Yarn - Americana Roots Music From The Shadows of Skyscrapers

REVIEW: Yarn wraps itself around MeadowGrass fans By: Warren Epstein The Gazette BLACK FOREST - Yarn will never mean just knitting fodder anymore, not to the 1,500-some music fans at this weekend's MeadowGrass festival at La Foret Conference Center. A six-piece New York band by that name turned the festival, now in its third year, into a raucus roadhouse on Saturday night, as it exploded with rock 'n' roll, gospel, country, Celtic and more. Most of the songs were originals, but they also did a phenomenal cover of Lou Reed's classic "Walk on the Wild Side." Yarn played at 6 p.m. Saturday and clearly upstaged the headliner, John Doe, following a pattern that started on Friday, when Chubby Carrier & the Bayou Swamp Band blew away headliner Hot Buttered Rum. OTHER HIGHLIGHTS: Haunted Windchimes - This Pueblo band held its own against most of the national talent, playing a distinctive upbeat brand of old-timey music that can't help but put a smile on your face. From its opening song, "Traveling Shoes," the band charmed the crowd, making many new fans. Horse Feathers - Perhaps too intimate for the venue, especially when sandwiched between Windchimes and Yarn, Horse Feathers nevertheless proved a surprising band, doing a mix of pop and folk, with a lead singer who sounds like a more etherial Jack Johnson. Love the cello and violin. The vibe - MeadowGrass, which drew about twice as many visitors as last year, is starting to have that fun, festive fibe of a Planet Bluegrass festival, only without the giant lines and hassles. It's a place to find a face-painted girl dancing her her mom, a dad dragging a red wagon full of coats and toys across the fairground, and a neo-hippy trying without luck to keep a hula hoop spinning around her hips. WATCH COLORADOSPRINGS.COM FOR LIVE STREAMING.
Yarn Takes the Final Bow By: Dayne Shuda 21 FEBRUARY 2011 Yarn is an interesting group. While listening to CML Radio this weekend I heard the song Final Bow and thought it was worth checking out. Have a listen and let’s discuss the song. Listen to Final Bow on CML Radio It’s good right? I like the song and Yarn’s music. I get into this Americana and Folk music once and a while. It’s laid back with a whimsical kind of feel. There is almost a peaceful sound to this Final Bow. The song picks up a bit toward the middle and it almost makes you feel like you’re along for a ride – a ride through life that is coming up to an end. At multiple points I think we all struggle with life and death and what we’re really meant to do on Earth. We only have so much time to be alive yet sometimes it seems like we have too much time. As things get toward the end it seems like people look back and wonder if they’ve done all they can. Here we have the group Yarn looking at their final bow. They’re talking about the curtain coming down and taking that final bow with some pride before things are over for good. The time is running out and we all hope we get a chance to say the proper goodbyes. This isn’t the typical country song you’ll hear on mainstream radio. That’s one reason I like listening to CML Radio. It gives me a chance to discover artists and songs I normally wouldn’t hear.
Spin me a yarn Brooklyn-based americana band will groove at the southern friday night BY ELIZABETH STONEHILL, STAFF WRITER on March 17, 2011 As the University’s official venue, John Paul Jones Arena typically boasts the biggest acts coming to Charlottesville. Between fishnet-clad girls teetering in stilettos on their way to Lady Gaga and die-hard Dave Matthews Band fans decked out in DMB merchandise from head to toe, JPJ is considered the musical center of Charlottesville. This JPJ-centric view of the universe, however, fails to take into account the plethora of bands playing at downtown venues. These venues, though unequipped for Phish-style light shows, showcase raw talent and offer a cheaper option for anyone willing to ditch the fanfare and simply appreciate good music. Yarn, an Americana band from Manhattan, will play at The Southern tomorrow. With the band’s intriguing alternative-country style, a concert like this is perfect for anyone who wants to delve deeper into Charlottesville’s music scene. Although lead singer Blake Christiana’s voice fills Yarn’s tracks with a country twang, the band came together in New York, where Christiana grew up. “I guess it was just growing up as a kid listening to the old country that my father would play that influenced me,” Christiana said. “We would sit around a camp fire playing tunes — Willie Nelson and Elvis Presley — and coming off that I built my own musical taste.” Inspired by these early experiences, Christiana formed Yarn in 2007. Since then, the critically acclaimed Americana band has put out three albums and frequently has visited Charlottesville when touring. “We’ve been playing in Charlottesville for a while, and we have played pretty much every place [the city has],” Christiana said. “Our friend who is a promoter helped us get our start here, and he would bring us back with whatever new venue he was working with.” Friday’s concert will take place at The Southern, Christiana’s favorite downtown venue. “The Gravity Lounge was our favorite club, so when [a promoter] reopened it as The Southern, we were super psyched,” he said. Part of the reason Christiana enjoys Charlottesville so much is because “it seems like Charlottesville is less inhibited. Maybe it has to do with [The Southern]: it’s a dark, open space with no seating, and everyone kind of dances and falls into the groove.” Because it often plays smaller venues in towns like Charlottesville, Christiana said the band connects with fans on a more intimate level than big-name headliners. “My favorite thing is that we’ve got families now in each town; [we are] creating those relationships where fans become new friends,” Christiana said. “Thanksgiving we were on the road, and friends that were initially fans were on vacation in Disney World, but they left us a key, and we stayed at their house for three days over Thanksgiving. We were just a regular old happy little family.” When recording in Nashville, Yarn works on the band’s fourth album. For this project, Christiana had the opportunity to write with John Oates of iconic ‘70s rock band Hall & Oates. “[Writing with Oates] was pretty surreal,” Christiana said. “We come from two different backgrounds musically, I would say, but we really got along well. He is a super nice guy, and he’s just really into the craft of songwriting, which made it an amazing experience for sure.” One of Christiana’s long-term goals is to play Austin City Limits on PBS. “Austin City Limits is like a right of passage, and it feels closer than it ever has,” Christiana said. “Or I’d want to get high with Willie Nelson on his tour bus. Yeah, that’d be cool too.”
Yarn offers Americana at Stage on Herr at Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center Published: Thursday, March 10, 2011, 8:00 AM By Alexis Dow You might not think about “Americana” and “Brooklyn” in the same sentence, but that might change after you hear country-tinged Yarn at Stage on Herr at Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center tonight. Yarn is Blake Christiana and Trevor MacArthur on vocals and guitar, Andrew Hendryx on mandolin and harmonica, Rod Hohl on electric guitar, Rick Bugel on bass, and Robert Bonhomme on drums. The group formed at a club called Kenny’s Castaways on Bleeker Street in Greenwich Village. “Our mandolin player picked up a Monday night residency there with his band, the Andrew Hendryx Ensemble,” Christiana said. “I was playing guitar with them, and right around that time I started writing [songs]. I didn’t feel they fit the project I currently had been playing around in, Blake & the Family Dog, so I started pulling them out at the Monday night shows at Kenny’s. It wasn’t long before we had a consistent lineup and the band Yarn was born.” Since those early days in the Village, Yarn has worked tirelessly on new material and has been touring all over the country in support of their rootsy tunes. Their most recent album, “Come On In,” has been embraced by its fan base (referred to as “The Yar-my”) and critics alike. The band has already begun recording a follow-up album in Nashville. “I am feeling pretty good about it already,” Christiana said. Christiana recently spent a day writing songs in Nashville with John Oates, half of the legendary duo Hall & Oates. “It was pretty amazing,” Christiana said. “We spent the entire time writing, going back and forth with ideas. We got a ton of work done. I am not sure if any of those tunes will make it onto the new record, but they might. At some point, you will hear them. I know that.” Christiana thinks Yarn’s success can partly be attributed to Americana’s recent resurgence in popularity. “I think that people are looking for real, honest American music, which is what I believe Americana to be,” he said. “I like to think America is in the midst of a musical revolution, revolting against the candy-coated, over-produced [stuff] being spoon-fed into our earholes. Revolt, America, and we’ll see you at our shows.”
Yarn In-Studio with The LION February 28th, 2011 By Matt Steiner Before their show out at Olde New York, the LION was graced with the presence of Brooklyn’s storied Americana band Yarn. This show has been receiving some great press, even before Yarn made it through town and not only through us. When Blake Christiana gave us a call that he made it to the studio, this band told us they were up for any kind of set-up and just wanted to make some great music. Though Blake is the charismatic front man, Yarn was made from a cast and crew of talented musicians. Trevor MacArthur helps out on vocals and guitar, Andrew Hendryx specializes in madolin, Rod Hohl on the electric guitar, Rick Bugel (the legend) on the upright bass, and Robert Bonhomme on the drums. Together they build a genre that Blake said he “never knew existed” before he started playing it with some friends. This acoustic project became what today is Yarn. Their first album started very well on the AMA charts, Blake said, “I thought we were doing something unique, but I guess we weren’t”. Of course, he’s referring to the alternative country, folk sound that has taken over popular music. Blake cites bands like The Avett Brothers and Mumford & Sons for setting the path for bands like Yarn, and the band we had earlier in the day The Kalob Griffin Band. They’re recording their newest release is currently being recorded in Nashville. Though it’s actually the first time they recorded in Nashville, and have produced mostly out of New York. Rod, though influenced by “Abba” as he joked, Blake mentioned a lot of his influences were rooted in the work of the Grateful Dead, the acoustic work of Jerry Garcia, and he began to find the lesser known alternative country pioneers that paved the way for his work. Andrew is a “Dead-Head” as well, and actually wasn’t a big guitar player. The band hits the road a lot, the fans have welcomed them by inviting Yarn “into their houses, and giving us liquor”, Blake joked. But their growing presence in the Carolinas as well as Vermont have been built from their extensive touring and avid support of their fan-base. Listen in to the podcast to hear about their road stories and about the “Happy House” experience! The interview says all there is to say about the band. They aren’t uptight about their presence. The band, like their front man, is charismatic and fun. They play a style of music that is based in what country is becoming. These guys are used to playing bars, as well as bigger venues, and have the edge of a country-western band. The interview podcasts are listed below, the interview begins at the 40 minute mark and continues into the second hour. CLICK LINKS BELOW FOR PART 1 & 2 OF IN-STUDIO PERFORMANCE/INTERVIEW: Part 1 Part 2
Yarn spins Americana groove for fanbase By Jenna Spinelle - For the CDT Friday, Feb. 25, 2011 Much like its name, the band Yarn weaves country, rock, blues and more into a genre-defying blend that has captured the attention of fans and critics. The Brooklyn, N.Y.-based band released its latest album, “Come On In,” in 2010 and continues to pick up new members of its “Yarmy” around the country. Singer/guitarist Blake Christiana said the band is winning over new fans by tailoring its sets to the reaction it receives from the crowd. The Americana Music Association named Yarn’s 2010 album “Come On In” the 25th best album of 2010, ahead of releases by Merle Haggard, Robert Plant and Willie Nelson. “In the course of our career, we’ve written maybe five set lists,” Christiana said. “In the early stages, we have to react to the crowd. ... It’s just as big a part of a good show as the band. Eventually, I hope we’ll get to a place where people will want to hear what we do.” The songs on “Come On In” are undoubtedly influenced by New York City, Christiana said, but that hasn’t deterred them from catching on outside the Big Apple. “New York is a fantastic town so it’s bound to inspire some music,” he said. “Everybody’s kind of welcomed it with open arms. There’s quite a bit of inspiration(for Yarn’s music) other than New York, but everyone seems to relate to that.” As the band gains new fans on the road, the music industry also is taking note. “Come On In” peaked at No. 7 on the Americana Music Association’s radio airplay chart and was named the 25th best album of 2010 by that organization, ahead of albums by Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson and Robert Plant. By the time they make it to State College on Feb. 27, the band will have just wrapped up a recording session in Nashville, Tenn., where they’ll lay down the songs they’ve tested on the road over the past few months. Christiana said the band is constantly working on new material on the road and hopes to have a few more songs ready to debut here. “Any die-hard fan has heard most of the new material already,” he said. “We will have just finished recording and hopefully will have some new songs to play for you all.” Yarn will perform at 6 p.m. Feb. 27 at Olde New York, 2298 E. College Ave., State College. Call 237-1582 or visit www.yarnmusic.net for more information.
