2015 was a fantastic year for West Virginia music. Rozwell Kid crisscrossed the country for over 200 shows, Tyler Childers and the Foodstamps appeared on Mountain Stage and Ona received national attention for their debut album. With a slate of releases to get excited for, 2016 is bound to be just as good, if not better.
Qiet – Composition #9
Fresh off a successful Kickstarter campaign to help finance the album, Charleston gypsy rock band Qiet are prepping a February release party show which will be hosted by West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s Joni Deutsch. Eddie Ashworth, who worked with the band on their previous release “Pet Driftwood (Composition #8),” as well as Jordan Andrew Jefferson’s latest release, returns to the mixing board.
Tyler Childers – untitled
Since his debut album, 2011’s “Bottles & Bibles,” Tyler Childers’ has matured, gotten married and met the members of his backing band The Food Stamps. Their hard work performing hasn’t gone unnoticed, in July 2015 he was featured on Mountain Stage, which is syndicated to over 150 radio stations. With the success of alternative country musicians like Chris Stapleton and Sturgill Simpson, many are poising Childers’ to be next to the spotlight.
The Horse Traders – Untitled
Huntington’s The Horse Traders teased us in 2015 with the cassingle “Take It,” a two-song sampling of their unique supercharged version of Americana. For the upcoming full length, the band collaborated with Ona drummer, Max Nolte to create an album that would better reflect their current live show than their previous EP “Did You Forget to Leave This in Durango.”
William Matheny & the Strange Constellations – untitled
When you combine one of West Virginia’s finest songwriters, William Matheny, with some of the state’s finest musicians Bud Carroll, Ian Thornton and Adam L. Meisterhans, you get a sound that is somewhere in-between The Replacements and Tom T. Hall, with lyrics that match the storytelling nature of Hall. Matheny will move forward with a look at his past in songs of family, growing up, and forgiveness.
Bishops – untitled
More jaunty and pop-leaning than WV garage rock contemporaries Goodwolf, the recently released Bishops song “Inside,” is a fantastic teaser for the Shepherdstown trio, though the album is said to sound completely different, it will surely follow up 2014’s ‘Silver Linings” as a collection of smart, yet simple songs.
Nathan can be contacted at [email protected]