Photo: Allister Ann
As part of NPR Music’s “First Listen” series, self-proclaimed “garage country” artist, Aubrie Sellers‘, highly anticipated debut album, New City Blues, is now streaming in full for your listening pleasure here. NPR Music praises the work describing it as, “…delicately bruised twang and cursive phrasing archly elongating and wilting notes, tying her lines together with soft, tendrily flourishes…it’s plainly the work of an artist who’s determined to construct a riveting identity for herself.” Sellers is on track to be one of country music’s biggest stars. Though the influence of her musical genetics is evident, Sellers is well on her way to making a name for herself apart from her parents’ legacy. With riveting sounds of the electric guitar, Sellers’ album merges a bluesy rock sound with her signature country, especially in “Magazines” — a track highlighting the exaggerated lies published in magazines.
Out next Friday, January 29 on Carnival Records via Thirty Tigers, New City Blues is now available to pre-order, which includes an instant download of four of the album’s tracks—“Light of Day,” “Sit Here And Cry,” “Loveless Rolling Stone” and “Losing Ground.”
In honor of the release of her debut album, Sellers will also be making another debut–on network television– for “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” next Thursday, January 28. She will also be playing an album release show at NYC’s Mercury Lounge on January 27–a show you won’t want to miss if you’re in the area. Additional shows include, a date alongside Chris Stapleton at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium on February 20 as well as an appearance at the 2016 Stagecoach Festival, one of California’s biggest country music festivals, sure to be a great time.*
2016 is already gearing up to be a promising year for this young, rising country star. Sellers has already garnered widespread critical attention, as CMT recently premiered the official music video for “Sit Here And Cry” and selected her for their “Next Women of Country” series. Rolling Stone even named New City Blues one of their “35 Most Anticipated Country Albums of 2016” and raves about Sellers, deeming her one of the “10 Country Artists You Need To Know” praising, “With country roots…but a gritty soul, Sellers writes music that gets its southern kicks from her pristine quiver while favoring restless electric guitar over sleepy acoustics.” Moreover, of “Loveless Rolling Stone,” NPR Music’s Ann Powers praises, “…Sellers joins that elite crew with a song that starts out heartwarming but soon turns into the existential testament of a heartbreaker” while Billboard goes on to say that she is, “One of the most-talked-about artists in Music City,” NYLON proclaims “Aubrie Sellers is Country’s Next Big Star” and The Tennessean agrees, asserting that, “Sellers will step into the spotlight with the release of her debut album.”
Produced by her step-father, Frank Liddell (Miranda Lambert, Eli Young Band, Kellie Pickler, etc.), New City Blues, was recorded in Nashville and features 14 songs, all of which were self-penned by Sellers.
In regard to her music, Sellers confesses, “My influences are all over the place: the Kinks, Screaming Jay Hawkins, Buddy and Julie Miller, Creedence, even Ricky Skaggs. Led Zeppelin is my biggest rock influence—and that goes right straight, for me, to Ralph Stanley. That raw bluegrass, the banjo, that’s the same energy and intensity you get in punk. It’s all music that’s driven, that’s haunted, that cuts and moves.” Such influences can be heard intertwined within her unique sound which fuses classic country music with an unlikely hint of blues and rock influence–showing her versatility and introducing a sound that is completely her own. She is setting out to prove that country music delves deeper than cheap beer and jorts–adding a 21st century twist to the genre.
Her music, she adds, “is so much more like garage rock, that raw raging stuff. Maybe you could say it’s ‘garage country’?!”
Growing up on the road surrounded by award-winning singers, songwriters and musicians from a young age, Sellers spent a majority of her childhood drawing inspiration from her Grammy Award-winning mother, Lee Ann Womack, as well as her father, hit songwriter and musician, Jason Sellers. In addition to her work on New City Blues, her other impressive credits include, vocals featured on critically acclaimed country records such as Ralph Stanley’s A Man of Constant Sorrow, David Nail’s I’m a Fire and Miranda Lambert’s Platinum. Regarding her duet with Nail on his song “Brand New Day,” Esquire’s Andy Langer emphasizes that Sellers, “…establishes herself right here and now as one to watch”–and that she did!
Photo by: Amy Kenyon
NEW CITY BLUES TRACK LIST
- Light of Day
- Sit Here and Cry
- Paper Doll
- Losing Ground
- Magazines
- Dreaming In The Day
- Liar Liar
- Humming Song
- Just To Be With You
- People Talking
- Something Special
- Loveless Rolling Stone
- Like the Rain
- Living Is Killing Me Stone
*CONFIRMED TOUR DATES
1/27—New York, NY—Mercury Lounge
1/29—Nashville, TN—Grimey’s in-store
2/20—Nashville, TN—Ryman Auditorium (appearing with Chris Stapleton)
4/29—Indio, CA—Stagecoach Music Festival
Written by FestPop Social Media Director & Senior Editor
Courtney Young
Email Comments to: Press @ FestPop.com