Deer Park to Host Johnny Cash Birthday Show February 24th, 2011 By Ryan Cormier Earlier this week, a posthumous double-disc collection of rarities by Johnny Cash was released by Legacy Recordings, dating back to demos from 1955 as an unknown, 23-year-old Cash was beginning his storied career. The “Bootleg Volume 2: From Memphis to Hollywood” recordings, released Tuesday to help celebrate what would have been Cash’s 79th birthday Saturday, are part of an ongoing official bootleg series, feeding unheard material to Cash’s fans who are hungry for more even seven years after his death. It’s that always-evolving legacy of Cash that has inspired what should be a unique night of music in Newark at the Deer Park Tavern, 108 W. Main St., Saturday night when Brooklyn-based roots band Yarn unfurls a set of originals along with a few Cash classics to celebrate his birthday. “He’s an icon. You hear his music everywhere,” says Yarn’s singer/songwriter Blake Christiana, 34, taking a break from recording the band’s new album in Nashville, Tenn., the city where Cash died in 2003. “It’s amazing how he endured — anybody who can be in the spotlight from their first release to their last and beyond, after they’re dead, is quite a remarkable feat.” There’s no deep meaning behind the band performing a Cash tribute in Delaware — it’s just where their tour schedule put them. However, Cash himself did have a tight Delaware connection. The country legend was close friends with Greenville’s John and Michele Rollins — John being the late trucking magnate and former lieutenant governor of Delaware and Michele being the businesswoman/attorney who ran unsuccessfully for U.S. House of Representatives last year. Cash and his wife, June, would visit the Rollins’ in Delaware whenever a tour stop was nearby and the couples would also gather around a beach bonfire at their resort homes in Jamaica. Once, Cash even rode the bumper cars at the old Funscape amusement center at Brandywine Town Center in Brandywine Hundred. Yarn last played in our area in December with a show at the Tin Angel in Philadelphia’s Old City. Before that, they performed in Delaware for the first time at an outdoor CityLife Block Party Series show in downtown Wilmington in August. Jim Miller, director of publications for TSN Media, which includes Out & About magazine, booked that show after a friend recommended the band. “Having seen them, I can say their live show sells the band best,” Miller says. “They are talented and fun, and can cover anything from Hank Williams to the Grateful Dead, from The Beatles to John Prine. All the while, their sound comes shining through with that classic, soulful jukebox appeal.” Yarn is currently recording its follow-up to last year’s “Come On In” — a session that comes just a month after teaming up for a day of songwriting with John Oates of Hall & Oates, who the band met following a show. “We came up with some pretty cool stuff. At some point, hopefully you’ll hear some Oates/Christiana compositions, we’ll see,” Christiana says. “He was an awesome, super-nice guy who is really into the craft of songwriting.” While none of those songs will make it into Saturday’s set, which is free and starts at 11 p.m., the Man in Black will come alive again — if only just for a few tunes. “We want to honor him,” Christiana says, “and he deserves it.”
Yarn by Ashley Wilson Published: 9:39 AM, 02/24/2011 Last updated: 9:40 AM, 02/24/2011 mtfrontdesk@mountaintimes.com “Come On In” made it onto the year-end list for both the Americana Music Association and our area’s popular public radio station, WNCW-FM. From its invention, music has been used to tell stories. An interweaving of people, places, events and emotions, music is a representation of our lives. Acting much like yarn, music effectively brings together all of the fibers of our being into a continuous, cohesive unit. Perhaps this is why Blake Christiana chose the one-syllable word for his band. Yarn, a five-piece group from Brooklyn, N.Y., has spent t-he past few years unfurling alt-country on pour houses and bar rooms across the East. Formed in 2007, Yarn has already released three albums, attracting a considerable fan base. 2010’s “Come On In” has had the biggest pull so far. “Come On In” made it onto the year-end list for both the Americana Music Association and our area’s popular public radio station, WNCW-FM. “Come On In” spins tales about the road, wrecked relationships and the uncertainty of life. Yarn isn’t one of those bands that records an album and hires a PR firm to do all the legwork for them. They are hard-working musicians and road warriors, playing several shows a week. Their dedication, along with allowing open taping and trading of their shows, has proven rewarding. While the lifestyle is exciting for the most part, it can also be straining, a feeling that Christiana attests to on songs like “Alone on the Weekend” and “These Bars Don’t Look Too Friendly.” Yarn plays a style more closely related to the South than New York City. A mostly acoustic sound with appearances from the dobro, mandolin, fiddle, pedal steel and harmonica, Yarn is laid-back and folksy. They are a rather unique act to their native area, but Yarn is never in denial of their home. Even though “the neighbors don’t know my name and the forecast calls for rain,” Christiana still yearns after his Brooklyn flat in “Time Burns On.” In a clear homage to Yarn’s address, “New York City Found” is about feeling lost in the city, even when it’s so familiar. Yarn has been rightfully compared to North Carolina native, now New York City transplant, Ryan Adams and his former band, Whiskeytown. Like Adams, Yarn plays an alternative country style bred from Gram Parsons and his contemporaries. Blake Christiana’s voice and delivery also bears resemblance to Adams’. Thankfully, Yarn is not as emotionally wrought and neurotic as Ryan Adams. Not to discredit Adams’ talent, but Yarn is a little more composed and probably less likely to fall off the deep end. An element of Yarn that is not to be overlooked are the exceptional vocal harmonies between Christiana and Trevor MacArthur. MacArthur’s unique voice, evocative of Del McCoury’s high lonesomeness, complements Christiana’s in an ease that can only be reached through several years of performing together. The two have known each other for over half of their lives. “Come On In” also features many hooks that its listeners will have running through their heads long after the music stops. “Schenectady,” about Christiana’s hometown, is sure to elicit whole-hearted sing-alongs when the band visits. “Yodelay” is just as fun to sing as it is to say, and “I Wanted to Get High” could be theme song for Narcotics Anonymous. Being a musician requires a certain type of personality, one that can withstand the hardships of the business and extended periods of time away from home. Yarn passes the test and, admittedly, they do find the life hard. Instead of writing an album full of depressing songs about it though, on “Come On In,” they spin the situation to their advantage. Any darkness they may experience is turned into a song that ropes in its listener, either through its catchiness or melody. Expect Yarn to keep rolling with continued momentum, with a new album anticipated in 2011. Yarn is online at YarnMusic.net.
Americana band Yarn plays Friday in Erie Published: February 10. 2011 Preview by Dave Richards Sounds like a yarn but it's true. Terrific Americana band Yarn -- which plays rustic, back-porch, country-influenced tunes that fans of Gram Parsons and the Rolling Stones would love -- do not hail from some rural outpost of Appalachia. They're from Brooklyn -- the home of hip-hop and a bastion for hard-core. Sweet Virginia, how did that happen? Singer-guitarist Blake Christiana credits his parents, who raised him on country and early rock. He grew up outside Albany, N.Y., listening to Willie Nelson, Ricky Nelson, and Elvis, among others. "I'm sure that got lost in my brain pretty good," said Christiana. "Then, as a teenager I was really into the Grateful Dead and clearly they've got a lot of connection to roots music. Jerry Garcia was a big bluegrass player and fan. The Garcia/David Grisman stuff was in my ear pretty much all the time." Yarn evolved from Christiana's first band, Blake and the Family Dog. With mandolin player Andrew Hendryx, he started a residency at a hot spot called Kenny's Castaways. "I had the opportunity to use him in a more acoustic setting, so I started writing these tunes and they came really quickly," Christiana said. "We got the residency and anyone would come and see us play. But what we were doing was rehearsing. It gave us the opportunity to get together and get songs; that's how it started. Within a couple months, I got rid of my old band and focused solely on Yarn." Another former band mate joined him, singer-guitarist Trevor MacArthur. "He has a natural ear and voice for harmony. He has no real school training or any of that stuff; he just hears really nice harmonies and our voices seem to blend well together. So he was with us from day one, as well." Christiana said Yarn blossomed in New York City partly because the band could fly under the radar. In a city looking for the next Strokes, they're the next Flying Burrito Brothers. "We're not fully embraced by New York because it is that kind of hipster, what's-in scene," he said. "But I don't know where else I could have done this, to be honest with you. "My whole strategy when we started the band was, 'Let's play as much as possible in New York, Brooklyn and Manhattan.' Where else can you do that besides New York, play every night of the week? "So, it didn't take long before we were known in the circle and our name was plastered everywhere, since we were sort of forcing it down people's throats." Writing terrific songs also helped. Yarn crafts seamless, flowing tunes that feel unfettered by time or trends: there's a purity and grace about them. Songs like the gently shuffling "Yodelay," the barn-burning "Down on Your Luck," and soaring "Alone on the Weekend" feel as fresh as laundry flapping in the breeze. Americana radio stations have noticed Yarn, even though the band has no label. Their second, self-produced CD "Empty Pockets" reached No. 5 on the Americana Music Association's album chart. "Come On In" did better; finishing as the No. 25 album of 2010 behind albums by Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson and Robert Plant. "It's great to be on the charts with people like (that) and to be going to new towns and meeting fans," Christiana said. "The high point for us is just the fans. Some of them have just latched on so strongly. They come and travel hours to see shows. It's like a very passionate family. "Not the amount we need, yet. But it's getting there." Christiana recently wrote songs in Nashville with John Oates of Hall & Oates, who's become a Yarn fan. It's too early to say if any of those songs will make the band's next album, but the group's future looks rosier than a baby's cheeks. Yarn is on a roll. "The reviews have been great; the scene has been really good to us," Christiana said. It's just been a fun ride."
Come On In – A Review of Brooklyn Americana Band “Yarn” JANUARY 21, 2011 BY MATT STEINER When I first placed this album into the CD player, it sounds straight out of the South. The album shoots what I remember used to be country right in your face, and we’re not talking Taylor Swift. Two tracks into the album “New York City Found” weaves fiddle solos with drum solos and authentic country-western accents, that give no hints of this band’s NYC roots. My favorite track, Schenectady, named after the town where General Electric was found oddly enough, has a great “summer on the back-porch” feel. This whole album has a magic touch to it. This success isn’t new to a band who skidded into #14 on the AMA R&R Radio Charts on their debut album, they have honed a sound that has American roots embedded in lyrics and instrumentation. Get yourself a copy of this music and give us a shout-out to hear it more on the air, don’t worry I’ll be playing it on my show until I get off this kick of Americana they just got me on. Oh yeah, not to forget. These guys have a show here in State College (details below): February 27th @ Olde New York State College, PA – 8:00 PM It certainly won’t be a bad decision to spend a night relaxing and hearing a little southern comfort straight outta Brooklyn. You might even find this DJ there. Check out their video below on YouTube for a taste of this truly unique music for a 2010 album out of New York.
Unwrap Yarn and you'll find 'life is not an easy venture' BY TOM NETHERLAND SPECIAL TO THE HERALD COURIER Spin a yarn. Write a tune. It’s all the same for Blake Christiana, unlikely sort of country singer and songwriter. Catch Christiana’s band Yarn on Jan. 21 at Down Home in Johnson City. Based in Brooklyn, N.Y. Yarn hails from a city more known for filmmaker Spike Lee, former CNN host Larry King and the Brooklyn Dodgers than country music. “It’s New York City, where everything else in the world exists, so why wouldn’t it?” Christiana said by phone from his home in Brooklyn, N.Y. Then again, name one major country act to have hailed from Brooklyn. Take a gander at Christiana’s neighborhood. “The church where Al Capone got married is about three blocks from me,” Christiana said. “The mob was big in Brooklyn.” Now Christiana aims to make Brooklyn’s Yarn big. To that end, in the span of three albums in three year and countless shows the Americana band has developed a style hewn foremost upon the power of the song. “When I started writing Yarn songs I just let them be Yarn songs,” Christiana said. “They came out with a twangy sound.” Christiana’s singing recalls Steve Earle meets Whiskeytown-era Ryan Adams. “The songs came pretty easily,” he said. “I let the sound create itself. It’s always open to improvisation and interpretation, so what comes out comes out.” Three and four minute slices of life emerged. Christiana’s lyrics do not string a happy smile for the world to hear. Check the recipe for Yarn’s songs. “Sad songs, put some fast tempos on top, mix in a little jam and improv and mandolin and a nice train beat,” Christiana said. “That’s an amous bouche of Yarn. A small bite.” Look closer. “The gist of my writing consists of a lot of the pitfalls of life,” Christiana said. “The down times, the relationships, it comes from living. Life is not an easy venture.” Christiana paused, chuckled and continued. “If you want to write about hard times,” he said, “live in New York City for a while.” Hear all about it with a simple visit to Yarn’s website. Links to buy their three albums are clearly posted, but likewise links to free MP3 downloads to a bundle of their concerts also stand out upon the site. Put another way, Yarn gives away a lot of free music. “That’s an influence from the Grateful Dead,” Christiana said. The Grateful Dead built their legendary fan base, known as Deadheads, by allowing and encouraging the taping of their live concerts and trading thereof. Yarn does likewise. “What it’s done for us is to open us up to a whole new market of fans,” he said. “They will love you just because you allow that.” Meanwhile, Yarn works hard to establish a foothold in the music business. To that end Christiana will travel to Nashville next week to write songs with John Oates formerly of pop duo Hall & Oates. Yarn’s future appears bright. “Man, we want to be out there delivering to the fans at least 200 nights a year,” Christiana said. “We want to put food on the table, roof over the head. But hey, times are tough.”
