Suzanne's Band

There’s irrefutable artistry on display from the moment Suzanne’s Band’s latest release, the nine-track LP Ice & Fire, begins. Utilizing a stripped-down, classic blues riff fueled by nothing but acoustic guitar and vocals in the opening seconds of album opener “Back To Brown,” there’s clear and concise attention to detail from the band, placed front and center from the jump. The ensemble comes in a few seconds later and further elevates the riff into a bombastic presentation for the rest of the group to play off of, and by the time the song comes to a close, there’s no denying the keen sense for blues and rock ’n’ roll that Suzanne’s Band proudly inhibits.
Opening up the floor to more ethereal and emotionally-fueled ballads, “Indio” comes next. A classic tale is told through the interwoven lyrics from Suzanne’s Band’s very own Mia Suzanne Walker, and the chorus is greatly punctuated by beautiful harmonies that mesh perfectly with the instrumental footing that the rest of the band provides. Maintaining an upbeat pace more in line with Ice & Fire’s first track, “Kick It To The Curb” provides a good dose of levity in comparison — a fairly light offering, “Kick It…” focuses wholeheartedly on its fun chorus and catchy versatility. “By The Bayou” finds a tight balance between the aforementioned ballads and lighter fare that has preceded it by giving listeners a narrative-driven piece of lyricism tinged with a bittersweet yearning for days gone by. The tonal stability gives “Bayou” the edge it needs to be a memorable highlight from the album, and the song works in part as the emotional glue necessary to hold the first and second halves of the project together.

Ice & Fire continues full speed ahead with “Night Blues,” a structurally meta dance hit that will unquestionably become a staple at Suzanne’s Band’s live shows, and the eponymous track “Ice and Fire,” which functions as a chillingly cool piece of music fit for Tarantino as it drips with desire in its inspired Southern and Spanish-guitar stylings. “Reach You” pivots into piano ballad territory, which was a bold choice; allowing the album to be carried by guitars and classic rock compositions thus far, “Reach You” could very well have fallen flat. Suzanne’s Band seems well aware of the risks of delving into earnestness and raises expectations for the remaining third of the album by fully landing this piano ballad-shaped plane without so much as a scratch. “Reach You” not only fully works within the scope of Ice & Fire, but it raises the album’s credibility substantially with its tenderness and open-hearted vulnerability.
As the album comes to a close, “Something Else” doubles down on the ballad motif but keeps things a tad more upbeat; the melancholy underbelly ever permeates, but the uplifting message of overcoming fears and doubts proudly wins out the sulking possibilities another ballad could otherwise pose. Finally, “Can’t Keep Me Down” arrives on the scene in full funky fashion, returning to the party-driven mindset that the album had been missing for a few tracks. The contrast against the slower, softer-spoken songs that precede the album’s finale does wonders for the victory lap that this ninth track takes listeners on. Ice & Fire manages to tell an entire emotional arc within its mere thirty minutes, and by the end of it, listeners are left breathless and hungry for more. Ice & Fire is a resounding success of a release and audiences will assuredly gel with all the album and Suzanne’s Band have to offer. - Music Existence/Patrick Orr

Music is the consummate dynamo powering the emotional centers of our brains. It is forever fascinating how a song (and its meaning) can be interpreted in numerous ways by both the listener and the creator. It is equally fascinating when the interpretation at the audience’s end is more uniform. Latin Pop is one of those genres with a spellbinding ability to transcend language, age, and cultural barriers to reach our emotions. It sets itself apart by driving the listener onward with positive conviction. Of course, it is truly effective in the hands of a gifted practitioner. And Texas-based singer-songwriter Mia Suzanne Walker is, beyond a doubt, one of the gifted, as evidenced through her fiery Latin pop interpretation of her own single, titled ‘Ice and Fire.’

Written in the key of A minor, Ice and Fire is a hypnotically energetic number rendered with a dynamic range and arrangement that stays true to its name. Lyrically themed upon the immense passion between two individuals who are polar opposites, the very first notes struck by the acoustic guitar are evocative of the calm before the storm. In this story a warm soul is able to melt a cold heart as the two drown in a pool of desire. Indeed, the arrangement has been written with remarkable creativity endowed with the power to make the audience sit up and take notice. The ‘Icy’ parts are well-represented with a youthful-pop-like understated groove and an ever-reliable bass. The bass navigates the arrangement towards its eventual burst at the ‘Fire’ parts, which are well fueled by a brass ensemble (courtesy Geraldo Francisco). The drum follows the traditional two verse-1 bridge-1 chorus form keeping the song's rhythm glued.

From verse to the chorus through the bridge, it is Walker whose versatile vocals seamlessly blend into the instrumentation. She spearheads the song with flawless transitions from the initial icy parts to the fiery bursts of the chorus. The song is not devoid of technical virtuosity either, as demonstrated by the aforementioned dynamic range in terms of the arrangement and performance of the instrumental parts (notably the brass section spearheaded by Francisco, who is Marc Anthony’s trumpet player).

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Walker’s vocal timber is at once glassy and raspy, befitting the genre beautifully. The lyrics are powerfully and creatively metaphoric and yet instantly decipherable, such as “We’re like ice and fire, drowning in a pool of desire, only one survivor…” The melodic topline is at once memorable, thanks in no small measure to the chord sequences and the bridge part which would have made Ricky Martin proud.

Just about every single aspect of this number has been crafted with sheer panache, endearing itself to the listener with its ad-libs and contrapuntal interjections, both vocal and instrumental, empowering the lyrics with a flame that is likely to last in the listener’s mind long after the first listen. At a duration of three minutes and fifteen seconds, Ice and Fire is one wave-making number. It possesses effortless appeal and charm over audiences regardless of culture, age, or language, rendered by Suzanne’s Band in a manner that makes it a stellar addition to the Latin Pop genre. - Indie Music News Reporter

There’s something in the water down in Texas. You’ve got Kelly Clarkson and Beyoncé in recent years, but for decades American music has been greatly indebted to an endless list of brash Texans giving the rest of the country the ol’ what-for by neglecting to keep them in the same conversation as Tennessee’s music scene. You’ve got icons Selena, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, and Stevie Ray Vaughan for starters, and with Ice & Fire from Suzanne’s Band, there’s another name to carve into the famed Texas musician halls: Mia Suzanne Walker.
Ice & Fire functions as Suzanne’s Band’s second album to release within Walker’s solo career, following 2020’s well-received independent full-length release Back To You and “Underneath the Tree,” a single released for Christmas in 2021. Establishing Walker’s songwriting as a crucial component in modern independent music, Ice & Fire manages to not only flex the southern blues and rock genre side of Walker’s portfolio, but it expresses a vital understanding of maintaining an emotional interior with softer moments other artists might choose to neglect or ignore altogether.

