Spring is officially here, and with it comes music. This weekend alone is packed with shows, from Amy Helm at the Shea Theater on Friday to former Caroline Chocolate Drops member Hubbie Jenkins upstairs at the Perch at Hawks and Reed on Saturday. You can also catch the Ryan Montbleau Band when they host a Green River Festival show in the ballroom at Hawks and Reed Saturday Night. At this show, attendees will have a chance to win tickets to the festival. In addition to all the live shows that are starting to take off, there are some new releases that will provide the perfect soundtrack for the warm days ahead, so let’s take a look at a few of these. Most are available on all streaming services, and for those available on CD, I’ve noted the website. Enjoy!
‘Tomorrow to the Sea’ – Opal Canyon —
Opal Canyon is the husband and wife team of singer and songwriter Debra DeMuth and singer, guitarist, and songwriter Dave Houghton (Fancy Trash). Their first album, “Beauty and Loss,” came out in 2019. The Americana duo is gearing up to release a follow-up, “Tomorrow to the Sea,” on April 8. When they made the first album, the couple was living in Conway, and their backup band consisted of such local music heavyweights as Ray Mason on bass, Jason Smith on drums, and Bob Hennessy on guitar. DeMuth and Houghton now live on Cape Cod, but they haven’t forgotten their roots and recruited Valley musicians like Smith and drummer J.J O’Connell to play on the new album. They also enlisted Jon Evans (Tori Amos, Sarah McLachlan) to serve as producer and multi-instrumentalist, and he had a substantial impact on the project.
“Tomorrow to the Sea” finds DeMuth writing songs that shine a light through the darkness as themes of hope abound. We hear this on the opening track, the gentle ballad “The Invisible,” a song about regret and connection. DeMuth’s clear, smooth voice floats above soft acoustic guitar and percussion as she repeatedly sings, “If I’d only known/ If I’d only seen/ I would have rescued you.”
Evans’ piano and lap steel work is the perfect accompaniment for “Come Ashore,” a powerful ballad about moving through difficult times. “Hope lives out on the ocean / Sometimes it comes to shore / Like the spotlight on the singer / And a lover through the door / Let me be the light, let me be the oar / Let me be the calm, in the storm.”
“Tomorrow to the Sea” starts quietly but shifts gears as it moves along. The trumpet on “Moon Song Swing “gives the song a New Orleans flair, and the bouncy “Tomorrow to the Sea (Big Hugs)” captures the same feel-good vibe heard on “Sunday Driving,” a popular song off the first album. There are some nice harmonies throughout these nine tracks, and on “Last Hurrah,” Houghton’s edgy vocals nicely complements DeMuth’s softer one. They also included a nice cover of REM’s “(Don’t go Back to) Rockville” that’s true to the original.
On “Tomorrow to the Sea,” Opal Canyon has created an album brimming with powerful emotions that are supported by solid musicianship, and memorable vocals It’s a feel good album; one that is a relaxing, soothing listen that brings to mind the feeling of sitting on the beach on a warm summer day.
Opal Canyon will hold a CD release show at the Parlor Room in Northampton on Saturday, April 9, at 7 p.m. opalcanyon.net
‘Hollywood’ — The Lonesome Brothers — Captivating Music
On their ninth studio album, “Hollywood”; the Lonesome Brothers aren’t alluding to the California town where movies are made; they are referring to the long-gone club in Bernardston. A picture of the band standing in front of the now torn-down nightspot graces the album’s cover. Hollywood is one of the places where bassist Ray Mason and guitarist Jim Armenti honed their country rock music back when they formed some 37 years ago. It’s been a long road, but the duo, who are both talented songwriters, are still making some of the finest music that you’ll hear coming out of this area.
On this album, like all their others, guitarist Armenti and bassist Mason swap off on songwriting and lead vocals while Keith Leverault’s solid drumming anchors everything down. “Hollywood” is the band’s first album since “Check Engine” in 2013; and the 12 tracks here would be right at home blaring out the jukebox in a club like the Hollywood. You can picture the dancers moving along to tunes like Mason’s “Never See The Sun”; and Armenti’s “What’s in the Bag”; a song that features one of the many incredible guitar solos on the disc.
Through the rocking guitar heard on “Holler to be Heard”; to the bluesy vibe of “Poison in the Well,” the Lonesome Brothers have given us 12 well-crafted songs that we will go back to time and again. Producer Tom Mahnken (Trailer Park), who also plays keyboards here, also helps to skillfully guides these musicians into creating an album that is a welcomed addition to the Lonesome Brothers’ already extensive catalog. Hopefully, they won’t make us wait so long for the next release.
The Lonesome Brothers play at Luthier’s Co-op in Easthampton on Friday, April 1, at 8 p.m.
‘Rough and Tumble’ — The Stone Coyotes (Red Cat Records)
Greenfield rockers, The Stone Coyotes haven’t been making music quite as long as the Lonesome Brothers, but having formed in 1991, they come close. The band, which is based in Greenfield features Barbara Keith on vocals and guitar, her husband Doug Tibbles on drums, and Doug’s sons John Tibbles on bass and Doug Tibbles Jr. on guitar. The Coyote’s latest release is a five-song EP called “Rough and Tumble” that, as they say, finds the band back in the saddle. On this release, the band continues their unique way of blending country influences into a heavy rock sound.
Keith is a storyteller who writes character-driven songs often focussing on loss and longing. The disc opens with the acoustic guitar -driven “Voices in the Rain”; where the song’s narrator hopes to hear the voice of a lost love. “I thought I heard you call me/I thought I heard my name/Just outside my window/Voices in the rain,” sings Keith. Tibbles’s straightforward drumming and some blistering guitar make “Put Some Rock in It” a good representation of the rocking side of the band’s sound. The song has been getting some airplay on SiriusXM! Outlaw radio station. The disc concludes with a remix of “The Old Post Road,” a song from the band’s 2019 release, “Hit the Ground Running.”
While “Rough and Tumble” is a somewhat mellower collection of songs then heard on the band’s previous recordings, these Coyotes still have a strong bite.
Sheryl Hunter is a music writer from Easthampton. Her work has appeared in various regional and local publications. She can be reached at Soundslocal@yahoo.com.