For over 20 years the Loose label has built its canny reputation on sifting out the best Americana and alt.country for your listening pleasure. The Felice Brothers, Sturgill Simpson, The Handsome Family, Hurray for the Riff-Raff have all passed through their doors and now it looks like Native Harrow, The Pennsylvania duo of Devin Tuel and Stephen Harms, are hunkering down in the house.
Following on from their contemplative and sultry debut for the label ‘Happier Now’, Native Harrow have just announced its follow up, the emotionally charged ‘Closeness’. Recorded over 6 days as 2019 crept into 2020, with Neko Case/JD McPherson chum Alex Hall engineering once again, the record promises to deliver another rich blend of impeccable songs tinged with country, blues, folk and soul dusted with a Laurel Canyon atmosphere.
To set the scene the album is trailed by the lead single ‘Shake’, a track with all the elements of Native Harrow’s earthy chemistry. There’s Tuel’s yearning voice at the centre, charismatic, deep, and pure; the crisp, effortless rhythmic drive held down by Harms basslines, the sharpest guitar fills; and twinkling keys with plucked strings in the right place at just the right time. The signs are that Native Harrow will be pushing even further beyond that empty retro/vintage tag with ‘Closeness’. Their music has plenty of hope and infectious spirit but also that eerie sense of twilight menace.
Track: Native Harrow release new single ‘Shake ahead of forthcoming ‘Closeness’ album
