Backseat Sandbar

What were we all doing in August?  Well, I don’t know about you, but I sure missed this one.  L’ville’s own dark-folky/Civil War reenacter, Will Oldham, put out another collab album.  C’mon you didn’t think he could go a whole 6 months without putting something out there, did you?  Unlike his previous work with Tortoise and Matt Sweeney, Silent City features Mr. Billy with conceptual artist/field recorder Brian Harnetty.  Well, frankly, it’s mostly Harnetty’s work with Mr. Prince Billy’s collab, tho 3 songs feature Oldham centerstage on the mic.  Here’s what Harnetty says about the project:

made with the collaborative help of bonnie ‘prince’ billy, ‘silent city’ is a mix of songs, instrumentals, and field recordings that are loosely centered around a small, rural town.late at night, just before closing; sleepy, between awake and dreaming; old jukebox, conversation, laughter––and then, transformation.

as with ‘american winter’, samples were used from the berea college appalachian sound archives, and with their generous support and encouragement.

Harnetty even has a couple beautiful and haunting videos featuring the Oldham sung tracks and filmed in southern Ohio.

“Sleeping in the Driveway”

“Some Glad Day”

Buy it here.

Here are some of the videos we grabbed at Halfway to Forecastle:

Squeeze-bot

Buffalo Killers

Ekoostic Hookah

The Broderick

The Protomen

See our review of the show here.

Watch our interview with The Protomen here.

Here our favorite Backseat Sandbar videos of 2008:

10. The Coup @ FreeKY Fest- 4/25

9. Mates of State- “Fluke” at Headliner’s in Louisville, KY – 11/15

8. Brett Dennen – “She’s Mine” at WFPK Derby Fest – 4/29

7. Casiotone for the Painfully Alone- “White Corolla” @ Pour Haus – 10/31

6. Daniel Johnston- “There is a Sense of Humor Way Beyond Friendship” @ Good Folk Fest in Louisville, KY – 11/21

5. Vampire Weekend- “Wolcott” @ Headliner’s in Louisville, KY- 9/9

4. Bonnie ‘ Prince’ Billy- “A Change is Gonna Come” @ Old Tar Distillery in Lexington, KY – 11/22

3. The National- “Mr. November” at Obama Benefit in Cincy – 10/16

2. My Morning Jacket- “One Big Holiday” at Riverfront Park in Louisville, KY – 8/16

1. Jeff Mangum- “The Fool” and “Engine” @ Elephant Six Show in Lexington, KY – 10/23

You can view all of our videos and subscribe to our You Tube account here.