www.NJ.com October 12, 2010 BLAIRSTOWN — Brooklyn might seem like an odd place of origin for a country rock band to hail from. But that is exactly where one of the country's fastest rising groups calls home. On the verge of taking the United States by storm, Yarn is first ready to take Northwest Jersey by storm as it headlines Blairstown based HomeGrownRadioNJ's 6th anniversary Harvest Fest on Saturday, Oct. 30. Sponsored by Hoboken Eddie's BBQ Sauces, the group's month-long fundraising celebration concludes with the Harvest Fest at the Fountain House on Route 94 in Fredon. Yarn headlines, but there will be plenty more music with Citizens Band Radio, Stoney River Boys, Mystery Train and other outstanding acts throughout the day and into the event. The show starts at 2 p.m. and continues well until the night! Attendees must be 21 to enter. Tickets are just $10 per person for a full day (and evening) of entertainment. To Yarn's frontman, Blake Christiana, the perennial home of cold concrete, hipsters and industrial ruins is the perfect place for an Americana/Alt-Country band to hone its work. Yarn has received quite a bit of buzz in the Americana world as a result of the band's first two recordings as well as strong performances at clubs and festivals. Their self-titled debut record reached No. 14 on the AMA and R&R Radio Charts, and ranked No. 79 on the AMA's Top 100 Albums of 2007. Yarn's 2008 follow-up, Empty Pockets, which features guest appearances by Edie Brickell, Tony Trischka, Casey Dreissen and Caitlin Cary of Whiskeytown, spent months in the AMA charts. The album peaked at No. 5 and was honored with eight first round 2009 Grammy nominations in several categories. Yarn weaves roots music idioms into a fresh sound that turns on hipsters and fans of country music alike with technically impressive song-crafting and universal tales from the road of life. The band's newest release, Come On In, peaked at No. 7 on AMA Radio this summer and four months later remains on the charts. "Life was going on," said Christina of his inspiration for the songs on Come On In. "A couple relationships went sour, lots of time on the road. I just love those dramatic moments in life, when change is upon us and everything is uncertain." The record is not all heartbreak and drama though. "New York City Found" takes an upbeat look at navigating the vast cityscape of NYC that feels as exciting as it is intimidating. "Yodelay" nods to overcoming childhood fears, and "I Gotta Go" is a celebration of self-realization and moving on. In August, Yarn was one of the major highlights of the Skylands Music & Arts Festival in Blairstown. Hunterdon County based Citizens Band Radio offers its special blend of country and rock, as well, to the show. Not only do they mix rock and country, but add elements of bluegrass, blues, folk and Americana. HomeGrownRadioNJ burst onto the scene six years ago on Oct. 30 and has been a music force in the area ever since, with annual festivals and other major events throughout New Jersey. From the start, HomeGrownRadioNj has been a steadfast champion for the independent artist throughout New Jersey and beyond. Its continuing commitment to spreading the music so few get to hear has earned them a spot in the hearts and minds of musicians and music fans throughout the area. In-studio concerts and special events are the norm for those familiar with the station and the bi annual benefit shows have become an entrenched entity in the region. For more about HomeGrownRadioNJ and the Oct. 30 show, visit homegrownradionj.com. www.NJ.com
Times Union Albany, NY September 30, 2010 Alternative country kings Yarn are coming to Red Square on Saturday night, and you better bring your dancing boots, and maybe even your cowboy hat. They might sound like they're from Harlan County, Ky., but they hail from that nearby hotbed of country music, Brooklyn. (The South; south New York). Yarn is living proof it really doesn't matter where you live, you can play country music with honesty and integrity (which is increasingly lacking in Nashville). In fact, Yarn doesn't sound like pre-fab Music City music at all. Blake Christiana and Trevor MacArthur have been singing clever county songs drenched in dobro, mandolin, harmonica and even saxophone. In ways, Christiana could be called a New York version of Texas singer/songwriter Steve Earle (who now lives in New York). Their tune "Down On Your Luck" has an airy, summer sound, but you might want to jump in and sing along to "Yodelay." Just like they do way down South. When: 8 p.m. Saturday Where: Red Square Tickets: $12 Info: 465-0444; http://redsquarealbany.com/ -- David Malachowski Times Union
August 28, 2010 Rambles.net You might say that, in effect if not in intention, Yarn reimagines New York City as a kind of rural village. Not that nobody's ever done that before, of course. The city has hosted folk revivalists since the 1930s, not to mention bluegrass and honkytonk bands, though where its rooted products are concerned only the folk singers -- among Yarn's most immediately recognizable antecedents -- ever have had much of a national impact. With Come On In, its third album (albeit the first I've heard), Yarn shows itself to be worthy of a far-flung following. At the very least, it's worthy of repeated listening, to which it stands up -- always the test of a good record. Possibly, with some adjustments, Yarn could be something like an innovative bluegrass band, but it's all right as it is, which is not yet another iteration of the wimpy, smooth-harmony California "country-rock" ensemble. Yarn's sound has an edge, both attitudinal and electrical, that conjures up fond memories of Steve Earle's brilliant early records. Certainly, the band's songwriter (also acoustic guitarist) Blake Christiana has Earle's gift: a crisp, twangy vocal style and a precise, no-nonsense way with words. I'd add, however, that his melodies are more consistently engaging than Earle's. Less than a minute into the opening cut, "Alone on the Weekend" -- a title that in lesser hands could forecast something awful -- I had confidence, not destined to be disappointed, that I was heading into time happily spent. Christiana may be a romantic, but he's also a realist who seeks to negotiate the world with clear eyes, unclouded by self-pity or sentimentality. All 13 songs are firmly constructed and tuneful, and some -- "New York City Found," "These Bars Don't Look Too Friendly," "Abilene," "Time Burns On" -- stick happily inside your head as you go about your lifely business. The terrific "Strikes & Gutters" could be among the stellar cuts on John Prine's blue-collar-poet masterpiece Diamonds in the Rough (1972) but for the (literal) electricity. Backing Christiana are some impressive pickers (Trevor MacArthur, Roderick Hohl, Andrew Hendryx, Rick Bugel) and a smart, sensitive drummer (Jay Frederick), with occasional assistance from fiddler Jeremy Garrett, saxophonist Jeremy Wall and pedal-steel player Skip Krevens. If other musicians have attempted what Yarn is doing, few have done it so well. Rambles.net
American Roots Music August 3, 2010 4**** Third triumph in a row for the N.Y.C alt. country band! At times Yarn can sound a little like Whiskeytown era Ryan Adams, at others, what could be termed 'classic country rock', such as the early Buritto's, both comparisons being intended as compliments! This album has an appealing loose ramshackleness of many of the better alternative country bands and totally lacks the polish that many bands (or record companies?) in this genre seem to think necessary. All of the songs are either written by Blake Christiana or co-written with Shane Spaulding, who also had several writing credits on their previous albums, 2007s YARN & 2008s EMPTY POCKETS. The songs tell stories of longing, lost love, travelling and home, in fact staples of the genre but always with Chritiana's own personal take on life's problems, enabling the album to avoid saminess and giving it an individual, fresh feel. The riff on New York City found borrows from Elvis's version of Arthur Crudups My baby left me, possiblyshowing where at least some of their roots are to be found, although their song tells of the glories of the city rather than crying on a sleeve! The beautiful ballad Schenectady tells that you can leave home years in the past but it always remains with you wherever you go. These bars don't look too friendly probably sums up the songwriting in as much as you can almost feel you know the bar and could have been there on the night in question, with Christiana's languid vocals being particularly reminiscent of Ryan Adams! The beautiful Abilene is given a lovely mellow but powerful feel by the excellent harmonies and is underpinned by the steel guitar. In fact the writing of each song as well as the playing is of a consistently high standard with an excellent mix of mid to slow tempo songs. The band is made up of the aforementioned Blake Christiana on lead vocals and guitar, Trevor MacArthur on backing vocals and guitar, Andrew Hendryx, mandolin and harmonica, Rod Hohl on electric guitar, dobro and vocals, Nick Bugel, bass and Robert Bonhomme, drums and percussion. All are highly accomplished musicians and have a feel for alt. country, too much having been made of the fact that they are based in Brooklyn N.Y.C. Proof if needed that it's the feel for the music, not the location that defines the quality. American Roots Music
The Reel Spin July 28, 2010 Yarn. Same band. Different venue. This time I saw them at The Evening Muse. I've already told you in a previous post that Yarn is an amazing live band. The same held true for this performance. It is so obvious that the band loves their fans and thrives off of the crowd's enthusiasm. They somehow seem to give even more... which is pretty impressive considering they start off at 110%... but yet they manage to push a little harder, play a little longer, and still leave their fans wanting more. So, let's talk about the crowd for a second. This is not your typical crowd of Friday night folks that wandered into a bar to check out the music scene for the night. This is a crowd of Yarn fans. Die-hard Yarn fans. The one thing I've noticed at both the Yarn shows I've been to, is that the band has some of the most devoted fans I've seen. Not your fickle fans that are all about the flavor of the month band. But, the real, true fans that are fans for life. The kind of fans that follow you around from show to show. The kind of fans that drive hours to see you play even though they just saw you at a show last week. The kind of fans who stay until the very, very end of the show... even though it's late... even though the band's been playing for nearly two hours, but the kind of fans who wouldn't dare leave until the show is over. They have the kind of fans who make friends with one another... dance with one another... and bond regardless of how different they may be. They are all united by the fact that they love Yarn. I actually really liked witnessing this. It was so fun to hear everyone's stories. And, I really can't think of a more hard working, deserving band to have such loyal fans. Here's hoping the mutual lovefest continues for many, many years to come... For more photos from the show, click here.