It’s not with every album that a musician can pen something that could be taken as the next James Bond theme (see title track “Ice and Fire”) before pivoting into something as emotionally raw and vulnerable as they come (“Reach You”), but Walker can tiptoe the line with the magic act of pulling it off becoming all the more enjoyable to pay attention to as you see the various pieces connect to form the bigger picture.

Album opener “Back To Brown” starts with a bang, setting the stage for fans of the genre with a send-up to the tried and true sounds of country-driven rock and roll, but everything beyond this initial track pushes the album’s boundaries further out. The remarkable act of never feeling stretched thin is the thing worth marveling at, as both the lyrical content and musical compositions feel at home in every change of scenery. Another album standout comes in the form of “By The Bayou,” which uses nostalgia and memory-play to great effect with its bittersweet, poignant lyrics and spot-on melody.
Suzanne’s Band gives listeners a refreshing taste of old and new, providing anyone listening with the chance to kick off their shoes or paint the town red — each song within Ice & Fire provides a soundtrack to a different type of mood and anthem, and fans will find themselves suited to every second of it the more the LP reveals itself to them.

Modern independent music has suffered a massive drought in the rock genre and its offshoots more than anything else in recent years, but it’s projects like Ice & Fire that give hope and stoke the metaphorical fire that will eventually light the way for the mainstream return of the genre. Suzanne’s Band are trailblazers as much as they feel like classic legends of the genre, and I know I’ll be there for the next project with open ears, ready to pay full attention to whatever they have to say. - The Hollywood Digest/Garth Thomas

Featuring a killer hook and a beat that you can't help but groove to, this rock anthem is an instant classic. The guitars crunch and the drums thump, creating a sound that's both timeless and contemporary. The vocals are raw and unfiltered, delivering lyrics that speak to the struggles and triumphs of everyday life. Congrats! - Music BeatPlay playlister

Hot off the release of their 2020 album Back to You, Suzanne’s Band is back with another standout addition for the modern independent blues-rock canon with Ice & Fire. Fans will recognize a great deal of familiarity between this and Walker’s previous songs, but longtime listeners and fans can rest assured that Walker and company still have a great deal of ground to lay on the road they’ve already seemingly paved with perfection. Perfection is a lofty goal … but it can be forged with the help of ice and fire.
In the mere half-decade that Suzanne’s Band has been around, the band has been doing everything but resting on their laurels. Even with bandleader Mia Suzanne Walker’s recent acceptance into the Recording Academy, Suzanne’s Band have been pushing themselves to the limit with every new release. As Suzanne’s Band functions first and foremost as a solo project for Walker, each project understandably comes from her own life experiences and the songs feel greatly personal. Ice & Fire is an album that feels as personal as they come clocking in at nine tracks and just over thirty minutes long. Brevity is the soul of wit, truly, as Walker manages to get in and out, never overstaying her welcome. The short runtime is almost distracting in the way it leaves audiences craving more music, more heartfelt lyricism, but Suzanne’s Band is never far from the recording studio and a follow-up is almost guaranteed to be certain and near.

Ice & Fire is a substantial piece of work, for as short as it is. The album relishes its pinpointed existence within the realms of blues/country funk but isn’t afraid to wear its heart on its sleeve. For every upbeat, pop-driven single (give “Night Blues” a listen for something that fits the bill), listeners will be rewarded with a softer approach to Walker’s songwriting — indeed, songs like “Reach You” or “By the Bayou” serve as unexpected standouts for Ice & Fire as they tap into something wholly unanticipated when compared to the project’s more up-tempo offerings. The impeccable balancing act of tone and marketable content from Suzanne’s Band is something major artists spend entire careers chasing, but Walker has the knack down pat and only two albums into her solo career!
A couple of other favorite tracks include the title track, “Ice and Fire,” as it paints a warm, sultry picture of ill-fated, yet much-needed, romance, as well as “Indio,” which serves early on as an emotional anchor for listeners. The former allows Walker to play within the same sandbox as Chris Isaak’s well-known “Wicked Game,” and the latter relinquishes a bit of Walker’s Texan image to the deserts of California, even if just for a few fleeting minutes.

There’s something for the novice as much as there is for musical veterans within Ice & Fire, and the brief runtime allows time for much-needed repeat listens. Walker feels more in her pocket than ever and the future of Suzanne’s Band feels renewed and rejuvenated with the necessary icy-hot precautions needed to pull this confident and cool sophomore album off. - Melody Maker Magazine/Chadwick Easton

Hot off the release of their 2020 album Back to You, Suzanne’s Band
is back with another standout addition for the modern independent blues-rock canon with Ice & Fire. Fans will recognize a great deal of familiarity between this and Walker’s previous songs, but longtime listeners and fans can rest assured that Walker and company still have a great deal of ground to lay on the road they’ve already seemingly paved with perfection. Perfection is a lofty goal … but it can be forged with the help of ice and fire. Even with bandleader Mia
Suzanne Walker’s recent acceptance into the Recording Academy, Suzanne’s Band has been pushing themselves to the limit with every new release. As Suzanne’s Band functions first and
foremost as a solo project for Walker, each project understandably comes from her own life experiences and the songs feel greatly personal. Ice & Fire is an album that feels as personal as they come clocking in at nine tracks and just over thirty minutes long. Brevity is the soul of wit, truly, as Walker manages to get in and out, never overstaying her welcome. The short runtime is almost distracting in the way it leaves audiences craving more music, more heartfelt
lyricism, but Suzanne’s Band is never far from the recording studio and a follow-up is almost guaranteed to be certain and
near. Ice & Fire is a substantial piece of work, for as short as it is. The album relishes its pinpointed existence within the realms of country,
blues, americana and pop. Listeners will be rewarded with a softer approach to Walker’s songwriting with songs like “Reach You” or “By
the Bayou” serving as unexpected standouts for Ice & Fire as they tap into something wholly unanticipated when compared to the project’s more uptempo offerings. The impeccable balancing act of tone and marketable content from Suzanne’s Band is something major artists spend entire careers chasing, but Walker has the knack down pat and only two albums into her solo career!
A couple of other favorite tracks include the title track, “Ice and Fire,” as it paints a warm, sultry picture of ill-fated, yet much-needed, romance, as well as “Indio,” which serves early on as an emotional anchor for listeners. The former allows Walker to play within the
same sandbox as Chris Isaak’s wellknown “Wicked Game,” and the latter relinquishes a bit of Walker’s Texan image to the deserts of California, even if just for a few fleeting minutes. - Chadwick Easton

