Erica Russo

Tonight’s exclusive comes courtesy of a North Carolina songwriter who has a darkly infectious style which recalls the excellent Warpaint. US songwriter Erica Russo is based in North Carolina, which is known as the “Old North State.” However, NC may soon become known for a something a little more current if Russo has her way, with the alt-folk writer set to release her excellent new LP Honey on 16 September. Of the LP’s title track Russo says: For me, Honey sums up the feeling of the album as a whole. We had been performing this song for years and it hadn’t been the right time to record it until this record. It has made a home here with the other songs, taking the place of the windows and allowing space for the listener to look outwards or inwards in which direction they choose.” Erica Russo has been likened to Regina Spektor and She & Him. We also think that her dark, dangerous and seductive melodies recall the brilliant Warpaint. Why trust us? Listen below and find out why… -

Erica Russo is an Asheville, North Carolina based singer/guitarist that blends indie folk influences with powerful lyrics. She is gearing up to release her new album Honey on September 16th and today we’re excited to premiere the title track. The song strolls at a confident pace with intriguing ebbs and flows, and Russo’s captivating vocals provide the perfect leader for your ears to follow. -

Asheville-based indie-folk artist Erica Russo will celebrate the release of her third, full-length album, "Honey," on Aug. 20 at The Mothlight. The record, being released on the new Asheville-based record label and arts collective Eternal Mind Records, is an 11-track self-recorded, self-produced album. Recorded in Russo’s practice studio in the River Arts District and a remote cabin in Alexander, Russo’s newest work represents a hauntingly melodic sound that combines her dreamy style of folk with grittier, indie-pop sensibilities. The singer-songwriter, along with her band, will tour the U.S. extensively this August, and Russo will embark on a European solo tour this fall in support of the new record.

The album boasts Russo’s mesmerizing vocals, ranging from the most delicate whisper to raw and bone-rattling shouts. Her band provides a seamless backdrop for Russo’s intricate guitar work, with Billy Leva on drums, Davis Collins on bass and Fanny Rose on cello. The title track and first single off the album, “Honey,” is a solid representation of the record’s spellbinding combination of delicate, tender vocals with soul-piercing lyricism and driving drum beats. “Limbs” demonstrates a ragged intimacy, a minor key incantation amidst shifting rhythms, with airy guitars and a rough-edged ambience tempered by Russo’s sweet melodic voice. “Dreams” is another standout track, revealing a more intimate side of Russo’s songwriting, complemented perfectly by the haunting cries of the cello. “I'm inspired to write during times of reflection and stillness, when I am processing things around me and within me,” Russo said of her songwriting process. “Traveling to new places inspires me to write songs as does feelings of love and loss.”

Russo’s well of inspiration rarely runs dry. She has been touring extensively and faithfully putting out records since she began pursuing music professionally in 2013, after the release of her first full-length album, "Little House, Little Hill." A number of tracks on Honey have been previously recorded on the solo album In "Between Dreams." Russo says re-recording the tracks with a band allowed her to open herself to new incarnations of the songs. The result is a collection of songs that feels wholly new. “One way is not necessarily better or more complete,” says Russo of the new recordings. “The group of songs fit together for what I wanted on the album, so some of those songs carried over to complete the album concept.” -

Car troubles once led Erica Russo to sleep in a parking lot across the street from the Tiger Mountain bar in downtown Asheville, N.C.The Rhode Island-born singer-songwriter, who had already thought of moving to the Western North Carolina mountains, was passing through town en route to a show at the famed SXSW festival in Austin, Texas. “Despite the car complications, I felt right at home in the town and decided I'd like to live here some day,” she said in an email. “The music, people, mountains, and culture felt like a place that would give me room to grow as an artist and person and that appealed to me greatly.”

It took a few more trips through town for Russo to finally move, but two years ago she left Massachusetts and settled in Asheville. “I have been happily living here ever since,” she said. “Asheville has been an easy place to live for me and has impacted my music in positive ways. I feel my writing has become less introspective and more expansive since living here.” That expansive quality shines through her newest record, titled “Honey.” Russo and her bandmates, drummer Billy Leva and bassist Davis Collins, will play a CD release show at 9:30 p.m. Saturday at The Mothlight in Asheville. Russo, who wrote the songs over the last two years and recorded them last fall, recorded her previous album by herself but took her band (including, cellist Fanny Rose) into the studio this time.