by Wildman Steve The Corner News June 30, 2010 They’re burning up the Americana charts, number seven this week and still rising. They’ve had such luminaries as Edie Brickell, Caitlin Cary and Tony Trischka guest on their albums. They’ve toured all around the country to crowds that clamber for more of their music, Americana that is obviously influenced by Gram Parsons and the Flying Burrito Brothers, but with shades of the Stones, Bill Monroe, even Jerry Garcia. You might think they hail from Austin or Nashville, but Yarn calls Brooklyn their home. Unlikely as it may seem, Yarn’s creative force and resident songwriter, Blake Christiana somehow finds real inspiration for his country-rock musings in the streets and bars of the Big Apple, and, for their latest album “Come On In,” in their travels on the road and in “a couple of breakups,” as evidenced on “Down On Your Luck” and “Alone on the Weekend.” He visits the place of his birth in “Schenectady,” finds that “These Bars Don’t Look Too Friendly” and celebrates “New York City Found.” He goes bowling in “Strikes and Gutters,” sings about “Abilene,” which makes him “Yodelay” as “Time Burns On.” You may have figured out that Christiana is best when he writes about ordinary, everyday things, places and people. He nails emotions too, as he does in “I Wanted To Get High,” a forlorn dirge that perfectly captures that sad and helpless feeling at the end of the night when things haven’t gone quite as one had hoped. Yarn’s “Come On In” delivers the goods and deserves to climb the Americana chart, maybe all the way to the top, as it is a perfect slice of “Americana Pie” - familiar, comforting and delicious. The Corner News
Americanaroots.com June 17, 2010 One of the best young bands in the country is out with another new disc; it’s a good day in the United States of Americana! Brooklyn’s own YARN is releasing their third cd, Come On In. This comes following two great releases, both of which I have reviewed on this site; their debut cd YARN and their second release, Empty Pockets, a great cd which featured guest appearances by Edie Brickell, banjo guru Tony Tischka, and Caitlyn Cary (Whiskeytown). Along with Americanaroots.com favorites The Doc Marshalls, Yarn form the other half of a powerful duo of Americana bands to come out that hotbed of Americana, New York City!? Hey, I don’t care where they come from, just that the music is good. The band is made up of Blake Christiana – Vocals, Guitar; Trevor MacArthur – Vocals, Guitar; Andrew Hendryx – Mandolin, Harmonica; Rod Hohl – Electric Guitar, Dobro, Vocals; Rick Bugel – Bass; and Jay Frederick – Drums, Percussion. Besides the excellent musicianship of this outfit, Blake’s southern tinged vocals anchor this disc, as they have the last two. The disc is loaded with 13 tracks of their lively acoustic based Americana. If you aren’t familiar with this band you owe it to yourself to check them out. Start by checking out the video below and the new CD! Americanaroots.com
Seven Days Burlington, VT June 16, 2010 Saturday, June 19, 9PM at Nectar's in Burlington. $5. Country Roads A little bit country and little bit rock ’n’ roll, Brooklyn-based alt-country outfit Yarn is quickly becoming the toast of underground Americana circles. Their newly released third album, Come On In, finds the band continuing to explore the dusty country-rock trails forged by the likes of Gram Parsons and the Flying Burrito Brothers, with occasional detours into Exile On Main St.-era Stones and even back-porch bluegrass. Touring in support of the new record, the band stop by Nectar’s this Saturday. Local honky-tonkers Canyonero open. Seven Days VT
CMT Blog June 1, 2010 As a younger man, I really wanted to move to New York City but I never did. Instead I stuck around Nashville to write about country music and I don't regret that decision. But when I listen to the new album from Yarn, a promising alt-country band from Brooklyn, I can get a sense of how my life there would have turned out -- frustrating, lonely and lost. In other words, I love New York but I'm so easygoing that it would devour me if I lived there. The band's new album, Come On In, finds its primary singer-songwriter Blake Christiana living a fairly empty existence. But he's not whiny, focusing instead on letting his stories unravel through the details. When he sings that the bars don't look too friendly tonight, you get the feeling that you've just walked into the same place -- one of those joints where everybody else is having fun, but you can just tell that you wouldn't. Christiana has said life on the road and a couple of break-ups affected the way Come On In turned out. Listening to the bummer lyrics, you can tell. Still, I really like this album, especially the shuffling title track. And if you're drawn to sad country-sounding songs, you might like to spin Yarn, too. CMT Blog
The Alternate Root Yarn’s latest release, ‘Come on In,’ is the best of three exceptionally good records that finds the band melding into one of the most formidable forces in jam-based roots / Americana music. Front man and founder Blake Christiana still has one of the most versatile and accomplished surrounding casts in the business; Trevor MacArthur on rhythm guitar and vocals, Andrew Hendryx on mandolin, harmonica and the stalwart rhythm section of Rick Bugel on bass and new drummer Robert Bonhomme but the addition of ace axe-man Rod Hohl has broadened the YARN sound to include a more edgy side. It’s still sweet mountain-country rock it just has a Rolling Stones alter ego. Christiana has the same back-handed wit to his writing that spawned songs like ‘Woman on the Interstate’ and ‘Bad Bad man’ from their first release (Yarn 2007) and ‘Empty Pockets’ from the album of the same name (Empty Pockets 2008) but this album brings his ability to juxtapose characters and events to a new height. Songs like ‘Abilene’ can be tales of a distressed city or the wandering spirit of a girl who bears the city’s name. As Christina tells it “…I heard you lost your crown, a long. long time ago. And now you’re on these streets, looking for someplace to go.” Abilene was once the pivot point for the beef industry…and the girl? On ‘Schenectady,’ Christiana’s hometown, he pits reminiscing against the reality that Schenectady is far from the paradise as he once may have seen it and then parallels it to his own life; “ and I can’t escape the past, no. I won’t forget the truth, no. Schenectady, I am you.” Christiana is a gifted songwriter and accomplished musician with a unique voice that captivates the listener and leads them to interact with his characters. The fact that YARN makes such damn good music together is just extra. ‘Come on In’ will be one more step in putting YARN at the top of the mountain. The Alternate Root
State of Mind May 18, 2010 I haven't been to Schenectady, but hearing Blake Christiana sing about it makes me ache for all that it is--and all that it isn't. The tune about Christiana's beleaguered hometown sits at the emotional center of Come On In, the third effort by Yarn, Brooklyn's own hillbilly outfit. Much has been made of Yarn's being owned and operated by city slickers. A country band in Hipsterville? But it should be little surprise that a place that's become a cultural Mecca for young people of the artistic persuasion has produced a group like Yarn, whose first two albums grabbed some serious (and deserved) critical praise. With Come On In, the band will undoubtedly grab itself some more. From one end to the other, Come On In traffics in the loose feel and emotional authenticity of a Saturday-night living room jam. In "New York City Found," the band celebrates life in the greatest city on Earth with a fiddle sawin', spoon-tappin', snare-rattlin' raveup. At the opposite end of the spectrum, Blake Christiana's molasses-in-January vocals and Andrew Hendryx' laid-back mando crawl their way through the forlorn "I Wanted to Get High." A comparison to vintage David Bromberg wouldn't be out of order here. Yarn's sound has also been compared to the work of Jerry Garcia and David Grisman, no doubt due in part to Christiana's nasally vocals and Andrew Hendryx' grassy mando riffs. But the band's capable of a more rocking sound, too. The bad-breakup tune "Down on Your Luck" takes the energy a little higher, courtesy some jammy fiddle breaks and Rod Hohl's twangy Telecaster. And Hohl rips through "I Gotta Go" with pedal steel licks and some chicken pickin' that are downright honky tonk. Like the Bottle Rockets, Yarn's at its best when checking the pulse of America the Ordinary. Like "Schenectady," "Strikes and Gutters" and "The Bars Don't Look Too Friendly Tonight" give us life through the eyes of the underdog, with all the self-doubt and longing that implies. If they don't hit you in the heart, you haven't been there. In the end, it don't matter where they're from. These boys are for real. State of Mind
The Athens Post Athens, OH April 27, 2010 A Brooklyn-based sextet will travel outside the city, bringing with it a sound that fits the foothills of Appalachia better than the borough's brownstone houses and apartment buildings. Yarn will play at 9:30 p.m. tomorrow at Jackie O's Pub and Brewery, 24 W. Union St., to promote its new album, Come On In, which will be released Tuesday. The band's third album features melancholy lyrics about the struggles of life rather than the peaks, said Blake Christiana, the main songwriter and lead singer. "It's a lot easier to write when you're a little down than when you're happy because when you're happy, you're gonna be OK, so you don't have a whole lot to say," Christiana said. The band consists of: Christiana (guitar, vocals); Trevor MacArthur (guitar, vocals); Andrew Hendryx (mandolin, harmonica); Rod Hohl (electric guitar, dobro, vocals); Rick Bugel (bass); and Robert Bonhomme (percussion). Yarn's Americana-influenced sound is a seeming anomaly as the band is based in Brooklyn - recently known more for its status as a safe-haven for all things indie. Christiana said that the country scene in New York City is "pretty vibrant." "It's New York. You've got everybody in the world there, so pretty much every scene in New York City is in some way thriving because there are enough people in the town to make it happen. And country is in no way different from that," he said. Yarn has adopted the city as its own, with a song on the new record titled "New York City Found." "New York is a struggle," Christiana said. "(Writing music) definitely helps get some (things) off your chest. If you're feeling down and burnt out from the city, it's a way to get away." It is clear, though, that Christiana's home town, Schenectady, N.Y., has swayed the band's lyrics and music at least as much as the Big Apple. The chorus of Yarn's homage to the city is, "Schenectady / I been waiting for so long for you to comfort me / but this boy has moved on." "Schenectady's a dark, deep kind of place. ... I had a blast growing up there, but once I got a little bit older, I saw the darker side of the city," Christiana said. "A lot of hometowns are pretty much the same in that regard where everyone wants out, and everybody talks about getting out while they're getting wasted at the bar or snorting an 8-ball of cocaine up your nose. You can talk about it, but you never do anything about it," he added. "...The last thing you want to do is be that guy, sitting in a bar talking about what you could have been." The Athens Post
A review written for the Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange by Mark S. Tucker April 26, 2010 Come On In is this Brooklyn band's third release but you'd never guess the ensemble was a New York group at all, more a Wichita / Tulsa vibe than anything else, a smooth and hip blend of country rock blent with folk and somewhat in line with Blue Line Highway (here) but more pronouncedly from the sidestreets and back alleys, places the rural postman has to travel a bit to get to. In past efforts, Yarn attracted the likes of Edie Brickell and Tony Trischka, and it's not difficult to see why. "Schenectady" is one of the best songs James Taylor never wrote while "Yodelay" has a bit of Van Morrison to it, vocally and musically, albeit by way of Jim Croce with the ever so slight tang of Dylan. It soon becomes evident that lead man Blake Christiana has the unique something which demarcates an uncontrived heart and soul. Fronting a six-man band, he sings in a plaintive wheatstraw voice while plying one of two acoustic guitars alongside members toting dobro, mando, and a rhythm section, a deceptively sophisticated unit that bedrocks balmily mellow affections for life away from metropolises and urbanity, everything peppered with more than a little existentialist frustration. "I Wanted to Get High" is an Indigo Girls kind of lament on tripping and traipsing, a dusty and arid paean, though ya can't help but feel a bit of affection for the stoner in question, especially if you've been there yourself once or twice. For such a lazy song, it's hypnotic, drawing the listener in, refusing to let go, the listener's ears pulled along in a bit of narcotica, hazy and happy to be caught. "I Gotta Go" is a rock-swingin' bit of anger at the hopelessness of the narrator's comfy blandness and sins, a desire to erase the past by a quick leavetaking. Judging from the boot-scootin' shuffle of the tempo, that exeunt will be comin' any minute now, Jim-Bob, and ya better not look back. Yarn is a well polished folk-country unit drenched in rutted byways and hot broadacred suns, and Blake Christiana is a genuine, a gent who came by his laidback erudition the hard way, laying it all down for the audience to do with what they will. The musicianship and earnestness are first-rate, and the critical tie-ins to Gram Parsons quite warranted, though Blake is no imitator, just kindred, from another county, and talented as hell. Track List: Alone on the Weekend (Blake Christiana) New York City Found (Blake Christiana) Schenectady (Blake Christiana) Down on our Luck (Blake Christiana) These Bars Don't Look Too Friendly (Blake Christiana) Strikes & Gutters (Christiana / Spaulding) Abilene (Blake Christiana) Yodelay (Christiana / Spaulding) Time Burns On (Blake Christiana) Final Bow (Blake Christiana) I Wanted to Get High (Blake Christiana) I Gotta Go (Christiana / Spaulding) This Whole Zoo (Christiana / Spaulding) Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange
Yes! Weekly April 21, 2010 Greensboro, NC After three albums, it should cease to be a novelty that one of the finest and most uncomplicated country bands still flying under the radar of even most informed listeners hails from the epicenter of self-important indie rock. Like their first two wonderful offerings, Come On In finds Yarn (www.yarnmusic.net) more in tune with the beer-soaked honkey tonks than the fussy imagism of their native surroundings. While the jamband beginnings of front man Blake Christiana are still evident — the instrumental influence of Jerry Garcia and David Grisman’s collaborations are heard all over this album — it’s Christiana’s knack for simple yet pointed songwriting that sets this band apart from the field. Regardless of his geographical situation, his ability to carve out such effective and evocative lines like “I gotta get back to my Brooklyn flat, where the neighbors don’t know my name/ and the forecast calls for rain” on “Time Burns On” suggest that the honest storyteller can still survive in even the most oppressive of artistic climates. The fact that this six-piece ensemble is as technically sound as the most battle-hardened bluegrass outfit is even more suggestive of Christiana’s ability to weave something rich and wonderful out of this Yarn. 78/100 Yarn will perform at the Blind Tiger on Thursday with the Honeycutters. Yes! Weekly
Creative Loafing Charlotte, NC April 6, 2010 Blake Christiana, front man and songwriter for Brooklyn-based alt.Country band Yarn, croons and yodels as if born and bred in Dixie. The N.Y. native has evolved into such authenticity over the past few years and recordings, that he might as well have been birthed on a bar table in a rickety Southern honky-tonk. Yarn's upcoming new recording, Come On In, is salty Americana stacked with deft songcraft and twangy playing that'll keep diehard honky-tonkers soaked while reeling in casual observers. Also on the bill are the Trainwreks. Double Door Inn (Shukla) Creative Loafing
The State Columbia, SC April 1, 2010 9 p.m. Thursday: Yarn at The White Mule. Yarn, a Brooklyn-based Americana band, is touring in support of its new record, "Come On In," which won't be released until June. The White Mule, at least for one night, will be like the MTV News slogan: "You hear it here first." (By the way, does MTV still have news? I only watch the VMAs.) The State
By SETH AUGENSTEIN New Jersey Herald March 19th, 2010 saugenstein@njherald.com FREDON -- A band on the cusp will kick out the jams Saturday night at the Fountain House. Yarn, a country band from Brooklyn, is gearing up to release its third album next month and is gaining momentum for 39 dates taking them through Virginia, Tennessee, the Carolinas, Pennsylvania and New York. But the tiny Fountain House stage will be the second venue for the months-long trip, and could be the event of the weekend for Sussex County -- which has welcomed the band twice before. Tickets for Saturday's show are $18 at the door. "I guess we have a bunch of fans in the neighborhood," said Blake Christiana, Yarn's frontman. Much has been made of the city boys playing their country music. There's a bit more to it than that. The members -- Christiana on vocals and guitar, Trevor MacArthur on guitar and vocals, Andrew Hendryx on mandolin and harmonica, Rod Hohl on electric guitar, bassist Rick Bugel, and newcomer Robert Bonhomme on the kit -- have varied backgrounds including classical and jazz training. But their soul remains rock and roll -- with a whole bunch of country. They say they "owe as much to Gram Parsons and Earl Scruggs as to Jerry Garcia and the Exile on Main Street-era Rolling Stones." The live experience is wild. Each member can hold the band together, trade off the lead at times, and there are instrumental forays into the unlikeliest of places -- even into vintage Guns 'n Roses. They jam, but it's never boring for the 3-minute crowd, because it keeps momentum and never lingers too long in one place. If the hooting and hollering is indication, women adore them; and the crowd is generally grooving and giddy -- and sometimes plain inebriated. A Sussex County bar might be just the place for the city boys. Their night at the Fountain House is part of the Hobo Stage side project of one of New Jersey's most respected bands, Railroad Earth. Tim Carbone, the fiddle player from the band, will start off Saturday night with a trio and then join Yarn on stage -- which is something he's looking forward to. "I really like the music -- there are elements of all sorts of juicy stuff," Carbone said. The juicy stuff is addictive for their growing crowd. Yarn has a dedicated following that swings them through the south and parts of the northeast, dutifully supporting each of the albums: 2007's eponymous debut, and the darker-tinged "Empty Pockets" from 2008 (which made the initial Grammy ballot for 2009). The third, "Come on in," will be released April 6 by UFO Records, to which they signed last month. Christiana said the album follows the title; it's a little more inviting, even though the band still tackles songs about "boozing, loving, losing ... just about life," as he explains. "I couldn't imagine writing ... when you're super happy," he said. "(But) we try to keep the mood and the music upbeat." Bugel, the bassist, says the band's power keeps multiplying, and each time they get a new show they "hook 'em." With a third record, a new tour, and such momentum, he said, they're ready for good things. "It's going to be a good year. It's going to be cookin,'" he said.