There’s something in the water down in Texas. You’ve got Kelly Clarkson and Beyoncé in recent years, but for decades American music has been greatly indebted to an endless list of brash Texans giving the rest of the country the ol’ what-for by neglecting to keep them in the same conversation as Tennessee’s music scene. You’ve got icons Selena, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, and Stevie Ray Vaughan for starters, and with Ice & Fire from Suzanne’s Band, there’s another name to carve into the famed Texas musician halls: Mia Suzanne Walker.
Ice & Fire functions as Suzanne’s Band’s second album to release within Walker’s solo career, following 2020’s well-received independent full-length release Back To You and “Underneath the Tree,” a single released for Christmas in 2021. Establishing Walker’s songwriting as a crucial component in modern independent music, Ice & Fire manages to not only flex the southern blues and rock genre side of Walker’s portfolio, but it expresses a vital
understanding of maintaining an emotional interior with softer moments other artists might choose to neglect or ignore altogether.
It’s not with every album that a musician can pen something that could be taken as the next James Bond theme (see title track “Ice and Fire”) before pivoting into something as emotionally raw and vulnerable as they come (“Reach You”), but Walker can tiptoe the line with the magic act of pulling it off becoming all the more enjoyable to pay attention to as you see the various pieces connect to form the bigger picture.
Album opener “Back To Brown” starts with a bang, setting the stage for fans of the genre with a send-up to the tried and true sounds of country-driven rock and roll, but everything beyond this initial track pushes the album’s boundaries further out. The remarkable act of never feeling stretched thin is the thing worth marveling at, as both the lyrical content and musical compositions feel at home in every change of scenery. Another album standout comes in the form of “By The Bayou,” which uses nostalgia and memory-play to great effect with its bittersweet, poignant lyrics and spot-on melody.
Suzanne’s Band gives listeners a refreshing taste of old and new, providing anyone listening with the chance to kick off their shoes or paint the town red — each song within Ice & Fire provides a soundtrack to a different type of mood and anthem, and fans will find themselves suited to every second of it the more the LP reveals itself to them. Modern independent music has suffered a massive drought in the rock genre and its offshoots more than anything else in recent years, but it’s projects like Ice & Fire that give hope and stoke the metaphorical fare that will
eventually light the way for the mainstream return of the genre. Suzanne’s Band are trailblazers as much as they feel like classic legends of the genre, and I know I’ll be there for the next project with open ears, ready to pay full attention to whatever they have to say. - Garth Thomas

There’s irrefutable artistry on display from the moment Suzanne’s Band’s latest release, the nine-track LP Ice & Fire, begins. Utilizing a stripped-down, classic blues riff fueled by nothing but acoustic guitar and vocals in the opening seconds of album opener “Back To Brown,” there’s clear and concise attention to detail from the band, placed front and center from the jump. The ensemble comes in a few seconds later and further elevates the riff into a bombastic presentation for the rest of the group to play off of, and by the
time the song comes to a close, there’s no denying the keen sense for blues and rock ’n’ roll that Suzanne’s Band proudly inhibits.
Opening up the floor to more ethereal and emotionally-fueled ballads, “Indio” comes next. A classic tale is told through the interwoven lyrics from Suzanne’s Band’s very own Mia Suzanne Walker, and the chorus is greatly punctuated by beautiful harmonies that mesh perfectly with the instrumental footing that the rest of
the band provides. Maintaining an upbeat pace more in line with Ice & Fire’s first track, “Kick It To The Curb” provides a good dose of levity in comparison — a fairly light offering, “Kick It…” focuses wholeheartedly on its fun chorus and catchy versatility. “By The Bayou” finds a tight balance between the aforementioned ballads and lighter fare that has preceded it by giving listeners a narrative-driven piece of lyricism tinged with a bittersweet yearning for days gone by. The tonal stability gives “Bayou” the edge it needs to be a
memorable highlight from the album, and the song works in part as the emotional glue necessary to hold the first and second halves of the project together.
Ice & Fire continues full speed ahead with “Night Blues,” a structurally meta dance hit that will unquestionably become a staple at Suzanne’s Band’s live shows, and the eponymous track “Ice and Fire,” which functions as a chillingly cool piece of music fit for Tarantino as it drips with desire in its inspired Southern and Spanish-guitar stylings. “Reach You” pivots into piano ballad territory, which was a bold choice; allowing the album to be carried by guitars and classic rock compositions thus far, “Reach You” could very well have fallen flat. Suzanne’s Band seems well aware of the risks of delving into earnestness and raises expectations for the remaining third of the album by fully landing this piano ballad-shaped plane without so much as a scratch. “Reach You” not only fully works within the scope of Ice & Fire, but it raisesthe album’s credibility substantially with its tenderness and open-hearted vulnerability.
As the album comes to a close, “Something Else” doubles down on the ballad motif but keeps things a tad more upbeat; the melancholy underbelly ever permeates, but the uplifting message of overcoming fears and doubts proudly wins out the sulking possibilities another ballad could otherwise pose. Finally, “Can’t Keep Me Down” arrives on the scene in full funky fashion, returning to the party-driven mindset that the album had been missing for a few tracks. The contrast against the slower, softer-spoken songs that precede
the album’s finale does wonders for the victory lap that this ninth track takes listeners on. Ice & Fire manages to tell an entire emotional arc within its mere thirty minutes, and by the end of it, listeners are left breathless and hungry for more. Ice & Fire is a resounding success of a release and audiences will assuredly
gel with all the album and Suzanne’s Band has to offer. - Michael Stover

In the shadow of a ghostly wind, an acoustic guitar begins to play, the voice of one Mia Suzanne Walker not too far behind from its opening salvo of string melodies. This is “Write a Book,” an excerpt from the album Back to You by Suzanne’s Band, and it’s one of the better examples I can point to when talking about the experimentation its lead singer is toying with in her latest release. In her debut EP Breathe, Walker proved she could do some amazing things with the mic in her hand, but here, she takes her craftsmanship to a whole new level of accessibility.
There’s a lot of emphasis on the strings in the songs “Fault in My Stars,” “Passing Me By,” the percussion-powered “Don’t Give Up Yet” and “Wonder When,” and rightly so. There’s really no better compliment to the vocal that Walker is dispensing with ease from the middle of the mix in all four of these tracks, and though she arguably can make just as much magic with a piano melody (check out the harmonies in “Look Up”), she’s smart enough to know exactly which elements to pair with the particular singing styles she’s utilizing in Back to You.
The energy that I get from “Wonder When,” “I Almost Said I Do” and the title track is steeped in an unapologetically live format, leading me to think that these songs were probably created with Suzanne’s Band’s stage show in mind. I haven’t seen her sing in-person for myself yet, but based on the reception she’s got from her performances in the past, I can imagine that these new compositions will do very well with the current setlist she’s been working with on the road. She’s got a great presence, and in this kind of music, that’s as important as having lyrical substance – if not a bit more so, on occasion.
Lyrically speaking, I think that Walker sounds a lot more vulnerable in songs like “Look Up,” “On a Good Day,” “Don’t Give Up Yet” and “I Almost Said I Do” than she ever has in previous recordings. It would be nice to hear her exploit the depth of her songwriting abilities more as the 2020’s press on, because at the end of the day, she has a grasp of melodic composing that is appealing to pop, country and folk listeners alike, which isn’t an easy combination of audiences to win over these days.

