Love (Self-Release)

Sarah Siskind & Sunliner

Released April 2017

DownBeat Five-Star Review

YouTube:

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=Qfqu2ZxF1T8&list=OLAK5uy_n8HGoBd1kHSJiEj8BETKq7NC1iWXNRes0

Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/album/6sq1qtKJRVnlsFZ731lXUe?si=pHH8xEiQQvOkEUF0h_YSTg

About:

Sarah Siskind’s music is not easily explained or contained. She’s a singer and songwriter based in North Carolina and grounded in Appalachian roots, but one who transcends category with a beguiling fusion of the traditional and the modern. Whether solo, fronting an electric band or in her harmony-laden trio The Novel Tellers, Sarah creates emotionally charged soundscapes that consistently delight and surprise even her long-time fans.

Originally classified as a folksinger, Sarah Siskind continues to be one of today’s most respected and covered songwriters as well as a stand-out independent artist, who Spin Magazine calls “an artist you must hear now”. Armed with a striking vocal style and solid guitar and piano work, Sarah is a regular NPR performer with features on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts, World Cafe with David Dye, All Songs Considered, Song Of The Day and most recently NPR’s Mountain Stage. She has toured with Bonnie Raitt, Paul Brady, Grammy winner Bon Iver (who also famously covered her “Lovin’s For Fools”) and The Swell Season, and had songs recorded by Alison Krauss (the GRAMMY nominated “Simple Love”), Randy Travis, Madi Diaz and many more. Boston folk icon Jennifer Kimball once dubbed her the perfect hybrid of Joni Mitchell and Gillian Welch. Steve Binder, the legendary LA based TV/Film Producer who has worked with Elvis Presley, Dianna Ross and Liza Minnelli calls Sarah “the best female singer-songwriter in America today.”

Siskind’s songs were heavily featured on ABC’s hit TV show Nashville. Other television shows that have featured Sarah’s songs are MTV’s Teen Mom 2, MTV’s Awkward, ABC’s Pretty Little Liars, Lifetime’s Army Wives and HBO’s The Wire.

The roots rock trio Sunliner was the brainchild of Sarah and her husband Travis Book. Even though both are busy in their own music careers, the couple started playing music together during “off” time as a way to travel together and share what they both love. It began by Travis asking to dig into Sarah’s vast catalog of songs she had written but never performed. Originally a duo, the couple took it a step further by adding a drummer. With the solid rhythm section of Book on bass and Brian Caputo on drums backing Siskind’s lush guitar work and expressive soaring vocals, there’s no need for shiny solos or trickery. The melodies and stories take center stage, often harkening back to the era of Southern Rock and Delta Blues.

Track Listing:

1. Price of Love 2:42

2. Hold on to Love 4:02

3. Not Enough 3:41

4. By You 3:11

5. Spark This Heart 3:14

6. Where Is Home 3:31

Personnel:

Sarah Siskind: vocals

Travis Book: bass

Brian Caputo: drums

Review:

New releases this spring by three unusual singer-songwriters suggest how personal a muse can be, and a variety of approaches to tapping it. Two are from North Carolina natives with Appalachian musical roots who have gone on to write sophisticated songs that draw on Americana, rock, blues, gospel, folk, country and jazz. The third is a native of Yamanishi, Japan, who is in love with and deeply influenced by Brazilian jazz. The first two, Becca Stevens and Sarah Siskind, also just happen to possess two of the most thrilling female pop voices of their generation. Like Joni Mitchell, Bonnie Raitt and Trisha Yearwood, they are instantly recognizable and have that combination of delicacy and emotive force that can bring goosebumps to your skin.

Sarah Siskind’s new EP, Love, is simplicity itself: six new songs with her roots-rock trio Sunliner. And it’s a knockout. Siskind cut her songwriting teeth penning hits for Alison Krauss (“Simple Love”), Randy Travis and Bon Iver, among others, although these days she is best known for writing some 20 songs for the hit ABC-TV series Nashville. On earlier albums, especially her 2013 masterpiece, Say it Louder, she proved she is one of America’s great songwriters. This new collection of songs strips down her art to its essence: her voice, which draws some of its emotional power from her sophisticated, original approach to melisma; her reverb-heavy, hollow-bodied electric guitar; and an excellent trio including husband Travis Book (of bluegrass sensation The Infamous Stringdusters) on bass and backing vocals and drummer Brian Caputo. All the songs are first-rate, but if I had to pick a favorite it would be “Not Enough,” a new classic of drunken misery that should be a candidate for country song of the year.

Allen Morrison (DownBeat)