By Chidi Ugwu For the Collegian State College, PA December 3, 2009 Yarn's music -- just like the band's namesake -- aims to be simple, functional and fun. Blake Christiana, guitarist, vocalist and primary songwriter for the band, formerly fronted a jam band called Blake & The Family Dog, but decided he didn't like the musical direction the band was heading and formed Yarn, which began as a primarily acoustic outfit. Listening to Yarn's music -- complete with mandolins, fiddles and banjos -- it's almost difficult to believe the band is based in Brooklyn. "It seems strange," said Christiana, "but Brooklyn loves country." Blake and his band are hoping State College will love it too when they perform tonight at Café 210 West, 210 W. College Ave. While the band is based in Brooklyn, Christiana said New York's music scene isn't where the band's primary musical influence comes from -- his style was more defined by the music he listened to growing up. The band does take some lyrical influence from the ups and downs of living in Brooklyn, even if it doesn't musically sound like it, Christiana said. "This place can drag you through the mud and lift you up, too," he said. "That kind of feeling comes through in our songs." The unpredictable nature of life is shown not only in the band's songs, but also in the way the songs are written. Christiana sits down and "hopes it comes," snatching inspiration whenever it arrives. He also said the band's sound is steadily getting more "plugged in." While its last releases were primarily acoustic, the next will be a much better representation of what the band sounds like live, Christiana said. "We get better at playing together each album," Christiana said. "We're progressively getting tighter as a unit." While the band's sound is changing, it's still maintaining what made it likeable in the first place, event organizer Mark Ross said. "Blake has the kind of voice that's so easy to listen to," Ross said. Christiana said the band's songs are mostly about life -- and not just the happier parts of it. Song titles like "I Feel So Low," "Lies I've Told," and "You Don't Love Me Anymore," show the kind of sentiments common in the band's songs. "Even the up-tempo songs aren't the happiest," he said. "That's just how it comes out." Even so, Christiana said the band isn't trying to bring anyone down -- group members want to enjoy themselves and entertain their listeners. "The best shows are the ones where we're performing and the crowd is, in a way, performing themselves, and we're all feeding off of one another," he said. www.collegian.psu.edu
Empty Pockets - Yarn A review written for the Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange by Mark S. Tucker (progdawg@hotmail.com) Hot diggety, this is one cool, swingin', bluegrassy, country, honky-tonked quintet! Lead singer Blake Christiana is dead-nuts molded in a hoots-n-hollers timbre and when he sharps out while squeezing the lines for that last drop of countrified tang, it sends shivers up the spine. The shuffly smoothness to songs like Empty Pockets recall Gordon Lightfoot in a less wistful mood, though there's melancholy aplenty to go around in…until the solos kick in on More and it's time to boot scoot. Edie Brickell likes these characters and sat in on I'm Down, a cry-in-yer beer croon made all the more bittersweet by her sugar-flower backing refrains, delicate and frail. The contrast and harmony she puts on Christiana's lines has to be heard, literally transforming tone and color as Josh Roy Brown's pedal steel underscores everything. Elsewhere, Tony Trishka decided to lend his masterful banjo and ornaments several cuts as well, always a welcome presence. The rest of the Yarn cast should probably take more solos but work beautifully as a rhythm unit nonetheless, the sod on which Christiana's voice and guitar dance and reflect. Still, when Casey Dreissen joins the boys on fiddle, it becomes noticeable that they have more than a few chops in their back pocket, and a showcasing wouldn't hurt one little bit. www.acousticmusic.com
Jumping off the country bandwagon New albums by Yarn and Swamp Rat re-energize older genres Mountain Times - Boone, NC December 25th, 2008 By Jeff Eason With the recent release by Ryan Adams and the Cardinals, Cardinology, it is high time to recognize the amazing influence of Adams' Raleigh-based band Whiskeytown. Although Whiskeytown only released three full-length albums, Faithless Street, Pneumonia, and the stellar Stranger's Almanac, those discs and assorted live recordings floating around in cyberspace and in cassette decks have cemented Whiskeytown's place in Americana history. Two new albums hitting the stores this fall have Whiskeytown's fingerprints all over them, and while neither is a flat-out tribute, both continue in Whiskeytown's tradition in the creation of blues-soaked country music with a little punk rock edge. Yarn: Empty Pockets Brooklyn. That's not exactly the first place you'd pick when looking some good country music. It is, however, the hometown of the young quintet Yarn. An offshoot of guitarist and vocalist Blake Christiana's longtime electric jam-band, Blake & the Family Dog, Yarn is has a languid acoustic country sound magnified by the tasty use of mandolin, fiddle, banjo and pedal steel. Christiana's smooth and expressive vocals have earned comparisons to Lyle Lovett, Chris Isaak, Ryan Adams and even Jerry Garcia. Joining Christiana in Yarn is Trevor Macarthur on guitar and vocals, Andrew Hendryx on mandolin and harmonica, Rick Bugel on bass and Jay Frederick on drums. Did I previously mention Yarn's sonic lineage to Whiskeytown? The new disc has a distinctly casual Whiskeytown feel to it and even includes vocals and fiddle contributions from Whiskeytown's Caitlin Cary on the sultry and slow "5 Guitars." Empty Pockets also gets help from guest musicians Edie Brickell, bluegrass and rock fiddle wizard Casey Driessen of the Sparrow Quintet, and veteran banjo player Tony Trischka. Empty Pockets is a fantastic collection of new original songs written by Christiana with some contributions from fellow songwriter Shane Spaulding. The styles vary from the Kristofferson-esque title track to waltz-y blues of "I'm Down" to the brisk ballad "You Don't Love Me Anymore." All of them are anchored by Christiana's pleasing twang and some downright excellent playing. "We're not trying to say anything too deep," said Christiana of the new collection of songs. "Though maybe some are deeper than others. Mainly, these are just some easy-to-swallow songs. We mean to entertain people." Empty Pockets is recommended for fans of Railroad Earth, the Biscuit Burners and Chatham County Line. For more information, visit www.myspace.com/brooklynyarn. Swamp Rat Combine the heavy Texas-soaked power trio sound of early Z.Z. Top with the wildness of guit-steel slinger Junior Brown and throw in some swing and world rhythms, and you'll start to understand the musical philosophy of Swamp Rat. While the band's sound is nothing like Whiskeytown, it is as every bit as adventurous and eclectic as Ryan's Raleigh band…and just as country, in a weird sort of way. Three seasoned session musicians from Louisiana formed the rhythm section of the band Howard Shaft then later performed as Tracy Byrd's touring band before forming Swamp Rat. In November the band released its self-titled debut album. Swamp Rat is made up of Dan Cohen on guitar, banjo and vocals, James Cook on bass and backing vocals, and Derek Mixon on drums. For the debut album, the core trio enlists help from musical guests Sam Bush on mandolin, Tracy Byrd on vocals, Johnny Neel on vocals and keyboards, Steve Wariner on vocals and electric guitar, Johnny Lee Carpenter on fiddle and mandolin, Max Abrams on saxophone, Kevin Adams on piano and Paul Deakin on vibes. The 12 original tunes on the new album are mostly timeless instrumental numbers that touch on surf music, Texas swing, Klezmer and other offbeat styles. This is clearly music for musicians who like to have as much fun as their audiences. Cohen loves to show off his chops as a guitarist and some of his licks are jaw-droppingly snappy. One reviewer described Cohen's guitar sound on the track "Back on the Farm" as "something that sounds like Jeff Beck stuck his chocolate in Bob Wills' peanut butter." While the vocal tracks are few, one of the standout tracks on the new album is "Better Let Go" featuring the pipes of Johnny Neel. With a slow-burning blues beat and swirling organs, the cut is the soulful closer to one of the best albums of 2008. Swamp Rat's debut album should appeal to fans of Asleep at the Wheel, Los Straitjackets and the Flecktones early albums. The album is available on the Weston Boys label. For more information, visit www.westonboys.com. Mountain Times
Off the top of your head you wouldn’t think that the best Americana being made would come out of Brooklyn, but hey this is the era of change. This band truly just goes in the studio and makes wonderful unadorned country rock the way it’s supposed to be. That’s with great songs and music that fits the words being sung instead of droning on top of a singular riff. For their second gem here they are joined by Caitlin Cary on a track and fan Edie Brickell on another. Their pockets may be empty, but that’s the only thing. Village Records
Yarn - Empty Pockets Vintage Guitar Magazine January 2009 Yarn hails from Brooklyn, but its countrified roots rock sounds more at home in a grange than a downtown loft. Geography aside, here the band creates exciting and authentic music that'll move you regardless of your spot on a GPS locator. Yarn features guitarist and lead vocalist Blake Christiana along with Trevor MacArthur on guitar and vocals, Andrew Hendryx on mandolin and harmonica, Rick Bugel on bass, and Jay Frederick on drums and percussion. Cameos by Edie Brickell on vocals, Casey Driessen on fiddle, and Tony Trishka on banjo add a dash of virtuosic fire, but Yarn's chops are more than adequate to keep up. Mandolin fans will especially enjoy Hendryx's innovative mix of older tremolo techniques with modern single-string solos. The songs here were written or co-written by Christiana. Many, such as the title number are reminiscent of Gram Parsons' best. His melodies share Parsons' lyrical quality and preoccupation with intoxication and the regrets that go along with an alcoholic lifestyle. "I've Already Won" is as close to a love song as you'll find on this album - it's about divorce. Despite a plethora of dark subject matter, "Empty Pockets" has an almost jaunty overall feel because most of songs have beautiful melodies and upbeat rhythms. If your tastes lean towards classic honky-tonk country tempered with a dash of contemporary urban angst, Yarn should hit the spot. - SS
Yarn/Doc Marshalls Americana Roots 11.12.2008 -- Review by: Don Zelazny Americana music is not the first thing I think of when I think of New York City, yet two of the better Americana bands around hail from the Big Apple. Yarn is a band that blew me away with their debut CD Yarn last year. I had a review for that CD on these cyber pages, and the disc ended up on my favorites of 2007 list. The band will likely end up on this year's list as well with their latest, Empty Pockets. This band is flat out great! The songs are well crafted and often catchy and their playing is outstanding. Recent news about the band includes a nomination for "Artist of the Year" by the Roots Music Association Awards in the Roots/Americana category (along with Emmylou, The Derailers and Reckless Kelly among others). You may have also read on our pages about the bands early Grammy nominations. The title track "Empty Pockets" is one of the catchy numbers and includes some great mandolin by Andrew Hendryx. Once again on this CD the music was written by Blake Christiana, who also provides lead vocals. Fortunately he is surrounded by a band that does the tunes justice! "Music's Only Outlaw" is a beautiful slower tune that will leave you tapping your toe for sure. Edie Brickell pays a visit and adds some beautiful harmony vocals on "I'm Down," another highlight on a disc full of them. 15 tunes stuff this disc with great music. It's a no-brainer, just get it! The other NYC gem is one of the AmericanaRoots "house bands," The Doc Marshalls, and their CD is Honest For Once. Whereas Yarn rely a bit more on acoustic music, The Doc Marshalls tend to plug it in. Right out of the gate the band grabs you with their upbeat pure Americana gem "Ticket Out Of Texas." This disc is really diverse in styles also; you get classic pedal steel soaked lively country on "Lonely At The Top." Deeper into the disc comes a bit of surprise, a big bite of the Big Easy coming out of the Big Apple, the cajun/zydeco beat and accordion of "Deux Bouteilles" and "Port Barre Stomp." Apparently being a top notch Americana band located in NYC does have its drawbacks; it must be hard to find proper Americana ladies as the band laments in the disc's closer "Never Found My Emmylou." Both of these CDs would be great stocking stuffers for the Americana fan who's has been a good boy or girl this year!! Americana Roots
