Alice Howe, the rising voice of modern folk in the United States, is set to release her debut LP, Visions on May 17th. Produced by iconic fretless bassist, Freebo (Bonnie Raitt, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Loudon Wainwright III, Maria Muldaur, Dr. John), the duo will perform on May 18th at McCabe's in Santa Monica, CA in celebration of the album's release. Ahead of Visions' official debut, the song "You Just Never Know," premiered on The Bluegrass Situation. Visions took Howe from her native Boston to Bakersfield, CA where it was recorded with a who's who of west coast musicians.
A modern love letter to 60s and 70s folk and timeless blues, Visions pays homage without succumbing to imitation, and offers an intimate snapshot of a young artist discovering her own power. The album features a collection of new originals including "Twilight," "Getaway Car" and Alice's interpretations of iconic songs in her family's vast record collection such as Muddy Waters' "Honey Bee," "Too Long at the Fair," first covered by Bonnie Raitt and selections from Bob Dylan and Taj Mahal.
The writing and recording of Visions encouraged Alice to work outside her framework of acoustic arrangements and with Freebo's guidance, the duo has incorporated electric instruments, inventive percussion techniques, a Hammond B-3 and a horn section to lend a big band groove to some of the new songs. Alice and Freebo were joined in the studio by electric guitarist Fuzzbee Morse, keyboardist John 'JT' Thomas and John Molo on percussion. Each of these west coast musicians has played or recorded with artists such as Bruce Hornsby, Lou Reed, Richie Havens, Phil Lesh, Jackson Browne, Tracy Chapman and Nick Jameson. Visions truly captures a young artist developing her collaborative musical voice.
American Blues Scene offers early praise for the album. "Sometimes we're lucky enough to catch an up-and-coming artist as they fly into our radar. This is one of those times. Not only is Alice Howe a gifted songwriter and performer, she has the wherewithal to surround herself with artists that were actually on the scene of the genre she has chosen to showcase. Whether a fan of blues, roots, Americana, soul or folk music, you would be doing yourself a disservice if you didn't get a copy of Visions the very moment it's released."
While Visions marks a stunning full-length debut, Alice Howe has been marked as one to watch in recent times. She released an EP entitled You've Been Away So Long in 2017, which bowed on the FOLK-DJ chart with a #1 Most-Played Song, "Homeland Blues." In addition to being a NewSong Music Songwriting and Performance Competition Finalist in 2018, she spent the fall of that year on a critically acclaimed tour of the UK and the Netherlands with Freebo. Howe is also a veteran of the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance and FAR-West Folk Alliance conferences, where she has performed at formal showcases. Earlier this year, she was selected as a Kerrville New Folk Finalist.
Alice Howe will be playing select tour dates and adding more dates throughout the summer and fall in support of Visions.
Don't Miss Alice Howe Live!
May 18th McCabe's Guitar Shop Santa Monica, CA*
May 26th Grassy Hill New Folk at Kerrville Folk Fest Kerrville, TX
June 8th The Blue Door Oklahoma City, OK^
June 11th Byron's Pomeroy, IA^
June 12th Byron's Pomeroy, IA ^
July 6th The Montague Bookmill Montague, MA
Nov 2nd Circle of Friends Coffeehouse Franklin, MA ^
Nov 16th Godfrey Daniel's Bethlehem, PA #
Dec 7th Voices in the Heights Brooklyn, NY
* Full Band Show with Freebo
^ with Freebo and Kirsten Maxwell
# with Freebo
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