‘The Taste of Life’ is OUT TODAY!
Listening to these songs now, I am struck by waves of nostalgia for the people and circumstances that led to this album. Every lyric can be traced back to a specific moment of inspiration. I have a collection of these moments stored in my memory like little treasures. For example: I’m staring out my bedroom window on a sleepless night of a new romance, watching the sun begin to rise; or speaking to a friend outside of a bar in Asheville when I suddenly become inexplicably sad, and rush home to write down my thoughts; or looking at old pictures of parties from my high school years and realizing how far away everyone seems to me now. These moments of inspiration often hit me unexpectedly, like stumbling upon a very interesting bug while walking in the woods. Something about the songwriting process helps the memories stay vivid.
When it was time to start working on this record, Mike thought we should take a different approach than we have in the past. He suggested that we play with a band in the studio with everyone tracking together, so that it felt like a real performance. At first I was nervous about this idea because it felt like I was giving up creative control. It’s much harder to edit and perfect the parts when everyone is doing live takes (especially without a metronome). But we committed to this approach, and the end result was more expansive and beautiful than either of us could have imagined on our own. All of the folks that played on this record added so much to the direction of the songs and the overall sound. It’s full of spontaneous ideas and accidental genius. It’s also made by humans reacting to each other in a performance, at a time when society is increasingly driven by machines and algorithms.
Zack Kardon @southernpinemusic - acoustic guitar, electric guitar, vocals
@maddieshulermusic - lap steel, bass, vocals
@lyledevitry - cello
@bridger.dunnagan - violin
@chrissimmonss - drums
@miiikejohnson - guitars, bass, vocals, mixing
@jackvictorsongs - piano, vocals
Recorded at @_dropofsun_ by @alex_farrar
Mixed by @miiikejohnson
Mastered by @amy__dragon
Album photo by @lia__june
North Carolina loves, we’re celebrating this album release next week in style. What a lineup! Address for the Asheville (Marshall) “Tea Tent” show below. For the Durham show, I’ll be joined by a helluva band with @chessa_rich on keys/voice @doom_homestead on drums and @rodes_baby on bass.
Ticket link for pinhook show in bio. Come hang!
Bandcamp buddies, new tune out today ;)
The Tea Tent
Studio 109
Marshall High Studios
115 Blannahassett Island Road
Marshall, NC 28753
Under a Half Moon was a lovely evening here at Locust Pod Farm. Big thanks to Sophia @phiabird , Lyle @lyledevitry , and Joshua @hummingbird_____________ for playing beautiful music making it such a magical experience.
Chicago and Midwest friends look for Sophia and Lyle coming through your area tonight and this week!
@phiabird and I depart for our spring ephemerals tour this Thursday!! 🌼🌼🌼🌼🌼🌼🌼 Can’t wait to play this show in Chicago on April 14th with some incredible local musicians @aveybren and @n.ii.k.a at @apricotvintage - this will be my first time in Chicago! So stoked
Join me at @pinkmoonsound on Thursday, April 23rd for a night of incredible songwriters sharing their songs with us.
@phiabird & @lyledevitry are joining us from Asheville. @ihatejoshsorrells will be playing songs from the upcoming @easydoesitost record.
If you haven’t been to Pink Moon, this will be a great opportunity to check it out. It’s a beautiful recording studio we’re lucky to have in Knoxville.
$10 suggested donation at the door for artists. If you can’t pay right now, that’s okay. I’d still love to see you there. It’ll be a special night. BYOB & come hang out.
Thanks to Institute 193 for hosting an evening of acoustic music with myself, Mason Colby and our new friends from Asheville, NC Sophia Corinne and Lyle De Vitry, this coming Thursday from 7-9. We find moments to enjoy the spring and collaborative art making while we practice organizing and resisting power structures that promote cruelty.
I’ll be playing a short set of new songs and maybe a couple oldies.
Mason Colby plays traditional music from Louisiana and Kentucky, and original music that blends those traditions.
Sophia Corinne is an Ashville based musician who writes and sings delicate, deeply personal songs steeped in Appalachian folk traditions. She also leads the Ashville choral project Crescent Choir.
Lyle DeVitry is one of Asheville's most innovative fingerstyle guitarist and singer/songwriters. He is finishing work on a record of instrumental guitar based compositions that will be release later this year.
HOPIE JO (solo) • SOPHIA CORINNE • LYLE DE VITRY • REXFORD (DEBUT)
Sunday, April 12
Glow Hall, 246 N Kalamazoo Mall
Doors 6 PM • Music 7 PM
$15 or Pay What You Can • Always all ages
6:30 PM • Rexford (debut)
A performance built from classic country songs, approached as lived material rather than nostalgia. The set leans into the emotional weight inside the writing, vulnerability, dependency, and restraint, delivered plainly and without distance. A storytelling project, with the histories behind the songs opening into deeply personal essays and prose drawn from Keener’s own life.
7:15 PM • Sophia Corinne
An Asheville, NC–based songwriter who draws poetry for her songs from a life lived paying attention. Since 2021, she has released multiple EPs and toured extensively across North America through DIY shows. Her work offers something intimate and close, shaped by observation and care.
8:00 PM • Lyle De Vitry
An Asheville-based songwriter working in a baroque-leaning folk style. Carefully crafted melodies and poetry explore nature, love, memory, and the passage of time, with a focus on the relationship between sound and emotional experience.
9:00 PM • Hopie Jo (solo)
Kalamazoo songwriter Hope leads Hopie Jo with a voice that holds both grit and tenderness. Her songs are grounded in close, lived detail, moving between quiet intimacy and sharper edges without losing their center. In a solo setting, the writing sits fully exposed, direct and unguarded.
Very excited to be hitting the road next week with @phiabird for some shows out to the Midwest and back! Come catch us in one of these towns 😊 this will be my first time performing in all of these places! 🌼🌹🌸🌺🌹🌻🥀🌼🌷🌺🌷