Yarn Empty Pockets (Ardsley) Pop Matters by Julie Thanki For a bunch of Brooklynites, Yarn sure knows its country music. Empty Pockets, the band's second release, sees them borrowing from country, folk, and classic rock & roll to knit together a sound that is Americana at its genrebending best. Bluegrass serves as the undercurrent to most of the album's songs, thanks to mandolinist Andrew Hendryx and guest fiddle player Casey Dreissen (currently a member of Abigail Washburn's Sparrow Quartet), while living legend Tony Trischka adds some wicked banjo to the background, content to let the vocals take center stage. The band's frontman and primary songwriter Blake Christiana has a voice reminiscent of Ryan Adams at his drugged out, Pneumonia-era best; thus it's fitting that several tracks sound like they could be lost Whiskeytown songs, from the steel guitar crying in the background to the heartbreaking lyrics. "5 Guitars" even features bourbon-smooth vocals from ex-Whiskeytowner Caitlin Cary. Even old New Bohemian Edie Brickell joins the band to lend some harmony to the torchy and twangy "I'm Down". Yarn may be one of the better unknown alt-country bands out there, but if satellite radio gets ahold of Empty Pockets, they won't be unknown much longer. Pop Matters
Yarn Empty Pockets Jim Abbott \| Sentinel Pop Music Critic October 3, 2008 Yarn is from Brooklyn, but the songs on Empty Pockets sound like the work of an outfit from Texas or Kentucky. This Americana band -- singer-guitarists Blake Christiana and Trevor MacArthur, mandolinist Andrew Hendryx, bassist Rick Bugel and drummer Jay Frederick -- has already made some friends. Empty Pockets features guests including Edie Brickell and banjo wizard Tony Trischka, but the band does fine on its own. The quintet shifts easily from fleet-fingered bluegrass picking on the opening "Can't Slow Down" to the twangy old-school country of "I Feel So Low" to rollicking ballads such as "More." The latter sounds like the Old 97's might if they were picking unplugged on the back porch. On Empty Pockets, Yarn combines that casual flair with some masterful musicianship. Do they have back porches in Brooklyn? Orlando Sentinel
Artist: Yarn Title: Empty Pockets Website: http://www.yarnmusic.net Style: Americana / Country/ Root Rock/ Bluegrass Label: Ardsley Music Rating: 8.8 out of 10 By C.W. Ross Yarn's lineup is: Blake Christiana (lead vocals, guitar), Trevor MacArthur (guitar, vocals), Andrew Hendryx (fiddle, mandolin), Rick Bugel (bass), and Jay Frederick (drums), Several other artists have also joined the band on Empty Pockets, including fiddler and vocalist Caitlin Cary (of Tres Chicas; Whiskeytown), New Bohemian- Edie Brickell (harmony vocalist on the lazy ballad "I'm Down"), bluegrass and rock fiddler Casey Driessen (of the Sparrow Quartet) and veteran newgrass banjo virtuoso Tony Trischka. Along with Kenji Bunch (fiddle on tracks 9 & 14), and Josh Roy Brown (pedal & lap steel, dobro). Empty Pockets is the second release from the group Yarn. Their first was a self-titled album in 2007 that reached 14 on the Americana Music Association's Top 40 chart. This Brooklyn-based band's music starts with a base of Americana and country music and then mixes it with bluegrass, roots rock, and alt. country to achieve their distinctive sound. Some of that uniqueness might come from the band member's eclectic list of musical influences that include, Ricky Nelson, Elvis Presley, Bruce Springsteen, Jerry Garcia, Gram Parsons, The 4 Flushers, Lou Reed, Tom Waits, Patsy Cline, Chris Isaak The Beatles, The Grateful Dead, Crosby Stills & Nash, The Band, Neil Young, Guns N Roses, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Thelonious Monk, Beethoven, Jackie Mclean, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Nat Reeves, Ron Carter, James Brown, Miles Davis, Roy Haynes, Philly Joe Jones, Charlie Watts, Jim Keltner, Levon Helm, and Ornette Coleman. Empty Pockets is packed with 15 songs and a running time of just a little under one hour. It all gets started with the song, "Can't Slow Down," filled with bluegrass strings. My favorite tracks are, track-5, "More," an upbeat very country flavored song filled with lively fiddling, and twang-edged vocals. The song talks about never being satisfied, always wanting more then you have at that time. Another favorite of mine is, "Roadhouse," a honky-tonk drinking song for when you're in one of those moods, looking for trouble. It also has a jam element to it that lets the instruments get up and run with the song. All of the songs found on this release feature strong vocals, and nice harmonies, and deal with their subjects in a straightforward way. Lead singer Blake Christana's vocals have been compared to those of, Chris Isaak, Lyle Lovett, Ryan Adams, and Rick Nelson. It's hard to believe that Christiana is only in his early 30's. His vocals have the passion and wisdom like those of a chiseled-face longtime survivor of the touring road! When asked about the songs band lead singer and songwriter Blake Christana had this to say, "We're not trying to say anything too deep," Blake continues saying, "though maybe some are deeper than others! Mainly, these are just some easy-to-swallow songs. We mean to entertain people." If you're looking to be entertained by some good music for an hour then Yarn's Empty Pockets will meet your needs with its very well done music. CW's Place
Rockin' the roots Hot acts to rock during Valentine's Root-A-Rama Weekend Time's Union Thursday, October 2, 2008 by Greg Haymes Valentine's kicks off October with a double-barrelled blast of roots-rockin', as the Albany nightspot hosts the second annual Root-A-Rama Weekend. Brooklyn alt-country rockers Yarn kick off the festivities on Friday night, as they celebrate the release of their new sophomore CD, "Empty Pockets" on the Ardsley Music indie label. Several members of the Americana quintet hail from the Capital Region, including bandleader-singer-songwriter Blake Christiana and guitarist-singer Trevor MacArthur, who are both Schenectady natives. A big city band with a country heart, Yarn weaves richly textured vocal harmonies over sparkling bluegrass-flavored instrumentation. And although "Empty Pockets" features a very impressive collection of special guests (including Edie Brickell, Caitlin Cary, Casey Driessen and banjo master Tony Trischka), the focus never strays from the core band. This crack quintet isn't merely a bunch of rockers who added twang to their mix. No, Yarn's music is cut whole cloth from the country music tradition, updated only slightly for the 21st century. Sharing Valentine's stage on Friday are Coma and A Troop of Echoes.
Marquee Magazine Yarn - Empty Pockets Ardsley Music 4.5 out of 5 stars Attention folks: there is a band on the Americana music scene that deserves to be given a good listen and that band is the Brooklyn-based group, Yarn. They just released their second studio album, Empty Pockets, last month and it is a mighty fine piece of work. Recorded at Excello Studios in Brooklyn, N.Y., the album doesn't sound like something a bunch of city-folk would have recorded, rather, a backwoods jamboree of country songs with intricate bluegrass instrumentation. Empty Pockets is one of my favorite releases of the year thus far. Yarn's debut self-titled album, released in 2007, hit 14 on the Americana Music Association's Top 40 chart. Since then, the band, which features lead singer and songwriter Blake Christiana, guitarist/vocalist Trevor MacArthur, mandolin player Andrew Hendryx, bassist Rick Bugel and drummer Jay Frederick, have been touring heavily on the East Coast, with occasional trips to Nashville. Along the way, they met various musicians who have contributed to the recording of the new album, including fiddler/vocalist Caitlin Cary (Whiskeytown, Tres Chicas), banjoist Tony Trischka and New Bohemian Edie Brickell. The results are a very listenable Americana album with country-influenced songwriting and bluegrass-influenced instrumentation. Songwriter Christiana is an edgy, straightforward writer with songs dealing with life's personal losses, outrages and embarrassments. His lyrical style is a pleasure to listen to and is delivered in a laid back storyteller kind of way — much like Gram Parsons, Lyle Lovett or Ryan Adams. Standouts include the upbeat "You Don't Love Me Anymore," the beautiful ballad "Music's Only Outlaw," the album's title track "Empty Pockets," and the darker "Ain't That a Sin." — Jonathan Keller Marquee Magazine
Creative Loafing Charlotte, NC September 4, 2008 Yarn The Brooklyn-based band Yarn's new CD, Empty Pockets, boasts more guest stars than your average (and they're all average, when you get down to it) Nelly record. What's more, none of them – Caitlin Cary (Tres Chicas, Whiskeytown), Edie Brickell, Tony Trischka (Bela Fleck) and Casey Driessen (Sparrow Quartet) – overwhelm singer Blake Christiana's forlorn ruminatin'. The music, as with all good honk, sounds worlds sunnier than the subject matter – heartbreak and heartache, predominately – proving yet again that a little bit of sugar makes even the harshest medicine go down easier. With David Stein and the Ravens, Kennebee. Tremont Music Hall (Davis)
SEPTEMBER 3, 2008 VISITING ACT \| Yarn Brooklyn Twang: Blake Christiana and Yarn ease into alt-country territory BY T. BALLARD LESEMANN "Everybody in New York thinks this music doesn't happen up here, but it does," says Blake Christiana. The deep-voiced songwriter and native New York upstater sounds more like a seasoned Memphis session man than a Yankee songsmith. "It'd be nice if we weren't based in New York; it'd be a lot easier financially [laughs]. It's tough, man. It's tricky, but we're fighting it." Their funds may be tight, but musically, Christiana and his Brooklyn-based band Yarn have little to worry about. The band headlines Wednesday night at the Pour House in support of a forthcoming album titled Empty Pockets — an unusually smooth, low-key collection of heartfelt, bluegrass-tinged alt-country songs. Christiana, 32, previously played for years in the N.Y. jam band Blake & The Family Dog. He admits he grew tired of the routine with the group and decided to switch gears completely toward a less chaotic musical situation. "It was more about improvising and jamming than it was about the songs themselves," he remembers. "I got so sick of that really. I was ready to make a record of songs. To me, the record is about the song, first and foremost." Yarn currently features Christiana on acoustic guitar and lead vocals alongside singer/guitarist Trevor MacArthur, filddler/mandolinist Andrew Hendryx, bassist Rick Bugel, and drummer Jay Frederick. "I got lucky with the guys in this band," Christiana says. "They're all very tasteful musicians. The rhythm section actually features a couple of jazz guys. We're all in our 30s, except for the bass player, who is a young 25-year-old. He keeps us partying, you know. The band on the album is the band on the road. There aren't any special guests planned for the Pour House show ... although if anyone wants to come up and play, we might be glad to have them." When the songwriter was growing up in Schenectady, N.Y., his guitar-playing dad bought him a guitar and arranged for lessons, hoping to nurture a natural talent. His guidance took a while to pay off. "Like any kid, I kind of rebelled against it a bit," Christiana remembers. "My dad was a diehard Ricky Nelson fan — that and Elvis Presley. As a kid, that's all I'd hear — in the living room and around the campfire. It was hammered into my brain. I started back up with music in high school again, and started playing rhythm guitar in garage bands. I didn't start writing my own music until I was in my mid-20s. Plus, I wasn't a singer, either." The slightly drowsy, flat-toned croon of Ricky Nelson must have made its way into Christiana's vocal chords, too, as his singing style on most of Empty Pockets maintains a similarly nonchalant style. There's a bit of Randy Travis-by-way-of-Don Nelson in the tone as well — deep, rich, raspy, and understated, with the occasional yodel and trill. "That's just developed over the years," he says of his singing. "I think Ryan Adams has a beautiful voice. I've always liked his vocals. I don't necessarily emulate him at all, but he does have a nice falsetto. I thought it was important to try to take that and take a note from my regular voice and make it that high trill, as you call it. I don't even know how to describe it. I guess I developed that unconsciously." Christiana didn't even try his hand singing lead until just seven years ago, when he started collaborating more and more with his buddy Shane Spaulding, eventually adding lyrics and arrangement ideas to their original song sketches. Spaulding shares songwriting credit on several tunes on the new album. "This has been brewing since I was a kid," says Christiana of his latest work. "I loved the Grateful Dead when I was younger and I was really into the Garcia and Grisman stuff — Old and In the Way and all of it. Then I started listening to Whiskeytown and Wilco and groups like that. I got into Gram Parsons and the Burrito Brothers and stuff. It became kind of a hipper thing to do — get the country stuff out. It inspired me for the first record, and it worked so well, I continued with this second record." Empty Pockets features guest appearances by vocalist Edie Brickell, five-string banjo legend Tony Trischka, Nashville fiddler Casey Driessen, and Caitlin Cary of Whiskeytown. The major slow waltz on the new album, "I'm Down," features high-pitched harmonies from Brickell. "Can't Slow Down" and "More" are snappy quick-tempo shuffles in 2/4 time, replete with rich vocal harmonies between Christiana and his high-tone, strumming sideman MacArthur. Hendryx's tasteful mandolin lines and chords slip out of their rhythm section roles into the front as part of a subtle call-and-response counter to Christiana's lead singing. "Ain't That a Sin" and "Christopher Street" work as elegant, strummy ballads propelled by brushwork across the snare drums and pedal steel and dobro in the background. Sad and swingin' tunes like "I Feel So Low" and "5 Guitars" (featuring Carey on vocals and fiddle) could easily have been on a George 'n' Tammy or Conway 'n' Loretta album from four decades ago. "When I made the first record, I wasn't thinking of a specific album to model it after — but I did have the Dead's American Beauty in mind, with its country/folky thing," says the songwriter. "It's pretty personal. It's heartbreak, debauchery — all typical subject matter for country music. We're trying to keep things not too depressing, although even some of the most upbeat songs don't have the happiest themes to them. There's an intertwined message throughout the record ... although I'm not so sure what it is. Maybe it's just life, you know?" Charleston City Paper
