EDITOR’S NOTE: No Depression’s new “Top 5” series features a quick playlist in which roots musicians share what they’re listening to at the moment. It gives artists the chance to highlight their contemporaries, as well as classic songs getting them through the days. This installment comes from Nashville-based singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Maya de Vitry, whose new album, All My Faith is due out July 24 via Mad Maker Studio.
When asked to send No Depression five songs she's listening to these days, Maya de Vitry begins with a treatise about the detriments of streaming. Of course, there's no shortage of stories about Spotify's ills, lack of fair compensation for artists, AI bands, and more. But de Vitry chooses to highlight the joys of physical media and focused listening.
She brought the same importance of immediacy to recording her new album, All My Faith. For her fifth full-length LP, de Vitry and her numerous collaborators (including members of Miranda Lambert's touring band and Phosphorescent) went just outside of their homes in Nashville to the The Tractor Shed in Goodlettsville, TN. They recorded for three full days, with no edits to any of the live tracks. The resulting 10-song album sounds fresh, friendly, and sometimes even funny, like on "Bachelorette Lessons."
On release week for All My Faith, check out what de Vitry is listening to right now (and learn even more about the album in this week's Crowdfunding Radar).
Paper Wings - “Country Girl”
I’ll start by saying that in general, I’ve been listening to a lot less music. Or at least, I’ve been doing a lot less skimming of lots of music, and more deep listening to just a handful of albums. As a listener, I’m pretty burnt out on streaming, so this has sort of been a survival strategy for me to fall in love with music again, the way I did when I was a kid, pouring over liner notes and holding physical CDs in my hands.
So with that in mind, one of the first things I want to shout out is the album Mountains on the Moon by Paper Wings. A couple favorites for me are “River Stones” and “After All This Time,” but the one I’ll share here is “Country Girl.” This duo’s close harmonies are breathtaking, and the music feels somehow patient and adventurous at the same time. I love the lyrics and I feel like I can climb straight into the song. I’ve listened to this one so much while driving home from my gardening job. “She’s got seeds in the pockets of her jeans…”
