Young folks focuses on the best, fresh folk, acoustic, singer-songwriter indie folk & alt-country jams. Turn it up Folks!

Altuz

‘Leaving’

[indie folk/acoustic]

Press Notes:

Altuz is a musician from Long Island, NY whose vulnerable stories are told with fiery lyricism and explosive delivery. His albums touch on heavy subjects ranging from the death of his father and deterioration of his mother’s mental health, to everyday struggles of paying off student loans. His catalogue is a gamut of hip-hop, acoustic-rock, country, and now metal. Though his music spans multiple genres, Altuz consistently has central themes of rawness, vulnerability and humility.

The Shandies

‘Hangin’ Around’

[folk/country]

Press Notes:

The Shandies are Shannon Stine (vocals/guitar) and Natalie Wlodarczyk (vocals/guitar), a married, mostly acoustic duo from Springfield, Missouri. Formed in 2016, The Shandies blend their unique musical backgrounds to create a distinctive and entertaining listening experience that they commonly refer to as “folky poprock.” Their eclectic songwriting incorporates folk, rock, and pop influences marked by tight vocal #freshsqueezedharmony and creative guitar blends. Listeners who enjoy The Shandies tend to also be fans of the Indigo Girls, Brandi Carlite, Fleetwood Mac, Aimee Mann, and I’m With Her.

The Shandies original songs explore everything from love and heartbreak (Every Day, Always Saying Goodbye), identity and imposter syndrome (Another Hat, Worst Critic, Lemon Peel), the state of the world (Really Nice Guy, Finally Awake), and even cleaning out an old storage unit (The Heart Locker). There’s a little something for everyone in The Shandies’ honest and heartfelt lyrics and Shannon’s melodic guitar solos give each song its own personality.

Logan Duke

‘Beneath… my Breath’

[indie folk/dream pop]

Press Notes:

Logan Duke strives to bring healing music to a new generation as a singer-songwriter/ multi-instrumentalist based out of the North Carolina Sandhills. After his first of many moves around the southeast coast, he was inspired by T Bone Burnett soundtracks.

He then feasted on early blues music such as Robert Johnson and BB King, which led to REM, Jeff Buckley, Milk Carton Kids, and Bjork.

He does all the instrumentation on his recordings and has played the stages of various clubs and festivals in mid-North Carolina.

Aviva La Viv

‘Vigilant Love’

[folktronica/indie folk]

Press Notes:

Aviva La Viv (she/they) is a singer/songwriter and multidisciplinary artist based in Brooklyn. Their ethereal indie folk is part social activism, part emotional voyage—aiming to vocalize the issues they holds dear, create and investigate human connections, empower others, uplift community, move your body and heart.

As a solo artist performing in intimate settings for years, Aviva developed a strong storytelling voice, rooted in the folk and acoustic traditions. Her forthcoming set of EPs, Vigilant Love Vol. 1 & 2, takes these songs and completely reimagines and expands them, bridging indie folk, rock, experimental and orchestral, and global dance house genres.

Young Shadow

‘Just’

[indie folk/singer-songwriter]

Press Notes:

With her ethereal soundscapes and cinematic arrangements, Young Shadow transports listeners into a different world. Inspired by Folk and Americana music, the Nashville-based artist uses storytelling to create a visceral, emotional experience for her listeners. Her talent for weaving audio and visual components into a musical tapestry allows her lyrics to come fully alive. Incorporating elements of pop, jazz, and classical music into her arrangements, her instrumentation unfolds in epic and unconventional ways. Her influences include an eclectic array of artists with strikingly apparent visual and sonic similarities (David Bowie, Wilco, Fiona Apple, and Tool).

The artist’s name, Young Shadow, originates from her love for psychology and the powerful role it has played in her life. The psychologist, Carl Jung, played a major influence in her creative process, especially his theory of the “Golden Shadow”—the exploration of hidden strengths within perceived weaknesses. The transcendent music Young Shadow creates confronts inner demons, fears, shame, and shortcomings with the intention of healing trauma and realizing greater potential. As a strong advocate for mental health, Young Shadow wishes to inspire greater healing in others by sharing her own life lessons and stories.