Fans new and old alike won’t want to miss out on this latest release from Suzanne’s Band this January, and with any luck, this won’t be the only set of songs that she issues before the year is done. Mia Suzanne Walker is following her heart with her music, and even if she isn’t using the commercial template that so many artists would in a bid to get fame and fortune, my gut tells me that the mainstream spotlight isn’t going to ignore her output for very long. She’s got the chops to do great things in this business, and she’s off to an excellent start in Back to You. - Mobyorkcity/Nicole Killian

Waves of keyboard melodies are skewed with the light touch of an electric guitar, a soft crash of drums and the rollicking beat they create as we enter “One More Night of Christmas” from Suzanne’s Band, but these first few bars are only a small sampling of the chill-spiking harmonies that await anyone who presses play on this latest release from the noted indie folk/rock act. Suzanne’s Band don’t waste any time before launching into the swing of the rhythm as though they were already mid-song in “One More Night of Christmas,” and while this isn’t the first galloping tempo they’ve played at before, there’s something particularly unique about the style of the drums in this single. Like a fast-beating heart, they guide a stellar vocal from Suzanne into the heavens from which it was first spawned, and in their wake leave a trail of haunting reverberations that on their own make this one of the more evocative Christmas songs of 2019. Suzanne and her eponymous band hit it out of the park here, and I’m hardly the only critic saying so this month.Production-wise, “One More Night of Christmas” is a really sterling offering from a band that has never been known to skimp on quality in the past. The varnish over the instrumental parts in the song is noticeably shiny but hardly a product of the commercial pop model, and I think that the vocals – while being lightly polished in certain parts of the chorus – are relatively raw by comparison. This doesn’t force any sort of duality or contrast in the music (truthfully, it does anything but), but it instead maximizes the depth of emotion in the textural elements of the song more than I would have expected it to. Suzanne is using every tool at her disposal here, from the mix to the melodies to the emotion within the players themselves, in her mission to make us embrace whatever’s on her mind via this medium, and though this isn’t her most involved listen, it’s probably one of the most emotive in tone because of the subject matter and recognizable nature of the composition’s genre itself.“One More Night of Christmas” is another excellent piece from Suzanne’s Band and a great addition to any winter holiday soundtrack, and whether you’re a big fan of seasonal music or not, I think that it has more than enough detail and decadence to please most pop fans this November and December. Suzanne is absolutely on fire with the microphone in this song, and even if it is a track tailor-made for those who have a penchant for pulsating holiday grooves, it’s just as tangible a listen if you love pop melodies and unadulterated swing as much as I do.

With “One More Night of Christmas,” Suzanne’s Band adds one more hit to their list of sensational songs to see release in the last two years, starting with the seminal 2017 debut Breathe and its six stately tracks. I’m eager for more, and after you’ve heard this, I think you will be as well. - Mobangeles

Bluesy swing and exotic melodicism of the richest variety come together to make one heck of a strong introduction to Suzanne’s Band’s Back to You in the opening bars of its first track, “Fault in My Stars,” and as the confident serenade of Ms. Mia Suzanne Walker begins to fill our speakers with unbreakably smooth tonality, it becomes clear that this full-length album is going to be quite the harmonious journey for anyone within earshot of its rhythmic melodies. More swaggering beats await us just around the corner in “On a Good Day” and the country flashfire “Passing Me By,” and with Suzanne herself leading the way, we’re soon lost in a misty sea of rhythm and rhyme definitely worth writing home about this January.

SUZANNE’S BAND’S BACK TO YOU IN
GARTH THOMAS
MUSICNEWSREVIEWS
Bluesy swing and exotic melodicism of the richest variety come together to make one heck of a strong introduction to Suzanne’s Band’s Back to You in the opening bars of its first track, “Fault in My Stars,” and as the confident serenade of Ms. Mia Suzanne Walker begins to fill our speakers with unbreakably smooth tonality, it becomes clear that this full-length album is going to be quite the harmonious journey for anyone within earshot of its rhythmic melodies. More swaggering beats await us just around the corner in “On a Good Day” and the country flashfire “Passing Me By,” and with Suzanne herself leading the way, we’re soon lost in a misty sea of rhythm and rhyme definitely worth writing home about this January.

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“Passing Me By” essentially marks the end of the big blues grooves in Back to You, as its neighbor “Write a Book” departs towards a folkier sound more akin to what we heard from Suzanne’s band in their Breathe EP. “Don’t Give Up Yet” is a traditional country song with a flamboyant rough edge, and considering its placement in the tracklist, I think that it’s the perfect segue into the second half of the album, and more specifically, the experimental folk/rock that Walker’s group will lay down over the next five tracks. There’s a great flow to all of the music here, and to be frank, Back to You is usually a pretty tough record to put down once you’ve pressed play on any of its ten inspired compositions.
The title track here is the most elaborate song on the album, but its arrangement doesn’t sound exaggerated next to the other material here. “I Almost Said I Do” is equally layered and difficult to pin down aesthetically, mostly because of its bluegrass-style beats and galloping acoustic guitars, but next to “Wonder When,” it doesn’t really demand a lot from Suzanne as a singer. “Wonder When” has a complicated lyrical structure that must have taken more than a couple of takes to perfect, but I think this vocalist was more than ready for the challenge. She might not have been ready for the complexities of a track like this one, nor those in “Look Up,” back in 2018, but she’s developed her singing style so much since then that recording more streamlined material would now sound rather underwhelming.
Back to You’s last song, “Gonna Rise Up,” gave me chills the first time I listened to it, and in every time since, I feel like another piece of its artistic persona is revealed to me. This is a record that takes a couple of dedicated listens to really appreciate and fully understand, but if there’s any LP that I would tell indie enthusiasts to get their hands on before the month of January is over, this would probably be the first one I’d mention. Mia Suzanne Walker leads an elite group of musicians into battle and emerges with a victorious sound rooted less in boastful virtuosity and more in organic creativity, and while I’ve said so before, I’m even more excited to hear what she does next after hearing this latest album from her camp. - The Hollywood Digest/Garth Thomas

On the back of a graceful beat, Suzanne’s Band lay into the instrumental intro to “One More Night of Christmas,” and although this part of the song is remarkably short, it makes an impact that lingers over the remaining three and a half minutes of the track just the same. There’s a springiness to the rhythm here, an up-tempo sway if you will, but there isn’t any urgency to the dispensing of the melody. Nothing is rushed in this latest single from Suzanne’s Band; contrarily, there’s a close attention to even the smallest of details that many folk crossover groups would just as soon ignore. The bottom line? “One More Night of Christmas” starts out overwhelmingly strong and only gets more gripping as we take in its heroic harmonies.Mia Suzanne Walker, the mastermind behind Suzanne’s Band, is really good at spicing up a chorus, but she simply outdoes herself in this single. On the first occasion that she has to shine, she bursts through the verses without any hesitation and emerges on the other side of the hook with a rare swagger only hinted at in her last album, Breathe. By the time that we’re nearing the conclusion of the track, she’s taken us one hundred and eighty degrees in the other direction, whispering the chorus with an adorably relatable reticence ahead of the song’s grand finale. She’s taking a familiar formula and putting her own embellishment on it, which is common among superstars but not quite as frequent among her indie peer group.

