NC's Mandolin Orange to release double LP "Haste Make / Hard Hearted Stranger" TODAY! On tour!

Chapel Hill duo Mandolin Orange to release double LP Haste Make / Hard Hearted Stranger TODAY!

 

Streaming now via AOL Music!

 

Featured in this month's issue of NYLON

 

New MP3 (Cleared to post): Mandolin Orange - "Never Die"

MP3 (Cleared to post): Mandolin Orange - "Haste Make"

 

“I LOVE the record... love it. I will play this a lot. It has the plainspoken, mournful power of bluegrass and the elegance and intricacy of American classical, like Copland or Barber. Fantastic record.  Congratulations.”

- Rosanne Cash

"a little bit grassy, a little bit country-folk, a little bit something else.” - Muzzle of Bees

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Mandolin Orange is a Chapel Hill, NC duo led by songwriter Andrew Marlin and instrumentalist Emily Frantz, who ornament lyric and harmony focused tunes with acoustic and electric guitars, fiddle and mandolin.  The duo’s understated instrumentation draws on bluegrass and rock-and-roll alike, keeping Marlin’s dark lyrical themes at the forefront of their folk-country sound.  Together they deliver a sound uniquely their own yet satisfyingly familiar, recently called an “unmitigated pleasure” by Rosanne Cash, who acknowledged the duo as “...very exciting young people making great music.”  Since their debut full length Quiet Little Room (May 2010), the duo has shared bills with Chatham County Line, the Steep Canyon Rangers and Abigail Washburn, and performed at notable festivals such as Shakori Hills Grassroots, Beaufort Music Festival, and Albino Skunk Festival (SC). 

 

New MP3 (Cleared to post): Mandolin Orange - "Never Die"

MP3 (Cleared to post): Mandolin Orange - "Haste Make"

Beginning September 24, 2011 at the Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro, Mandolin Orange will tour in support of their sophomore release, a double album entitled Haste Make | Hard Hearted Stranger.  While officially releasing on November 8, it will be sold exclusively at performances beginning September 24.  On some tour dates the duo is joined by their recently added rhythm section: Jeff Crawford on bass (formerly of Roman Candle, SpencerAcuff) and James Wallace on drums and organ (formerly of Max Indian, The Old Ceremony).  Haste Make was recorded with Crawford and Wallace in winter 2010/2011 at Arbor Ridge Studios West in Franklin, NC and at Arbor Ridge Studios in Chapel Hill, and was produced by Crawford and Mandolin Orange. Hard-Hearted Stranger was recorded in summer 2011 at Rubber Room Studios in Chapel Hill and features Andrew and Emily alone, produced by Andrew Marlin.

 

Tour Dates:

11.11 • The Berkeley Cafe (Raleigh, NC)

11.12 • The White Hart (Lynchburg, VA)

11.17 • Stage on Herr (Harrisburg, PA)

11.18 • The Gypsy Joynt (Great Barrington, MA)

11.19 • FETE Lounge (Providence, RI)

11.20 • Red Hook Bait and Tackle (Brooklyn, NY)

12.09 • The Soapbox (Wilmington, NC)

 

 

The duo’s first album, Quiet Little Room, was self-produced, recorded and engineered by Marlin and Frantz at Rubber Room Studios in Chapel Hill.  The intimate and sparse style of the tracks met critical acclaim in several reviews.  Independent Weekly’s Rick Cornell states that “all across the record is the sound of voices and instruments in the dark, finding light.” Swampland.com’s James Clementine confidently likens the album’s harmonies to those of Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris.  Muzzle of Bees noted that their “focus moves from the instrumentation to the melody and ethos of songs … a little bit grassy, a little bit country-folk, a little bit something else.”  Both North Carolina natives, Marlin’s rural upbringing and Frantz’s roots in bluegrass fiddle and harmony serve as the basis for the duo’s more explorative style.  Quiet Little Room reflects the influence of traditional music on their original material, which edges into southern gothic with poignant, sometimes foreboding lyrics centered on themes of the natural world.

 

Mandolin Orange’s current work retains the intimacy, open space and focus established in their first album, but explores new musical territories through both Marlin’s songwriting and the addition of a full rhythm section.  The band’s evolving sound reflects the eclectic musical environment of Chapel Hill, and their engaging performances are packing houses throughout North Carolina and beyond. 

 

Artist - Mandolin Orange
Album- Haste Make / Hard Hearted Stranger
US Release Date - November 8, 2011
Label - s/r

Tracklist:

LP 1: HASTE MAKE

01. Haste Make
02. No Weight

03. Lines on the Floor

04. Wake Me

05. Runnin’ Red

06. Not a Word

07. Slither

08. Ships Sail Away

09. Angel

 

LP 2: HARD HEARTED STRANGER

01. Big Men in the Sky
02. Never Die

03. Clover

04. Killer

05. Hard Hearted Stranger

06. Next to Nothing

07. Train Song

08. Darlin’ Girl

09. Birds of a Feather