Growing up in a small town on the outskirts of Chicago, Young Shadow blazed her unique path from early on, playing the upright bass in jazz bands and combos. At the California Institute of the Arts, she studied Jazz Bass Performance with world renowned bassists such as Charlie Haden, Alphonso Johnson, and John Lindberg. After earning her BFA, she worked full-time in Los Angeles as a freelance bassist on both electric and upright bass, covering genres from jazz and rock to Motown and metal. She had the honor of playing with household names such as Katy Perry, Keith Urban, Sheila E, and Tokimonsta. Young Shadow toured internationally with various artists and also appeared on The Voice, Steve Harvey’s Little Big Shots, Best.Cover.Ever and in Hyundai commercials. After a prolific career as a bassist, Young Shadow shifted her focus to singing and songwriting, with her haunting and melodic songs transcending labels. Her background and skills as a bass player greatly inform her musical style, contributing to her atypical approach to both songwriting and performance.

Soever

‘Just Want Out’

[indie folk/psych]

Press Notes:

Soever is an indie/alt-rock band from Newcastle upon Tyne.

Nat The Hammer

‘It’s Not Surprising You Can’t See What’s Going On, When Your Head Is Stuck So Far Up Your Own Arse’

[indie folk/indie pop]

Press Notes:

Nat The Hammer is the solo alter-ego of Nathan Loughran, lead singer with The Reverse. More stripped down and lyrical, Nat’s songs have been likened to Leonard Cohen and the lo-fi anti-folk of Jeffrey Lewis.

The Caughtery

’99 MPH’

[americana/classic rock]

Press Notes:

Introducing, The Caughtery, the Austin, Texas based duo of Lisa Tingle and David Gayler.

To set the stage for this collaboration, we have to acknowledge the fact this duo was born just 5 days apart, from opposite coasts and somehow met in the middle. Both were born into musical families and share a common thread of loving diverse musical influences that include Rock, Indie, Fusion, Jazz, Blues and R&B.

It’s that connection and mutual addiction to creating unique music that really moves their storytelling note by note.

In 2020, David called Lisa to record a song he knew fit her vibe. What started out as a single song collaboration has turned into an EP release ‘The Caughtery’. The players involved in the first EP include Tom Brechtlein, Ricky Phillips and Tim Palmer. These players/producers have worked with Robert Plant, Chick Corea, Jimmy Page, David Bowie, Styx, The Babys, Tears for Fears, Kenny Loggins and many more. To say Dave and Lisa are in good hands is a monumental understatement. The Caughtery hopes you enjoy your journey into what they like to call their “musical paintings”.

Adrianne Blanks

‘Tell Me You Love Me’

[country/singer-songwriter]

Press Notes:

Adrianne Blanks is a Singer-Songwriter and Witchy Woman in Asheville, NC. Her songs draw on a wide array of styles, largely influenced by folk and vintage country. She’s equally as inspired by Dolly Parton as she is Glinda the Good Witch. She loves tarot cards, crystals, the moon, setting intentions, and astrology.

Tragically, Adrianne’s parents died in a car accident when she was 10 months old. They were teenage musicians killed by a drunk driver – both were really into guitar and heavy metal. She has carried out their legacy, as music has always played a major role in her life; she started playing piano when she was five. Being raised by her grandparents, she grew up listening to the oldies station, but developed unique and diverse tastes that ranged from Riot Grrl to Rockabilly. She trained in opera at the Boston Conservatory. Still, the music she listened to when in the kitchen baking was often country, folk, and bluegrass.

Adrianne’s musical journey led her to the pinnacles and perils of a budding career in classical music, but her love of country, folk, and bluegrass won out, and she uncovered more of her authentic voice as she embraced songwriting and guitar, which makes her feel connected to her parents.

Adrianne writes songs with heartfelt messages, often positive, sometimes about grief. The common thread is that it all comes from her heart.

Dimitris Mitsiopoulos

‘There is Blue’

[folk/acoustic/singer-songwriter]

Press Notes:

Dimitris Mitsiopoulos is a composer, singer-songwriter currently based in Thessaloniki, Greece.

Having studied typographic design, he’s been working for over 20 years as an art director, finding interest in exploring both worlds of image and sound, engaging in different kinds of music such as Ambient, Electronica, Modern Classical and Americana.

So far, he’s written music for Cultural Institutions, Art Installations, TV Commercials, Theater and Short Film Productions.

[All Press Notes provided by the artists]

Compiled by: Christos Doukakis