Americana Duo THE STORM WINDOWS Deliver 'Blue Town' EP
AMERICANA DUO
THE STORM WINDOWS
RELEASE SIX-TRACK EP
BLUE TOWN
EP FOCUS TRACK
“THE GHOST OF PHIL OCHS”
MUSIC VIDEO OUT TODAY
PAYS HOMAGE TO THE ICONIC TOPICAL FOLK SINGER
Above: ‘Blue Town’ EP Artwork
“It’s times like these when the temperatures freeze, I sit alone just looking at the world through a storm window”
— John Prine, from “Storm Windows”
NASHVILLE, TN (April 12, 2024) — New York-based Americana duo, The Storm Windows — Rob and Don Mathews — release their acoustic-leaning six-track EP, Blue Town, today.
STREAM BLUE TOWN HERE.
The Storm Windows are two veteran musicians who have regrouped to form a reimagined sound, with two full-length albums — debut self-titled album (February 2022) and Second Album (March 2023) — they reflected on their recent live performances and decided to take an acoustic-based approach to this new project. “We think of it as full-on Americana as you can get,” Rob says. “With six new original compositions: an outlaw song, a song of nostalgia, one of lost-love, a folk-hero tribute, another reflecting on life and a bonus 50s-style rocker, all in that order.”
Another glimpse into the project, the brothers also deliver a music video for the EP’s focus track “The Ghost of Phil Ochs,” paying homage to the iconic topical folk singer. The video features excerpts from Phil’s timeless classics: “There but for Fortune,” “The Power and Glory,” “When I’m Gone,” and “Changes.” Americana Highways exclusively premiered the track & its video yesterday noting, “The Storm Windows perform in a direct, deeply felt, unembellished and honest style of folk musicianship that might be considered classic, or maybe it’s just timeless.”
WATCH “THE GHOST OF PHIL OCHS” VISUAL BELOW:
Speaking on the inspiration for the song Rob reveals, “We were looking back on the 60s folk scene and reflected on one of its greatest singer-songwriters, Phil Ochs. We intertwine parts of four of Phil’s finest songs, weaving a narrative of wandering with his ghost through his old haunts in Greenwich Village and contemplating the state of things as Phil might see them.”
The first look into the project was the title track, “Blue Town” (released on March 1), that The Storm Windows recorded live in Burlington, Vermont. When asked what the song is about they answer, “We’re happy to take the question, but there’s no one answer. It’s about almost remembering the past - it’s about love and loss and gain - it’s about the end of summer.” Combining themes about the different parts of life, this quintessential Americana track perfectly showcases what’s to come from the EP.
On March 29, the duo released the second offering from the EP, “I Find Trouble (Trouble Finds Me),” which conjures driving down a rainy backroad at night with the headlights on – an acoustic rhythm complemented by a “spy” guitar and subtle but driving percussion.
Blue Town is composed of six original songs, though The Storm Windows are proficient in performing both as an original band and cover band, as evidenced by their live performances. The duo uses their unique formula to give modish life to some traditional sounds. “Our songs take stock of the current American landscape. Rob resides in London part of the year, where he can view the American experience — for better or for worse — through an objective lens,” Don shares about their writing process. “We said our first album focused on the opportunity of the ongoing experiment, rather than its challenges, which we were saving for the second album. Well… here it is.”
The Mathews brothers conclude “when we record our originals, we debate over a classic versus contemporary sound. Where we land is we want something that twenty years from now, or even twenty years ago, still sounds timely.”
BLUE TOWN TRACKLISTING:
“I Find Trouble”
“Blue Town”
“Hey Heart”
“The Ghost of Phil Ochs”
“The Slingshot Song”
“All I Want to Do (is Rock)” (Bonus Track)
Above: The Storm Windows