The instrumentation in this single is very well-arranged but the vocal is always the focus from start to finish. You just can’t put someone like Walker on the stage and expect different results – when she’s belting out a verse, it’s as though the entire band behind her is moving in slow motion, adjusting their play to better suit the tonality of her voice. She’s quite the singer and has shown a lot of growth just in the two years that have passed since we last heard from her, and if she’s able to continue the evolutionary process through at least the first half of 2020, she and her band are going to be looking at a lot more limelight in this next decade.With a peaceful fade into the sunrise, “One More Night of Christmas” comes to an end and leaves a giant void where its rhythmic grooves once occupied only moments earlier. I’ve always said that it’s even harder to record a successful holiday track than it is to make a popular rookie release, but Suzanne’s Band makes it look incredibly easy in this latest studio cut. From their approach to the lyrics to the immaculate treatment of the melodies, there’s no debate as to whether or not this is an extraordinary piece and a great way to ring in the holiday season, but I wouldn’t call it the peak for the artists who play it. Mia Suzanne Walker and her self-titled band are far from finished, and their passion in this single displays just how much they have left in the tank. - Indie Shark

Holiday songs are often a tough sell even for the most talented and well-known of artists in the game today, but in the case of Suzanne’s Band’s take on “One More Night of Christmas,” it doesn’t take much more than a cursory examination of its melodic patchwork to fall in love with the group’s trademark tonality. “One More Night of Christmas” is an accessible pop song with a wintry groove, fragile harmonies and a singer in Suzanne herself who has demonstrated a lot of wit and wisdom from behind the microphone recently but takes her sound to a higher level in this latest release. Simply put, fans both old and new alike would be wise to take note of this single as a sign of the magic still to come from the Suzanne’s Band brand.“One More Night of Christmas,” like most songs by this group, features a really folky vocal style, but the structure itself is contemporary pop in almost every way. The beats are supple and smoothly adjoined with the melodic elements in the foreground, but the two never get clustered in the mix – the track is too well-produced for that to happen. The crisp quality of the instruments aside, Suzanne’s crooning is what keeps us glued to our speakers more than anything else does in this single, and though it’s perhaps not her most balanced composition to date, it’s undisputedly one of the most exquisite vocal showcases that she’s released thus far in her career with this band.

Instrumentally speaking, “One More Night of Christmas” is uncomplicated and simplistic, but to be perfectly frank, it doesn’t need to be super elaborate to make a big impression. With all of the gusto that the players are putting into the music, we’re able to take as much from the texture of their harmonies as we are the content of Suzanne’s words, which is a combination that is far from easy to find when browsing the top tier of the Billboard charts nowadays. Suzanne’s Band bring a lot of confidence into the studio with them in this track, and for all that it lacks in over the top theatrics and plasticized polish, it more than compensates for in originality, spirited melodic moxie and a tasteful adherence to the parameters of old school pop music.I only just recently started listening to Suzanne’s Band, but if this is a taste of what the group can do when they’re firing on all cylinders and chasing after a sound as sweet as the season is, I’ll definitely be checking out their work again in the future. There are a lot of ways to take on a Christmas song, but with “One More Night of Christmas,” Mia Suzanne Walker and company don’t overthink anything – they let the melodies lead the way, and in doing so turn in one of the more on-point holiday singles of the year. There’s still plenty of time before Christmas day, but as of now I think that it would be safe to say this is the premier song to beat among seasonal indie releases. - Celebrity Zones

There’s some big waves coming out of the southeast Texas music scene lately, and perhaps the biggest wave that the singer/songwriters in Austin need to be watching out for is the one being made by the rollicking indie pop/rock unit Suzanne’s Band and its eponymous singer’s soulful approach to song craft. Music has the unique capability of bringing the masses together in a way that is completely different
than any other medium in the art world. John Michael Rand (http://mobangeles.com/author/cyprus/) Lennon once said that this special quality is what makes music as sacred as religion, and that heavenly nature provides the backbone to Suzanne’s Band’s debut release, Breathe. Breathe takes us to a peaceful plain of contemplative catharsis akin to Joni Mitchell’s early work, and gives us a hearty sample of just what singer Mia Suzanne Walker is capable.

It might surprise you that despite her forty years of music experience, Breathe is Walker’s very rst professional solo recording. But in that same turn, you should consider just what that kind of creative simmering below the surface can yield; these are unadulterated, raw harmonies that haven’t gone through the layers of production that other artists four decades into the business are forced to lter their product through. This is the meat and potatoes of organic pop/rock, and man does it sound good.

We lead off with “Down in Mexico,” a slinky adventure to the golden beaches under a southern sun. Walker really does take us there in her descriptive lyrics, and her playful demeanor gives off an almost bluesy allure not found in most of her contemporaries. The blues influences
don’t come in the form that you may expect, with all of these songs devoid of any four bar predictability. Instead, the only swing you’ll and
in Walker’s melody comes on “One from Two,” a poignant love song that explores the story of how we and each other and come to share a single heart, a single life, where there once was two. She articulately explains how the magic of finding that one person who gets you and everything that you’re about, even your flaws and rough edges, is the most potent joy we can find on earth, and all of that joy is reiterated in the beautiful tune of the band.

Breathe’s title track is the biggest treasure on the extended play. The song deals with how we value our interpersonal connections in a world plagued with selfishness and greed. In our most defenseless moments, we often learn the most about who we are and what we want most out of life. These moments often leave us feeling suffocated and helpless as we take bold strides in self-discovery, but it is only through acknowledging that the story of life centers on loving as much and as many as we can that we can survive to see what the next chapter holds for us.

I can emphatically endorse Mia Suzanne Walker and Suzanne’s Band’s Breathe EP as not only a must-own addition to the 2018 music catalogue, but an exciting new artist worthy of the buzz she is generating.