Sing Out! Magazine Vol. 52 2 Summer 2008 YARN - Yarn (Ardsley Music) Sometimes you know from the first note you are listening to a winner. Yarn feels that way. These Brooklyn cowboys sound like they really believe in their songs and their picking is assured and bracing, especially Andrew Hendryx on mandolin. Blake Christiana, the singer and songwriter, is a winning presence. His reading lend real credibility to his songs. I really like "Bad Bad Man," the tale of a man who constantly wrestles with his demons, not so much as to beat them as to keep both him and them in fit shape. He relishes being bad. That one's flip side is "25 Years," a jaunty song about how a mistake in anger with his girl and the guy she was cheating with landed him a quarter century in the stir. Can't recall hearing that dire a situation served up sounded so celebratory. Blake's craft as songmaker shines all the way through. Yarn sports some really nifty picking. Hendryx on mandolin is superb. Kenji Bunch is terrific on fiddle and viola, but he doesn't seem to be a fully engaged member of the band. Yarn is a band that makes you feel good listening to them. Playing their album somehow made my worldly cares vanish for the duration as the band's buoyant spirits washed over me. Yarn is a find. Glad the assignment to cover their album came my way. - MT
Saturday, June 07, 2008 Taproot Radio Yarn Yarn's debut self-titled CD as reminds me of the early days of Paul Simon and Gram Parsons. Upbeat, feel good music with lyrics and musicianship that cut to the nub of American music. Fiddles, mandolin, upright bass, and harmnicas add that Americana twang to the guitar and drums to make a great CD of easy going music. Highlights include, "Listen Up Sweetheart," "No Future Together," "The Contender," "Woman On The Interstate," and "Cat And Mouse." Posted by Calvin Powers Taproot Radio
Yarn March 10, 2008 A country-tinged bluegrass/folk album that could easily be in country mainstream. A nice little band that you could easily picture in your local dive bar. Simple guitar and drum, mixed well with instruments that make this classic bluegrass band. Check out tracks 1 "Listen Up Sweeetheart", track 4 "Don't Break My Heart Again", track 6 "The Contender", track 10 "Madeline", and track 14 "Cat & Mouse". – Lane Zoerhof
Portland Herald Press By AIMSEL L. PONTI April 17, 2008 When Sara Cox wrote me a few weeks ago to sing the praises of the band Yarn, I had a hunch I would not be disappointed. Heck, she even mailed me a copy of their self-titled CD from last year. Yarn is a terrific roots-rock/alt-country band from Brooklyn, N.Y. Between the comfortable vocals of Blake Christiana and the mandolin from Andrew Hendryx, just about every track on the album shines. From the zippy little opener, "Listen Up Sweetheart," all the way through the album-ending sleepy love song "I Love the Way," listening to these 15 songs was a sojourn into an intelligent, lyrically rich and musically satiating landscape. The four primary musicians that are Yarn have only been playing together a short time, which is hard to believe given the caliber of this album. Just wait until you hear "Angel of Woodstock" or "The Contender"; you'll be over the moon like I am over this band. So even if this show was JUST the band Yarn, you'd be golden.... But oh no, they're the opening act for the Coming Grass, which has resurfaced in the live scene after a three-year absence. The new formation is Nate Schrock (vocals, guitar,) Steve Jones (vocals, guitar), Eric Glockler on bass (yep, he's the guy from Strangefolk), and snazzy drummer Chicky Stoltz from Dulce de Leche and Munjoy Hill Society's glory days." The Coming Grass with Yarn. 9 p.m. Saturday. Empire Dine & Dance, 525 Congress St. Call for cover. 879-8988. 21 and older show.
This Week In Reviews - YARN, SARA COX The Morning Call - Bethlehem, PA by Len Righi When the five musicians of Brooklyn-based Yarn were good last weekend at Godfrey Daniels, they were diverting. But when they were bad, they were better. For openers at the Bethlehem listening club, the bluegrass-tinted alt-country band chugged along agreeably on ''Can't Slow Down'' and spun tales of woe on ''Tennessee'' and ''Five Guitars.'' But vocalist-guitarists Blake Christiana and Trevor MacArthur, mandolinist Andrew Hendryx, upright bassist Rick Bugel and drummer Jay Frederick achieved critical mass only when they summoned a rockabilly fervor for ''Bad Bad Man,'' a track from their upcoming second CD. It was the high point of an entertaining if not very remarkable 11-song set, although ''25 Years'' and ''Wishing Well'' also left an impression.< Click here to read the article
Yarn - Yarn by Jon Gorey \| Boston, MA Dissolver Magazine Volume 18 After hearing the first song off Yarn — the beeeeaaauuuutiful, mellow, Americana love song "Listen Up Sweetheart" — I was already sold. Blake Christiana and his bandmates didn't have to prove anything else to me. And yet, for fifty-one straight minutes, they did. Christiana's voice has the rich warmth of Lyle Lovett's, and the band's easy backing is both understated and artful. The combination, added to strong songwriting, makes for some of the best old-time country available. Complementing the best chorus on the CD — which is saying something, because Christiana has a knack for the chorus — the stripped down drum kit, violin, mandolin, and harmonies of "Don't Break My Heart Again" make me swoon. (In the interest of full disclosure, let it be known that I eat this shit up. I wish my own music sounded like this.) Even songs that fall short of excellence, like "The Contender," are still immensely charming. I missed Yarn when they came to Boston last fall; that won't happen again. If you're within reach of the blown-up Brooklyn music scene, make sure to catch them live. Click Here To View Site
Talkin' New York, Vol. 10 - Yarn Pop Headwound January 6th, 2008 by James Burns Talkin' New York is a semi-regular feature I like to include on Pop Headwound that focuses on the wealth of emerging local talent in the Brooklyn and Manhattan area. Some are touring bands getting buzz, others are folks I saw play at an open-mic who blew me away. All are artists who have struck me as incredibly talented musicians and songwriters who deserve to have their music heard on a wider scale. ********************************************************* About a year ago Blake Christiana was growing tired of playing folk rock in Blake & The Family Dog and decided his musical career needed rethinking. So, he and bandmate Trevor MacArthur made a change - they started writing acoustic based songs, formed Yarn, and recorded their self-titled debut record. The band has been gaining acclaim in the months since its release. They've been consistently moving their way up the AMA Chart, won the IMA award for best alt. country song of the year ("No Future Together"), and placed in the Freeform American Roots reporters Top 20 albums of the year. Not a bad year for a new band. Yarn is New York in locale, but their sound and spirit ain't from these parts. Led by the smooth vocals and guitar playing of Christiana, Yarn plays a form of alt. country music that seems born on the outskirts of Nashville, decidedly heavier on the "country" than the "alt". The 15 songs that comprise the record are just pristine. I haven't heard production this crisp on a country record in a long time - it reminds me of what M. Ward has achieved on his last few albums. I'm not comparing the 2 artists stylistically, but the crystal clear production here (warm, spacious, inviting) rivals that of Ward for some of the best I've heard. The album itself is marked by fine playing and smart songs. The familiar country music themes and images referenced seem more alive than ever, and Christiana's sturdy croon is as real as a warm breeze, as knowing as the weathervane. "No Future Together" is a heartbreaking confession of failure, "Madeline" a dusty ballad that sounds like it's leftover from Stranger's Almanac, and "Cat and Mouse" a shuffling sing-along worthy of a Hank comparison. The songs cuddle together with the others, seemless in their delivery, and by the rustic sway of "I Love The Way" you'll be waiting for the CD to end so you can start it over. This is highly recommended music for fans of real country music with an outsider's edge, and while that's not always my thing, this is too good to ignore. click here to view article
Root Music Report - November 2007 4 stars (out of 5) Each independent member of Yarn really brings their own flavor to the group, melding it into a treat for everyone's ears. The newly formed band's first release really stunned us at how well they all worked together to create such a great CD. When we first listened, we began reminiscing of times long since past, and musicians that are in everyone's hearts and minds. Each song on this album is catchy and addictive, and they etched themselves into our memory and took up a place in our hearts. Quentin Foster - RMR Staff Click here to go to their website: Root Music Report CD Reviews
Village Records 11.26.07 Like a lot of the best alt-country bands this group had its roots in rock music. The roots were there, but their heart wasn't and they decided to follow that voice down the lost highway and pursue their muse. That siren voice took them down a country road and after a couple of miles they knew they were headed home. This debut album is full of seasoned music from a group that is truly enjoying themselves and will never have to look back. Here's a chance to hop on board and be among the first to discover this band. Village Records Yarn Americana Roots Tuesday, 13 November 2007 Written by Don Zelazny Yarn is a relatively new band out of the New York City area fronted by Blake Christiana, a classically trained guitarist who also handles vocals and songwriting duties on their debut release Yarn. He had previously run a rock band called Blake & the Family Dog in NYC. Apparently he wanted to head into a more country type sound when he met up with mandolin player Andrew Hendryx and started writing acoustic based songs. They would try out the songs during a steady Monday night gig at a place called Kenny's in New York. The tunes eventually became Yarn tunes and after playing with a number of musicians, they settled on Jay Frederick on drums, Rick Bugel on bass and Trevor MacArthur on rhythm guitar and backing vocals. The band also includes Shane Spaulding who does not play, but co-wrote many of the songs with Christiana. The result of all this is a very enjoyable album from start to finish. The songs are bluegrass influenced acoustic gems. Christiana's love of the country-side of the Grateful Dead is quite evident on this record, with several songs reminiscent of the Jerry Garcia-David Grissman collaborations. Andrew Hendryx's mandolin playing truly anchors the band's sound, along with the smooth vocals/lyrics of Blake, who claims to use Gram Parsons as his songwriting measuring stick. One of the CDs highlights is the second cut, "Bad, Bad Man," alternating between mandolin, fiddle and banjo runs with the singers admission that "I'm a bad, bad, man, candy in my pocket, broken woman on my hand…" "25 Years" is highlighted by some great harmony vocals and is one of the tunes with a definite Grateful Dead feel to it. Other gems are the up-tempo "Don't Break My Heart Again," and the beautiful "Angel in Woodstock," which Christiana says he wrote one night after listening to two Gram Parsons albums. The band has toured heavily in the east in preparation for the release of this CD. If they come to a town near you I highly recommend you check them out. Their website is http://www.yarnmusic.net/, where they have a few live sets you can download. Check it out here: Americana Roots Miles of Music It's A Cracker 11/9/07 In a year that is already jammed with exceptional releases, Yarn makes the case for an entry into annual Top 10 lists. This Brooklyn-based band scores the rare triple-header of excellent country-bluegrass musicianship, memorable melodies and honeyed vocals. A little over a year ago Blake Christiana was considering quitting life as a musician but decided to take one last shot. Hopefully, the results have inspired him to stick around for awhile. Inspired by bluegrass workouts of David Grisman and Jerry Garcia