ABOUT TIFT MERRITT

See You On the Moon is Tift Merritt's most visceral work to date. A deeply centered departure, these focused and creative musical short stories find Tift at the height of her powers. "I wanted to make a really direct record. I wanted to take everything to a place that was less labored, of more depth. Open space, real strength. There was a certain feeling of inevitability about it. Like I found these songs whole."To bring her musical short stories to life, Merritt recruited Tucker Martine, best known for his work with Bill Frisell, The Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens, Laura Veirs, Spoon, and as one of Paste magazine's top ten producers of the decade. Martine produced, recorded and mixed the record while receiving a detailed tour of Tift's native turf. "It made a lot of sense to take this record back to North Carolina. Build a fort in our own backyard." With longtime band mates Zeke Hutchins on drums, Jay Brown on bass and vocals, and guitar player Scott McCall, the Martine-Merritt partnership sounds firmly anchored in the deep water of home while deliberately and wholeheartedly venturing from the docks. "Tucker has such a gentle way of bringing the best out of people, of taking the time to see what you are really made of and getting at, and coaxing you further from there. We wanted to come at things from different directions, not go straight for a band combo, really build around the songs rather than some idea of how things were supposed to happen. I played more instruments on this record than any other I've made." At heart, See You On the Moon is a profoundly focused Tift doing what she does best better than she ever has - poignant writing and performing welded to the steady pursuit of new places. Joining the ‘Moon’ sessions were, among others, celebrated pedal steel guitarist Greg Leisz and My Morning Jacket’s Jim James who adds hauntingly beautiful harmony to album centerpiece Feel of the World.

See You On the Moon is tethered by Merritt’s eye for chiseled detail, her evocative voice, and her steely desire for emotional breakthrough and musical growth. New textures, angles, and instrumentation abound. The record opens with Mixtape, an analog-fueled love letter to the handmade cassette tape. Brought to life with Bill Withers' spare arrangements in mind, Mixtape is punctuated by percussive strings and hand claps. "At heart, making a mixtape is a really introverted pleasure. We didn't want to lose that sort of I've got a secret feel." Engine To Turn swells with a melody both simple and beautiful, bound by a life affirming lyric. The driving Six More Days of Rain, a meditation on the beauty of human resilience, resonates with the power of piano and pleading voice. Feel of the World, at the record's heart, recounts the story Tift's grandmother's recent death through the eyes of the grandfather she never knew.

ABOUT HOLLY GOLIGHTLY

Holly Golightly was born in London and grew up in a bohemian household. She was fed a diet of psychedelic, blues, and soul music. Lawyer Dave was raised in Texas on a diet of religion, country blues, and forbidden heavy metal. The end result of this combination is pure magic on their new album, Medicine County. Genuine love and quick-witted banter have made the duo unique and down-right entertaining. They live in rural Georgia.

Having never sung a note before, Holly kicked off her musical career in the legendary garage band Thee Headcoatees. After four years as a Headcoatee, Holly started a solo career, whilst still singing with the band. Her first full-length record, released in 1995, was The Good Things. Since then, she has become one of the most interesting and diverse artists to emerge from The Medway Delta.

Holly primarily writes her own material, interspersed with a wide range of cover songs by such artists as Willie Dixon, Ike Turner, Lee Hazlewood, Wreckless Eric, and Bill Withers to name a few. Although her sound has remained remarkably consistent throughout her career, each record has a quality that sets it apart from the others.