BANDCAMP: https://suzannesband.bandcamp.com/releases (https://suzannesband.bandcamp.com/releases)
Michael Rand - Mobangeles.com

Using carefully arranged acoustic guitars and brooding harmonies, the Texas branded Suzanne’s Band creates a charming set of songs on the new extended play, Breathe, which is available now on Amazon.com. Suzanne’s Band is the official vehicle for Houstonian singer/songwriter Mia Suzanne Walker, and Walker is nothing short of a blinding force of positive energy in her debut offering. Using a folky template, she touches on themes ranging from vulnerability in the title track, to inspirational and cathartic on the rich “Down In Mexico”, a song that will definitely leave listeners itching to grab a set of car keys and cruise south of the border for a while. While there isn’t a lot of whimsy here, Walker never leaves us feeling depressed on Breathe, but instead moved by the depth of her emotional reach and relatability.
Texas has been known for producing some of the American songbook’s most pragmatic and influential contributors and not just in the scope of country music either. Suzanne’s Band could definitely appeal to country fans with all of its exquisite pastoral sensibilities, but if there is a distinct virtue that sets Walker’s style so far apart from the Nashville sound, it’s her humbleness. Walker doesn’t pretentiously croon through every predictable subject in the modern country repertoire, i.e. cheating spouses, drunken retrospectives and the celebration of having a stubborn attitude. Her songs explore introspective ideals and the importance of self-worth, and her delivery is equally refreshing as it is aesthetically pleasant to listen to. In a culture that seems to reward apathetic songwriters with fame, critical praise and financial success, there needs to be more spotlight given to bucolic poets like Walker.
My favorite song on the EP was probably “Losing You”, which comes drifting out of the woodwork like a soft smoke and lingers with us after just a single listen. The lyric “This is goodbye for me,” feels so real that when Walker sings it that one can’t help but reflect on their own loves now lost. She continues, “Love sang its song for me, then things went wrong for me,” as if to illustrate a scene of two people falling for each other only to drift apart like the smoky bassline that started the track. The passionate yearning is matched evenly with the eponymous “Breathe”, which offers some shelter from the stormy lives we create for ourselves in its honest verses.
One thing that is impossible to ignore in Mia Suzanne Walker’s Suzanne’s Band is its awesome potential for more output. All six songs in her debut extended play offer a variety of tones and colors to explore, and a full length album from this ethereal singer/songwriter would definitely be a high note to ride going into the next decade in popular music. For a taste of what is to come, pick up a copy of Breathe today. - Skope Mag

“Singin’ a song / Cardinal on the fence / Time on my hands / Since I, I don’t know when” croons Mia Suzanne Walker in the opening lines of her song “Passing Me By,” one of the ten comprising Suzanne’s Band’s new album Back to You, her every word echoing the emotion in the melodies behind her. For Walker, every verse is an opportunity to connect with the audience on a musical and spiritual level, and in her latest release Back to You, she rejects the very notion of adhering to one specified set of rules when it comes to making an evocative harmony all the more rousing. She’s following the beat of her own drum here, and exceeding the expectations surrounding the creation of a follow-up to her debut, Breathe.
Vocal harmonies are the undebatable centerpiece for every song on Back to You, but I wouldn’t say that they overshadow the instrumental bedrock of tracks like “Look Up,” “Don’t Give Up Yet” and “Fault in My Stars” at all; actually, the exact opposite. Walker wants us to understand the depth of the narrative in all of these songs, and by investing so much in the relationship between her voice and the backing band, she makes it impossible for us to experience a lyric without feeling the emotion integrated with the music as well. She’s as multidimensional a songwriter as they come, but she isn’t getting overambitious in Back to You – instead, she’s recording the kind of material that best suites her skillset.
There’s more instrumental contrast in “On a Good Day,” “Don’t Give Up Yet,” “I Almost Said I Do” and “Gonna Rise Up” than there was in the whole of the first extended play we heard from Suzanne’s Band, Breathe (released in 2018), and it would surprise me a great deal if I were the only critic to notice as much. If Walker was trying to redefine her identity with a multifaceted attack in Back to You, she essentially hit this one out of the park and then some, because from every angle that I’ve analyzed it, she seems to be going out of her way to make each element within her style of play stand out and affect the mood of any given composition as much as producers would her cornerstone attributes.
If you’re looking for the perfect mix of homespun, old fashioned country crooning and contemporary folk/pop aesthetics in a single cocktail, you’re going to want to add Suzanne’s Band’s Back to You to your record collection a lot sooner than later. With the assistance of her ably-chosen cast of supporting players, Mia Suzanne Walker is contributing a color to indie folk music that had been mostly absent from the genre in the early and mid-2010’s, and now that the 2020’s are finally upon us, I think we’re going to see her come into her own in ways that had only been teased in her early efforts. I’ll be keeping an eye on her growth, and I’d recommend music fans everywhere think about doing the same. - Independent Music & Arts/Clay Burton

Waves of keyboard melodies are skewed with the light touch of an electric guitar, a soft crash of drums and the rollicking beat they create as we enter “One More Night of Christmas” from Suzanne’s Band, but these first few bars are only a small sampling of the chill-spiking harmonies that await anyone who presses play on this latest
release from the noted indie folk/rock act. Suzanne’s Band doesn’t waste any time before launching into the swing of the rhythm as though they were already mid-song in “One More Night of Christmas,” and while this isn’t the first galloping tempo they’ve played at before, there’s something particularly unique about the style of the drums in this single. Like a fast-beating heart, they guide a stellar vocal from Suzanne into the heavens from which it was
first spawned, and in their wake leave a trail of haunting reverberations that on their own make this one of the more evocative Christmas songs of 2019. Suzanne and her eponymous band hit it out of the park here, and I’m hardly the only critic saying so this month.
Production-wise, “One More Night of Christmas” is a really sterling offering from a band that has never been known to skimp on quality in the past. The varnish over the instrumental parts in the song is noticeably shiny but hardly a product of the commercial pop model, and I think that the vocals – while being lightly polished in certain
parts of the chorus – are relatively raw by comparison. This doesn’t force any sort of duality or contrast in the music (truthfully, it does anything but), but it instead maximizes the depth of emotion in the textural elements of the song more than I would have expected it to. Suzanne is using every tool at her disposal here, from the mix to
the melodies to the emotion within the players themselves, in her mission to make us embrace whatever’s on her mind via this medium, and though this isn’t her most involved listen, it’s probably one of the most emotive in tone because of the subject matter and recognizable nature of the composition’s genre itself.
“One More Night of Christmas” is another excellent piece from Suzanne’s Band and a great addition to any winter
holiday soundtrack, and whether you’re a big fan of seasonal music or not, I think that it has more than enough
detail and decadence to please most pop fans this November and December. Suzanne is absolutely on fire with the microphone in this song, and even if it is a track tailor-made for those who have a penchant for pulsating holiday grooves, it’s just as tangible a listen if you love pop melodies and unadulterated swing as much as I do.
With “One More Night of Christmas,” Suzanne’s Band adds one more hit to their list of sensational songs to see
released in the last two years, starting with the seminal 2017 debut 
Breathe and its six stately tracks. I’m eager for more, and after you’ve heard this, I think you will be as well. - Michael Rand/Mobangeles