“I usually write songs in one or two sittings,” she said. “I find that if I overthink it, the song's initial feel can get lost with too many changes. I write the music and lyrics at the same time and then introduce the song to my bandmates. From there, they add their own style and individual elements.” Russo, whose pop sound can be whimsical and moody at the same time, began playing music at age 8 with piano lessons and then taught herself to play drums and guitar. Her first solo show came at a friend's gallery when she was 21. “It was a nerve-racking and exhilarating experience, and felt completely right,” she said. “I began performing regularly after that.” Her sound, she said, partly comes from being self-taught and writing by ear. She's released several albums and an EP over the years and her music shows a mix of genres — rock, blues, punk, hip hop, jazz, funk and folk. “Staying open to all types of music has impacted my sound,” she said. “In high school, I used to go to the library and randomly check out as many CDs as I could at one time, intentionally choosing from artists I hadn't heard of and from all genres. There are many I didn't listen to more than once, but I think each one left an imprint of sorts. “Traveling a lot through the county on tour and experiencing different styles of music in a variety of settings has helped me to develop a sound that I hope feels timeless and relatable.” -

Erica Russo’s distinctive, earthy voice wades to the forefront of her latest single, “Honey,” the slow-moving title track from her third full-length album. Backed by Billy Leva on drums, Davis Collins on bass, Fanny Rose on cello and her own guitar work, she sings: “You have got my heart / under your knife / baby, please play nice.” These lyrics are straightforward enough, but the musician’s overall vibe blends the serene and ominous with haunting results. Her new album, which was self-produced and includes several band-backed recordings of previous solo songs, is the first out on fellow local artist Matt Townsend’s Eternal Mind Records. -

Asheville-based indie-folk artist Erica Russo will celebrate the release of her third, full-length album, Honey, on August 20, 2016 at the Mothlight in West Asheville. The record is being released on the new Asheville-based record label and arts collective Eternal Mind Records. The dreamy 11-track album was self-recorded and self-produced in Russo’s practice studio in Asheville’s River Arts District as well as in a remote cabin in Alexander, NC. Russo’s newest work represents a hauntingly melodic sound that combines her singularly dreamy style of folk with grittier, indie-pop sensibilities. The singer-songwriter, along with her band, will tour the U.S. extensively this August, and Russo will embark on a European solo tour this fall in support of the new record. -

(Bulgarian to English translation) We will see live the American indie rock / folk singer Erica Russo, whose unique music sounds simultaneously delicate and fierce, bathing the listener with gentle vocals and captivating melodies. Erica Russo combines its dreamy folk-style indie rock to create deeply unforgettable songs. -

In Between Dreams— Top 5 local Western North Carolina albums of 2015. In tone, mood, instrumentation and narrative, this is wildly creative but steadfastly consistent collection. Russo’s strange and wonderful voice stitches those parts into a consummate whole. -

Local musician Erica Russo released her new album, In Between Dreams, over the summer. And at the end of September, she put out a video for the otherworldly track, “Dreams.” The sparse setting and mostly-from-the-back shots of Russo playing guitar and drums with two peddles adds to the song’s spooky feel.

This is a haunted collection, sometimes brushed lightly by gentle specters and sometimes anguished with lost souls. The prettiness of the album is less about aesthetic beauty and more about a delicate delivery that reveals itself — especially on songs like “Limbs” — to be raw and unafraid of rough edges. Russo’s voice is a whisper that tears into a shout, the guitar is rhythmic with cool slices of wavering melody, the percussion the a spare thump — a gritty heartbeat propelling the song forward.

