![]() ![]() “I take pride in where I’m from,” says Alexa, “and my appreciation for community and the value of small towns definitely informs my writing. She grew up singing and playing piano, but she didn’t begin to develop her songwriting until she was in her early twenties, leaving home for the first time after college. Originally from Alleghany County, Virginia, Alexa Rose now lives in Black Mountain, North Carolina. ‘Born on the level, quietly blowing it.’ That’s what’s on my mind there. When I think of the phrase ‘quietly blowing it,’ I think of all the ways that I’ve misstepped, misused my gifts, miscommunicated. ![]() “These songs always circle back to the things that I feel like I have a handle on and the things that I’m not proud of about myself. Throughout Quietly Blowing It, Taylor reckons with the tumultuous present in wholly personal terms, encouraging listeners to do the same. Indeed, when he sings, “Feeling bad, feeling blue, can’t get out of my own mind but I know how to sing about it,” it feels like the album’s spiritual thesis. The album ends with soulful lead single “Sanctuary,” a song about trying to reconcile tragedy and joy, with references to John Prine (“Handsom) Johnny had to go, child…”), economic disparity, and the redemptive quality of hope. Indeed,Quietly Blowing Itis a distillation of the rolling Hiss Golden Messenger groove, from therollicking, Allman-esque “The Great Mystifi er” to the chiming falsetto soul of “It Will If We Let It,” to the smoky,shuffling title track with its bittersweet guitar assist fromNashville legend Buddy Miller. Beginning with the wanderer’s lament of “WayBack in the Way Back,” with its rallying cry of “Up with the mountains, down with the system,” Taylor carries the listener on a musical journey that continually returns to themes of growing up, loss, obligation, and labor with piercing clarity,and his musical infl uences-including classic Southern soul and gospel, renegade country, and spiritual jazz-have never felt more genuine. Throughout Quietly Blowing It, Taylor brings his keen eye to our“broken American moment”-as he fi rst sang on Hiss GoldenMessenger’s critically acclaimed, GRAMMY®-nominatedTerms of Surrender-in ways that feel devastatingly intimate and human. “We’ve all spent so many years traveling all over the world, but in that moment, it felt cathartic to be recording those particular songs with each other in our own small hometown.” “We all needed to be making that music together,”he recalls. In July, the group of musicians, with Taylor in the production seat, went into Overdub Lane in Durham, NC, for a week, where they recordedQuietly Blowing Itas an organic unit honed to a fi ne edge from their years together on the road. And being in my studio, which is both isolated from and totally connected to the life of my family, felt appropriate for these songs.” Between March and June, Taylor wrote and recorded upwards of two dozen songs-in most cases playing all of the instruments himself- before winnowing the collection down and bringing them to the Hiss band. Having spent so much time on the road over the past ten years, where writing consistently with any kind of fl ow can be tricky, it felt refreshing. “Writing became a daily routine,” he explains, “and that was a ballast for me. Quietly Blowing It was written and arranged by Taylor in his home studio-his 8’ × 10’ sanctuary packed floor to ceiling with books, records, and old guitars-as he watched the chaotic world spin outside his window. This event is general admission standing room only ![]() Valid photo ID required at door for entry By visiting our establishment, you voluntarily assume all risks related to the exposure to or spreading of COVID-19. According to the local health authorities, senior citizens and guests with underlying medical conditions are especially vulnerable. COVID-19 is an extremely contagious disease that can lead to severe illness and death. Be sure to check your venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change.Īn inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present. $1 from every ticket goes to support the Durham Public Schools Foundation whose mission is to foster community support for public schools and invest in our students, educators, and families to ensure success and equity for every student.īased on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. ![]()
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