In a passionate lead vocal that has become her calling card, Mia Suzanne Walker, driving force behind Suzanne’s Band, lays into the chorus of “Look Up” with as much strength as she can muster from behind the microphone, but as anyone who explores her new album Back to You will discover, she brings this kind of a moxie to every song she records. In tracks like this one and the rollicking “Write a Book,” Suzanne chases after enormous harmonies whilst creating a crushingly emotional, atmospheric instrumentation in the foreground that is perfect when coupled with her soft poeticisms.
“Gonna Rise Up” rounds out the tracklist of Back to You with a melancholic melody that lingers in the air long after the record has stopped playing, but for as anthemic a ballad as it is, it doesn’t minimize darker, more dexterous numbers like the deceptively simple “On a Good Day” at all. There’s a good balance of themes on this LP, and even when she’s playing to one strength over another (such as her sensational lead vocal, or a specific part in a harmony), Suzanne never sounds removed from the trajectory of her backing band at all.

“Passing My By” and “Wonder When” both take a lot of the fragmented ends from Suzanne’s Band’s first record, the Breathe EP, and pieces them together in a much more mature and refined melodicism than she’s exhibited in the past, and personally I think these two tracks show her progressing evolution better than most any others on Back to You do. She’s growing a lot as an artist, and in the last two years, I think she’s done more to improve her overall approach to composing and performing than a lot of her closest rivals on the left side of the dial (and the mainstream, for that matter) have.
The country components of the Suzanne’s Band sound have never been as formidable as they are in “Don’t Give Up Yet,” “I Almost Said I Do” and the title track in Back to You, and I for one couldn’t be happier to hear them in this state. Suzanne is and always will be a country singer above all else, and though her music drifts into folk and rock territory more often than a lot of Nashville-influenced players’ would, I think this is what gives her such a distinct, and easily identifiable, sound and artistry.

From “Fault in My Stars” to the brooding “Gonna Rise Up,” Suzanne’s Band doesn’t let us down with their latest collection of golden ballads, mild bruisers and pop-friendly swing jams, and while I enjoyed Breathe, I don’t think there’s going to be any debate as to whether or not this is the more superior of the two recordings. Suzanne is playing with her heart on her sleeve in this album, and as long as she continues to produce music with as much of her soul as she clearly did here, she’s going to be an important entity in the American underground for the foreseeable future. - Music Existence/Justin Marshall

In their latest single, the holiday ballad “One More Night of Christmas,” Suzanne’s band get back to basics stylistically while imprinting their own unique mark on an iconic genre within western
pop music. “One More Night of Christmas” challenges the one and only Mia Suzanne Walker to push her vocal abilities to the very limit without overstretching her skillset, and while her backing
band provides an adept backdrop perfect for the tone of the music, it’s her singing that tends to light a fire more than anything else here does. Whether you’ve heard this group's work before or not, this is a single that I highly recommend taking a look at this season.
As previously mentioned, the lead vocal is the undeniable centerpiece of “One More Night of Christmas,” and I would even argue that it’s one of the warmer performances we’ve heard from
Suzanne since her debut release,Breathe. Her naturally intimate drawl adds an elegance to the grander scheme of things that wouldn’t be present otherwise, and although there are a couple of
moments around the chorus where she appears to cede some of the ground to the percussive parts,she never steps away from the spotlight long enough for us to break the spell created by her serenade.
This track has got one of the be er basslines I’ve reviewed in the last month, and without its delicate cushioning of the lyrics, I’m not completely convinced that “One More Night of Christmas” would be quite as captivating as it is in this particular capacity. There’s not a stitch of unutilized space in this mix, and while the edges are rounded out nicely by the bass parts, I don’t get the sense that there ever was a lot of cleaning up to do behind the soundboard ahead of this single's official release.
The percussion here is really consistent but never intrusive on the other components in the song at all, which is difficult to do when considering just how tight a production style Suzanne’s Band
decided to go with in this track. There’s a little swing in the steps, and despite coming close a couple of times, the beat never devolves into overindulgence or obscurity behind the mammoth command of the lead vocal. Suzanne wants us to experience the full scope of her group’s sound here, and by keeping things on an even plain aesthetically, she’s able to show us everything they've got and then some.
If you’ve been following their work lately, you’re absolutely going to love what Suzanne’s Band has done with the wonderful “One More Night of Christmas,” which I would deem one of the smarter Christmas tunes I’ve had the pleasure of encountering in the buildup to the holiday season. Suzanne continues to expand upon her trademark sound in this latest release, and though I’m certain that this won’t be the last time we find her music making headlines in some corner of the American pop underground or another, I’ve got a feeling that this is going to serve as one of her more popular releases among fans throughout the wintertime from here on out. - Indie Pulse/Mindy McCall

Out of the heart of true Americana comes the first official release from veteran songwriter Mia Suzanne Walker in Suzanne
Band’s Breathe EP, a sweet slice of six acoustic gems that fuse influences from folk and country music to yield the
breathtaking setlist we discover on this album. Fans of all music genres will find themselves hypnotized by Suzanne’s
southern drawl and plaintive insight.

There’s a stigma that a lot of singer/songwriters have to deal with when developing autumnal ballads about heartache and
reflection, which is that literate poetry about the complexities of love and loss can never be sophisticated when it’s delivered
in a folk-rock context. For a good example, look no further than John Denver. Denver’s career suffered a great deal because
of this stigma. Despite becoming the poet laureate of Colorado and penning four decades worth of the most earnest and
contemplative songs ever recorded in pop music, he never managed to shake the public’s association of his music with a
perceivably uneducated hippie culture. Although things could have worked out better for Denver, something tells me that
Suzanne will avoid the same fate thanks to the non-commercial and anti-genre route she has chosen to take her career. The
folk elements of Breathe aren’t particularly self-indulgent and don’t ascribe to any set notion of format, and the country twang
isn’t soaked in overproduction, making the entire record much more breathable (pun intended) and accessible than any of the
music being pushed at the CMAs this year.

The EP starts off with “Down in Mexico,” a fun ballad that contrasts the timber of Walker’s voice with sparkling acoustic
guitars and a sense of exotic relaxation. That feeling that comes with turning off the phone, unplugging your stress and just
embracing the cool breeze coming across a deserted beach. “Losing You,” takes on a more serious tone as Suzanne looks
back on the breakdown of a heartfelt romance between two people. “Young and Free” follows the same kind of theme,
retrospectively analyzing the hallmarks of what make our youth so exciting and eternally sacred. It’s that special ability to just
roll with things as they come, take on any challenge, no matter how daunting or seemingly impossible, and how desperately
we try to recapture that as we grow older. It is hard for me to recall the last time that I heard songs that went so deep but
managed to remain very simple and modest in their structural design. I’m impressed not only by Suzanne’s prose but by the
comfortability that she gives off in these songs, like they’re stories she’s kept intimately close to her own heart.