“Barnacle,” drifting and pensive, finds its rhythm mainly in the picking of strings which, though electrified, feel organic and tidal. Russo’s lyrics, though simple — and delivered with spacious phrasing in which her voice is allowed to tremble, grasp and float — are also personal and revealing. “These days I never know, I never know why / These days I never say, I never say hi / These days I’m far too shy,” she sings. There’s no evidence, of course, that Russo is drawing from her own experiences. Her songs could be the emotional storyboards of fictional characters. That works, too — the sentiments still hover between odd and universal.

“Gravel Roads,” boomy as if it was recorded in the bottom of a well, could be a Southern Gothic soundtrack. The refrain, “Now it’s sunshine all the time, and my baby’s on my mind,” is especially eerie up against the minor chords and chugging beat.

Returning to the album’s original theme, “Dream Catcher” — part lulling, part terrifying — has a warm and ambling guitar part over some ghostly background atmospherics. “What happens to the plans that never get seen through, what happens to dreams that die to young to get to?” Russo asks. Her voice breaks savagely on the chorus before returning to a soft rasp. That song, from its simple construction, to its dynamic and chilling performance, to its stuttering end, is a stand out.

The nine-song collection concludes with “Times Like This.” At under two minutes, the song capitalizes on the poignancy of its repeated line. This is flash fiction with a sharpened edge. But it also stays true to the album’s continuum. In Between Dreams, in tone, mood, instrumentation and narrative, is wildly creative but steadfastly consistent. Russo’s strange and wonderful voice stitches those parts into a consummate whole -

Erica Russo and The Good Sport is a band out of Cambridge Massachusetts that have put together one of the more effortlessly cool albums of 2013 in their LP Little House, Little Hill that was released a little earlier this year.. The album blends together Erica's heartfelt and honest lyrical style with a delightful musical backing that moves between whimsical and wonderful at all times..

To put it simply, Erica is more than your average artist trying to break into the music industry... She's an individual that lives and breathes her craft, and the results can be seen and heard in her music. -

With the slightest of hands, Erica Russo pulls mesmerizing stories from deep inside her dreadlocks, and rests them on grooves of wood and wire. With band The Good Sport, latest record 'Little House, Little Hill' pulls every ounce of energy from her bones, and she couldn't be more relaxed and at ease to deliver the message. A fascinating bundle of energy, there’s more to hear here with every listen. -Mike Levine (@Goldnuggets) - THE DELI

A cherub with dreadlocks and some burgeoning guitar chops. She finds stunning harmonies all over the fret board, and has a very original ear for melody. -

"Sporting a nonchalance and casual cool that champion poker players strive for their whole lives, Brooklyn singer/songwriter Erica Russo is like a breeze on ice. She dresses her tunes up a bit more than most in the idiom. For those who like the stark reality of an artist's wood and wire, you'll find it lurking in between Russo's breaths and the cracks in her melodies." - ROCHESTER CITY NEWSPAPER

Sometimes you know somethings good because it gives you those little shivers down your spine. When Erica Russo, head honcho of, well, Erica Russo and the Good Sports starts singing, it has this sort of fragile beauty that it caused much squirming in the backseat mafia offices (my front room). But then it also confounds you, because just as you begin to think this is a folky little gem, then it suddenly throws in a bit of slightly more angular indie pop, twisting and turning your expectations. It’s like the bubblegum in Charlie and the Chocolate factory that gives you a three course meal the more you chew it. -

Our featured artist this week is New York folk band Erica Russo And The Good Sport consisting of Erica herself, Billy Leva, John Zurek and Ryland Hall. Not your average day folk band, these guys bring fire of truth and energy into their songs. After listening to their new album Little House, Little Hill this week, Erica Russo and The Good Sport are certainly ones to watch out for. Describing their sound as ‘Like light coming through orange curtains onto an honest, stripped down and dirty wall. Soft, but with a fire of truth and energy’ - fragile yet beautiful with drops of folk, indie and articulate vocals, their music will leave you wanting more.

The band recently released their new music video to the leading single Little House, Little Hill.. With clever animations and live shots, bright colours and funky costumes, the video is articulate and entices their beautiful sound. - CREATIVE SESSIONS

From poetic flourish to bedrock reality, steadily hypnotic guitar and a wide-eyed sense of place, she nails a feeling. - COKEMACHINEGLOW.COM