Harmony-driven quartet returns to perform at Avondale Brewing Company
By Brent Thompson
Photo Credit: Chuck Arlund
A short-notice offer to open for The Bacon Brothers at The Lyric Theatre earlier this year proved prosperous for Farewell Angelina. The Nashville-based quartet left quite an impression that evening, prompting Kevin and Michael to add them on a run of additional dates throughout the country. Earlier this month, Farewell Angelina – Lauren Lucas, Nicole Witt, Andrea Young and Lisa Torres – returned to Birmingham for an engagement at Vulcan AfterTunes. Next up, the band will perform at Avondale Brewing Company on Thursday, October 19 in support of Cody Johnson. With a live show boasting rich harmonies, superior musicianship and magnetic onstage chemistry, it is easy to understand how Farewell Angelina was named one of Rolling Stone’s “10 New Country Artists You Need To Know.” Recently, we caught up with Lucas by phone from her Nashville home.
Birmingham Stages: If you will, talk about The Lyric Theatre show and the resulting additional dates with The Bacon Brothers.
Lauren Lucas: It was, “Hey, we need an opener. Can you come do this real quick?” They didn’t know us yet so that was really the date that kicked it off. They liked our music and our vibe and invited us to go to the Southwest and about a month later we played New York City, Massachusetts and New Hampshire with them.
Birmingham Stages: Are there any upcoming plans for Farewell Angelina and The Bacon Brothers at this point?
LL: We are looking at collaborating with them on some songs in the future and have stayed pretty close to their camp. We hope that next year will bring another run with them.
Birmingham Stages: What’s Farewell Angelina up to as we speak? Are you currently writing, recording or both?
LL: We’re really doing a little bit of all of it. We have been recording and writing and we’re meeting with a writer tomorrow to write another song. When we’re home we try to sneak in and do some pre-production. Out on the road, sometimes we’re writing even in the car as we’re driving down the highway.
Birmingham Stages: How would you describe your band’s writing process? Do you typically sit in the same room or bring in ideas separately?
LL: It really can happen any number of ways. Often times, if we have a set time, we’ll come in and a couple of us will have an idea whether it’s a melody idea or a lyric idea or theme of a song. We’ll talk all of them out and see what rises to the top.
Birmingham Stages: You were a solo artist before joining Farewell Angelina. How did you initially team up with the others?
LL: We have all known each other for 10-plus years. Nicole and I met when I had a solo deal on Warner Brothers Records. I cut a song that she wrote for that record – we hit it off and became friends and started writing songs together. It’s a similar story with all of us. We met at open mic nights and were writing songs together and met through mutual friends – the tight-knit circle that is Nashville once you dive into the musical community. It was just a really organic friendship that blossomed. We joke that we were a band 10 years in the making and just didn’t know it.
Birmingham Stages: How do you feel about forging your career in the era of Internet, iTunes and satellite radio? What are the pros and cons of the current model?
LL: It depends on each artist’s definition of success. There were days of having to depend only on a label to get your music out and now, with technology, anybody can do it. Nearly everybody in Nashville it seems has a studio in their house. The bigger challenge, in my experience, is how you break through the clutter and get it heard. The way that Farewell Angelina has been able to do that is through our touring process. Some artists love to write and record – they don’t love the touring process as much. Some artists don’t love the writing process and they only record so they can get on the road. We love it all and we have it all working together for us. So the biggest way we’ve been able to cut through the clutter is through a strong social media presence and getting out on the road and meeting people that have bought the music and found us online.
Emporium Presents: Cody Johnson with Farewell Angelina at Avondale Brewing Company on Thursday, October 19. Showtime is 7 p.m. Advance tickets to the 18+ show are $20 and can be purchased at www.avondalebrewing.com.