Suzanne’s Band would be a treat to see live, and I truly hope there will be some extensive touring in support of the Breathe
EP to help continue the critical momentum that Mia Suzanne Walker is quickly collecting in 2018. - VENTS Magazine

Since the 1960’s, America has had a love affair with music that speaks to our roots and reminds us of what it’s like to be a part of something that is so much bigger than we are. Something that speaks to the very essence of our souls and drives us to so and accomplish anything that we set forth to do. I don’t know if Mia Suzanne Walker was setting out to create something as spellbinding as her debut extended play Breathe, but she not only exceeds expectations listeners have in a rookie offering, but creates an intrinsic new category of indie
folk music all its own. Much like the complicated lovers that dwell in Walker’s lyrics, I found myself falling into a complex love with Suzanne’s Band’s style introduced to me on this record.

When analyzing the evolution of popular music using The Beatles as a starting point and present day as the finish line, there are few consistencies to point to when it comes to predicting market patterns. One consistent is love songs, since much like mankind’s need for
water and oxygen, people will always be finding each other and pushing each other away in the same breath. Another is anthems of regret, which allow us to feel like we’re not alone in ruing the decisions that ultimately forge our identity. The third and final consistent theme is rejection, whether it be of societal ethos and regulation, or of each other, since, as much as we may pretend that national division is completely divisive in every sense, division between people tends to breed a sense of unity among the arts community, regardless of race or
political background. Through her approach we can see that Mia Suzanne Walker is aware of all of this, or at least she gets the narrative, because her music not only hits all of the required markers to be considered relevant, but it expands on the themes that audiences hold so dear to their heart.

If you’re looking for love songs, “One from Two” satisfies any romantic urges you may be harboring with its eloquent relation of stormy weather to the landscape of what’s like to be wandering life alone. Walker describes finding the missing piece, the one person who can
understand her and steal her heart from her chest without any resistance, something anyone who has found their soulmate will instantly find kinship in. “Losing You” shows us all the scary possibilities that loom over our actions, as just as easily that we found the love that now lights up our life, we can lose it, as if in an instant. The contrast is profound, and it cannot help but make one humbled in his or her decisions in love and life.

There isn’t a doubt in my mind that in all six of the incredible songs offered here on Suzanne’s Band’s Breathe EP, audiences and critics will have a hard time finding any blemishes in its pure, warm conveyance of poetic leitmotifs.

CD BABY: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/suzannesband
(https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/suzannesband) - No Depression (The Journal of Roots Music)

A little slow ominous picking of an acoustic guitar here, a
little lingering bassline over there. A bit of quaint percussion
and some divine vocals that evoke biblical imagery of a
simpler kind of man, a people who are only held to the
simple standard of love and respect. Fields of tall grass on a
hot summer day and sandy beaches that make merry for
young lovers lost in each other’s gaze. The loss of that love,
the stark reality that is left behind when we pick up the
pieces in our consequential fate. These are all segments in
the many splendored book of life, but they are also the
elements that Suzanne’s Band wants to aggressively explore in the simplest of terms on their gorgeous debut recording,
Breathe, a six song extended play from the mind of Texas’
own singer/songwriter Mia Suzanne Walker.

The particular genius of Suzanne’s Band isn’t necessarily the
instrumentation of production of this EP, although more
than adequately accounted for, but in fact the singular way
that Walker commands our focus throughout all six tracks.
With gusto that stops short of coming off arrogant, she
absolutely dominates the record with her affecting vocals
and persuasively catchy songwriting. There is an
overwhelming yearning in the piano and guitar throughout
the recording that makes me think about one thing more
consistently than anything else; how badly we all desire
coming full circle in life. To come back to the youthful
elegance that was enough to propel us into this scary,
unforgiving adult world of relationships and responsibilities.
Like the steady drum beat on “Young and Free,” life keeps
moving at a steady pace whether we’re ready for the
challenges we’re inevitably met with or not. The most
profound part of life, as the song reminds us, is that when
we get older we get to see things in hindsight, full 20/20
vision, and are met with the juxtaposition of what we would
do now and what we did do back then. What a distinction to
consider, no? Is that not the driving question of aging pretty much summed up? Were it not for Walker posing the idea,
one might think that popular music would be doomed to
revisiting the same themes over and over; how much money
is there to be made, how much attention can I receive, and
on and on with a trite recklessness that threatens the
emotional growth of an entire generation.

Anyone who is in search of a deeper connection to life that
can only be found through music and the artists who
express it with particular grace needs to seek out Suzanne’s
Band and Walker’s message of hope in midst of dissonance.
She has certainly found a fan in this west coast-living
journalist, and I hope to see much more output from her in
the years to come. - The Indie Source

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Mia Suzanne Walker.

Hi Mia, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Music has always been a part of my life, especially since I was the daughter of a music major. I sang in choirs all through elementary, junior, and high school.

As an adult, I performed in ensembles and eventually solo performances but did not play an instrument, even though I’d had some piano as a child. In 2016, a friend asked me to join the adult band at School of Rock where she worked. At the ripe old age of 51, I started playing guitar. This opened some kind of artistic portal, and suddenly, I was writing songs at all times of the day and night.

Within a year, I’d started my own business and was releasing albums and singles. Within 3 years, I was accepted into the Grammy organization in the Recording Academy and grew a successful YouTube channel.

Let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
One of the first challenges was at the release of my album Back to You.

I’d just booked out months of shows to start promoting this new project, and then Covid hit. I made the best of the “time off” by growing my YouTube channel and writing the next album, Ice and Fire, along with Christmas single Underneath the Tree.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar with what you do, what can you tell them about what you do?

Suzanne’s Band is a full-service music company whose slogan is Songs With Heart. From a performance standpoint, we offer shows in a solo, duo, trio, or full band format in genres of pop, country, rock, and blues, covering multiple decades along with original music.

From a production standpoint, we create music in those same genres under the Americana umbrella, along with Holiday music and the occasional step out into other genres like Latin Pop single Ice and Fire (remix). We don’t want to just blow people away with volume but instead draw them in so we touch their hearts with our songs.

I’m really proud of the splash that the recent release of Ice and Fire (remix) has had into so many different mediums in both streaming and radio. It’s an upbeat feel, a feel-good song that everybody can relate to. Having it in both English and Spanish versions (Hielo y Fuego). Makes this companion single set stand out and be accessible to a larger audience.

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
One of the ministry groups I’m a part of, One Achord, does a one-hour variety act with singing, dancing, and instrumental music to audiences in assisted living, nursing, and also over 55-aged communities every week. I play percussion along with my vocals, and I also am a tap dancer! - Voyage Houston