself tired with the spasm, then drift off with the application.

yesper - cannibal king

i feel this guy because he is a singer/songwriter who records by himself who moved from virginia to the pacific northwest. yesper recorded these whispered ghostly folk tunes in an abandoned store front in seattle that he had to sneak into. brushed drums and closely plucked melodies make dry sounds in open spaces. get the album as a name-your-price download on his bandcamp.


here is a video of yesper performing a thom yorke song that does not appear on his album.


yesper - atoms for peace from yesper on Vimeo.

check out more yesper here. here's to sweet virginia and the misty mystical pacific northwest.

jeffrey phillip nelson - a few tunes

southern california songwriter folk from jeffrey phillip nelson. whistful americana from a man who seems unable to staunch the flow of songs from out of his heart. the about section on his facebook just says 'i love writing and recording music'. on top of his original tunes he has traditional folk songs and gospel numbers. my favorite tune, 'this rider's song', was not posted on his soundcloud (click here to download that album for free), so i've featured another couple stand-out tunes, representing the range of styles present.







contact j.p. nelson, keep up with all his news, and download all his albums for free here.

poets and peasants - winter

choral folk-pop from the frosty midwest. i have an urge to use the chamber folk description, but it is a large sound that might not fit in a chamber. this song evokes the bitter cold, bright sun and wide open spaces of a prairie winter. from the band's bio:

'like an abandoned child raised by hippies, poets and peasants is the product of the tender love of a bunch of poor people with instruments. comprised of nine multi-instrumentalists and singers sown in the midwestern soil, the group's singable, anthem-like choruses combine with sophisticated arrangements to create a sound that both challenges and inspires'

you can buy this song for a buck or go here for the whole record. below is a video of p&p performing the slightly more uptempo 'we rise' at the redstone room in davenport, indiana.

learn more about poets and peasants at their website.

ed herda - the wondrous folly of vaughn frogg

here is a slab of name-your-own-price desert americana from self described refugee from the rat race edward herda. understated folksy production, nice harmonies, and story-song type lyrics that intertwine their narratives over the course of this pleasant pastoral album.


here is a video of ed playing his tune 'dear brooklyn' at skinny's lounge



download the wondrous folly at the bandcamp and learn more about ed here at his website.

laurence made me cry - all that patience brings

this retro sounding folk pop confection by laurence made me cry AKA jo whitby of cardiff, wales, was brought to my attention due to the contributions of guitar and backing vocals to the track by freddie nunez, who's album "runaway" i featured here before. this lilting song reminds me in some of ways belle and sebastian and also of early nico, but with a more immediately appealing voice.


check out the rest of this album (called 'the diary of me') as well as several more at her bandcamp page, and learn more about shows, releases and other promotions here at her website.

dead professional - don't be cruel

another new tune from dead professional AKA john harouff of harrisonburg, va. i'm mainly sharing this with you MFOA readers due to the bitchin' picture on the soundcloud player. it is dripping with pathos and gravitas.



that and the fact that this is yet another sparse, economical, seamlessly crafted pop tune from dead professional.

nathan granofsky - yes soliciting

this home-made album of killer bedroom pop from harrisonburg, va's nathan granofsky was introduced to me by brent finnegan on a recent visit of his to portland, and it is great. very personal songs in an intricate pop format veer between the territories of the walkmen, radiohead, and even david bowie at times. i would venture to say certain moments even remind me of "a wizard/a true star" type todd rundgren. a surprising and vital effort.


buy it from the bandcamp so nathan can keep doing what he calls his "nathing". from what i understand he plays shows from time to time in harrisonburg.

country creatures - sliver (nirvana cover)

my space brothers from another basement country creatures have been pumping out the cover recordings lately and i can't listen to one without wanting to repost it.

Sliver by Countrycreatures on Mixcloud

however if you want to read sean's rambling explanations of his artistic process you'll have to visit country creatures.

the hollows - youngblood and august (video)

here are a couple of videos, one live, one a proper music video, from earnest brooklyn roots rockers the hollows (i wonder if they go so far as to pronounce that "the hollers"...i kind of hope not). These songs are filled with driving folk rock beats and exciting harmonies. the large membership of the band and horn arrangements on the live video bring that grandiose vision of americana reminiscent of bruce springsteen's pete seeger covers album.





i enjoy the visual conceit of the august video, where an old timey rube opens a jar which transports him to a frightening and magical world of folk-pop. learn more about the hollows' shows and releases, and stream more tracks and watch more videos, here at their website.

riah divis - lemon

this is a nice, homespun folk-pop name-your-own-price release from riah divis of spokane, washington. short-and-sweet pretty little tunes with well observed lyrics. "no more cowboys in elk" is a favorite for me.


here is a video of riah playing "apple jingle", the opening track of her album.



find out more about riah's tunes here.

bognor - when it's raining

a synthpop journey from portland, oregon's bognor, AKA @selfishsteam. i think this song is about the classic sci-fi novel dune, so strap on your stillsuit before listening.


check out other bognor tunes here, and check out his comics and zines here.

sean namei/country creautres - don't ask about my valentine

this is a demo of a new crapnap song.

Don't Ask Me about My Valentine by Countrycreatures on Mixcloud

hope fully there will be a full crap of it at some point.

michael daniels - audio recording on a sunday morning

here is a recording, done this morning i guess, by my friend micheal daniels.



its a good one!

michael benedetto - burnt hill road (video)

an 18 minute trip via sounds and video recorded by michael benedetto in a cabin in the catskill mountains over a two week period, burnt hill road shows the interaction between a musician and his surroundings and the inspiration that can be derived therefrom.



the video covers the whole length and varying moods of the ep. find out more about micheal benedetto here. don't confuse him with the member of the new york state assembly.

country creatures - solitary man

a neil diamond cover from the basement of country creatures. basically just a repost from country creatures.

Solitary Man by Countrycreatures on Mixcloud

jesse and the revelator - god bless the union and damn diane sawyer

this song is part of a concept album about kentucky coal country, inspired by service work, homebuilding, in harlan county. the two members of jesse and the revelator recorded this album together and apart...they were seperated by an ocean due to their efforts as world-wide volunteers. enjoy the mournful folk atmosphere and the detail and sense of place in the words.



download the entire album and find out more about the project here. check out other, non harlan themed tunes by jesse and the revelator here.