and the songwriting of Gram Parsons, Yarn's 15 tracks feature stories of bad men doing unsavory things. -- Jeff Weiss, Miles of Music (self-released) Miles of Music Stomp your old cowboy boots inside the Kings County Opry Brooklyn Courier By Joe Fassler 01/09/2007 When Park Slope musician Dock Oscar founded the Kings County Opry three years ago, he was determined to establish a new place for old-time music. At the time, Brooklyn offered no haven for country musicians, and the established country music showcases were located on the other side of the East River. But when Manhattan’s renowned Alphabet City Opry closed, Oscar put his cowboy-booted foot down. “I’m not going to wait for someone to do this anymore,” he recalls thinking. “I’m just going to do it myself.” These days, the Kings County Opry—which showcases country, bluegrass, and folk artists from Brooklyn and beyond—is a thriving event with an ardent following. Oscar has proven himself an ideal master of ceremonies, a role he often shares with fellow Park Sloper Alex Battles. Together, the musicians select acts with impeccable taste, work the crowd easily between sets, and even perform with their own bands from time to time. The Opry’s location is a key part of its success. Freddy’s Bar and Back Room occupies an unassuming corner on Dean Street in Prospect Heights, but it hosts some of Brooklyn’s most unique events. On Diva Night, professional opera singers perform jaw-dropping arias in a casual setting. Cringe Night, where mortified readers share their teenage poems and diary entries, was called “funniest night out in New York” by Spin Magazine. Yet even among these dynamic counterparts, The Kings County Opry stands out. Anyone stepping into Freddy’s on the third Thursday of the month has found a lively bluegrass band, and, most likely, an enthusiastic audience singing, dancing, and shouting for favorite tunes. It’s easy to see how Opry-goers get so excited. There is no proper stage, so performers and audience members nearly intermingle. The Back Room has been lauded by performers and fans alike as one of the city’s best-sounding spaces for acoustic music. And the bands, often with as many as eight or nine musicians playing and singing at once, create an atmosphere of unbridled enthusiasm. Over time, Dock Oscar likes to say, the event has evolved into “a good-natured riot.” The show begins with the Song Circle, a round robin of short sets featuring a variety of songwriters and performers. Then, at 9:30, KCO favorite Yarn takes the stage. The band’s textured, bluegrass-tinged country is at once accessible and affecting. Carroll Gardens frontman Blake Christiana’s singing voice is the aural equivalent of a broken-in pair of jeans—rugged, homey, and dependable. Among this bevy of top-notch bluegrass musicians, mandolinist Andrew Hendryx’s thoughtful, articulate playing emerges as a crucial part of the band’s sound. Though Yarn’s jam band roots are manifest at times, the instrumentation never preens or overpowers; Christiana’s masterful songwriting shines through in each song. Alex Friedman closes at 10:30, with his backup band The Other Failures. The Prospect Heights songwriter’s work shifts effortlessly between wry country ballads, raucous talking blues, and tender, introspective vignettes. Friedman is also a painter and artist who has contributed to magazines like the New Yorker; it is no surprise, then, that his songs have painting-like qualities. His songs are prolonged meditations that delve into their subject matter in way an artist might labor to render the details of a landscape or the features of a human face. The music simmers, sometimes boils over, with expressive gusto as lyrical flourishes pile up like brush strokes. Friedman is candid about his desire to write striking, powerful songs: “The things I’m singing about are totally mine and totally true,” he says. “And I’m convinced that when someone is totally true to themselves, that truthfulness becomes their instrument.” Though several of his songs explore themes of artistic honesty, he warns against “paintings that are just about the paint.” At The Kings County Opry, nothing is less likely. Freddy’s Bar and Backroom is located at 685 Dean Street, at the corner of 6th Avenue; you can learn more about the venue by visiting www.freddysbackroom.com or calling directly at 718-622-7035. Additionally, the Kings County Opry website, www.kingscountyopry.com, provides detailed information about the series’ schedule and performers. This month’s event takes place Jan. 18 and is free and open to anyone over 21 with ID.
Gazette Article 1/3/07 With his Family Dog on hiatus, Christiana having ball with Yarn by Philip Schwartz (Gazette Reporter) It has taken 30-year-old Blake Christiana years to get here, yet this is precisely where he wanted to be all along. After building an audience with the New York City-based Blake & The Family Dog, the Schenectady native has put together Yarn, a quintet that takes more of a turn toward rootsy territories with a bluegrass-influenced, harmony-laden sound. "I had wanted to start some kind of acoustic project for like 10 years - some sort of glorified string band" Christiana, a vocalist, songwriter and classically trained guitarist, said late last month when visiting family for the holidays. "When I started the Family Dog, I didn't know what I was getting into. That started as an acoustic project as well. Then we added member after member after member, and we wound up with like eight people in the band, and it wound up being much more of a jam band than what I was going after...I was trying to focus on the song, opposed to the band." ALBUM ON THE WAY With Family Dog on hiatus, Yarn, which plays Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs on Saturday, is set to self-release its debut album, possibly as early as next month. While Family Dog was Wilco-esque alt-country or even mellow roots rock, strengthened by Christiana's sweet, laid-back vocals, Yarn makes a noticable nod toward early country and Americana. But Christiana's laid-back delivery remains. And so does the sweet, catchy songwriting. Christiana, who moved to New York City at the begining of the decade, began writing for Yarn a year ago - a process he described as a whirlwind as songs came to him quickly. There are about 40 original songs in the bands repertoire now, 31 of which Yarn tracked for the forthcoming album. Christiana said they'll select about 15 for the final product. "I know people don't listen to music this way, which I understand," he said, "but when I release this record, I want it to be one of those records where you put it on and don't skip around, I want people to be able to listen to it from the first track to the last. Those are my favorite kinds of records." Meanwhile, he said some of his favorite Yarn tracks were co-written with Shane Spaulding, a member of Family Dog who grew up in the same Schenectady neighborhood as Christiana. The hometown connection continues with Trevor MacArthur, a guitarist and vocalist, and a member of both Family Dog and Yarn. He, too, grew up in that neighborhood. EXCITING TIME All these old bonds, Christiana said, strengthen the connection between players. And that this project is the one Christiana has been pining for - every since childhood when he first heard David Grisman and Jerry Garcia play together - makes this especially exciting. Plus he agreed that this is a brand of music that has a universal appeal, as if it's so rooted in the American culture that it's hard not to be drawn to it. Here he recalls a Brooklyn friend who has delved deeply into indie rock, as she's always onto the city's next big thing. "And she'll come to see Yarn for the first time," he said, "and this isn't something she'd ever play in her CD player. But all of a sudden, she loves it and is trying to help us out... That's been the coolest part - people who you thought would never be into this music are totally into it. That's what gets me the most excited." Reach reporter Philip Schwartz at 395-3111 or pschwartz@dailygazette.net Yarn WHEN: 8pm Saturday WHERE: Caffe Lena, 47 Phila St., Saratoga Springs. HOW MUCH: $10; $8 (members) MORE INFO: 583-0022, www.caffelena.com
Jonesing for tight-knit alt-country? by Sheryl Hunter The Recorder, Greenfield, Mass Thursday, May 17th, 2007 Yarn's set at The Route 63 Roadhouse marks first area visit for Big Apple hit. New York is not a place that is frequently equated with country music, but Yarn, a hot up-and-coming band in the alternative-country genre, actually got its start playing weekly gigs in the heart of the Big Apple. Fronted by vocalist, songwriter and classically trained guitarist Blake Christiana, Yarn formed about a year ago. It has consistantly winning over audiences on the East Coast and will now head to Millers Falls on Friday, May 18th, at 9:30pm for its first ever western Massachusetts show. Christiana has always loved country music and dreamed of forming an acoustic string band, but he somehow got sidetracked and ended up fronting a rock band called Blake & The Family Dog. The Family Dog established a solid following, but Christiana was not happy with the jam band direction the group seemed to be taking. He soon met up with a mandolin player named Andrew Hendryx and began heading down a new, but familiar, musical path. "I wanted to do an acoustic string-band project for years, so once I met Andrew, I started writing songs that would eventually become Yarn tunes," Christiana recalled. "We would try them out on monday nights at Kenny's and it wasn't long until we had 40 original Yarn songs written. This increasingly became more of what we did on Monday nights, and eventually the monday nights became all Yarn songs." After playing out with a variety of other musicians, the band eventually settled in with a lineup of Jay Frederick on drums, Rick Bugel on bass. Trevor MacArthur, an alumnus of The Family Dog, took on the roll of rhythm guitarist and vocal harmonies. One other key member of Yarn is Shane Spaulding, a non-performer who co-writes material with Christiana. Yarn's bluegrass-influenced, harmony-rich music is rooted in Christiana's love of country music, a love that started when he was a kid growing up in Schenectady, NY, listening to his father strum and sing old songs. "He would always play old country hits and whole lot of Ricky Nelson and Elvis Presley," Christiana said. "He would also play a ton of old folk standards like 'Froggie Went A-Courtin' ' and 'Midnight Special.' This definitely seeped into my subconscious and now comes out everytime I sit down to write." Christiana was also a big fan of The Grateful Dead, especially the writing and playing of Jerry Garcia and the recordings he made with mandolin player, David Grisman. "David Grisman and Old & In The Way really had a profound effect on me. I just thought it was unbelievable," Christiana continued. "And that was when I got the itch to start something like Yarn. It took me a while, but I'm here now." But more than all those other influences, what really inspired Yarn is the work of Flying Burrito Brothers and Gram Parsons. After listening to both Parsons' records one evening in his car, Christiana was so awed by the power of Parsons' writing that he was inspired to rush home and pick up his pen. He wrote six Yarn songs that night. "The one I know I wrote that night that made the record was 'Angel In Woodstock," said Christiana. "I wrote that song because I was headed down to Woodstock the day after Christmas to look at a music venue in downtown to consider buying it and being a club owner and putting my writing on the back burner. But after hearing Parsons the songs pretty much wrote themselves. I decided not to buy the club in Woodstock and give it one last go with making records." It has turned out to be the right decision, as Yarn's timeless music, with it's early country and americana influences, has been a realization of a long-time goal for Christiana, and so far the listening public, has been receptive. Yarn released it's debut CD in March and the band is talking to a few independent labels with the goal of national distribution of the disc. The band will start work on its next album in June. Since its inception, Yarn has performed at least 150 shows and completed a brief tour of the south. "We have never played Western Massachusetts - the will be our first trip," Christiana said. "We hit Boston on occasion, and Boston seems to like us. We are looking foward to getting out to Western Mass. as much as possible. I think it will be a good fit for us." Right now, Christiana is happy with the strides Yarn is making on the road and in the studio. "The response from the fans has been really great," he said. "People with all sorts of musical tastes seem to really dig what we are doing, and that makes me smile."
YARN AT SADLACK'S INDY - Raleigh, North Carolina September 13th, 2007 by Kathy Justice Roots music from the shadows of skyscrapers, Brooklyn six-piece Yarn may call the Big Apple home but they nestle their sound in Nashville sunsets. Moving between scruffy alt.country and a twitter of bluegrass, lead singer Blake Christiana mines his heavy Americana sound from lyrics shaped by the genteel sincerity of Gram Parsons. His band follows suite, pairing Christiana's lo-fi hooks with articulate string accents. Catch them at Sad's tonight for free at 6 p.m. or preview them at Slim's on the 15th at 10 p.m. with The Vints.