Veteran Central New York musicians Seth Owen Becker and Emma Jude have formed a new project called Foxrow They have been working together for several years and began releasing new songs periodically in anticipation of their new album, Fly From Here, released on Oct. 2.
Seth & Emma recorded this grassroots record together playing all instruments and mastering and mixing the album in Seth’s studio. Fly From Here is brilliant from start to finish. Everything from the Americana sounds of The Band to Levon Helm’s gritty rock stylings to the tenderness of Joni Mitchell, wrapped into two songwriters at the top of their game.
TRACK ONE: “Fly From Here” begins with a driving backline and bursts into an upbeat Americana masterpiece with Emma and Seth’s beautifully crafted and hamonized lyrics. The pedal steel guitar really ties the sound together nicely, weaving throughout the entire, song adding a mystic quality with guitar solos and lingering mandolin riffs. This could be an easy radio hit and makes one want to hit the highway with the wind in your hair, into the American country side.
TRACK TWO: “Josephine” begins with Emma’s wonderful voice and guitar picking with forlorn lyrics about moving on. Just enough banjo picking smoothly lends to the heartache. “I found you on my way back searching for myself, but all I’ve ever known is leaving….”
TRACK THREE: “End of Time” pulls you in with a catchy guitar riff and a melancholy pedal steel layered upon dystopian lyrics of love in a time of whoa and fear. Facing the “end times” while finding love. The pace picks up, with a sense of urgency as the song nears the end, while still clearly stating that love might be the only way to save us all.
TRACK FOUR: “Waves” is a tender ode to discovering oneself through wandering the world. Majestic harmonies create goosebumps and recall the magic Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova’s chemistry in “Once.” Every album has a track, you might put on repeat for a few days, and this could very well be that one.
TRACK FIVE: “Horizons” is their bluegrass tune with Becker on banjo, Seth and Emma trade verses and a warm feel with guitar and mandolin providing warm layers like your favorite hoodie, sitting around a campfire in the Adirondacks. “I’ll use horizons to find you, ocean tides breathe in and breath out, pulling in and pulling out, riding each high and riding each low, and I don’t want to stay in line, lie to myself and say that it’s fine, sun comes up but so does the moon, I’ll use horizons to find you…”
TRACK SIX: “Catch Me If You Can” is a slow burn. One is reminded of Seth’s other project, The Old Main, with Dylan-esque story telling and a build up as the song moves in and out of driving build ups into a finale that brings it all back home. Again goosebumps are created as these two harmonize and finish with a wonderful flourish.
TRACK SEVEN: “Deja Vu” laments a love lost with Emma Jude’s haunting lead soaring above an incredible backline. Seth’s mandolin playing is showcased here with a masterful performance as well. A little bit Avett Brothers but with a Molly Tuttle kick that is utterly catchy and incredibly fresh at the same time. Laments turn into a scorching second half as Emma turns up the energy on another incredible track.
TRACK EIGHT: “The Moon” begins with delicately traded lyrics and choral harmonies perfectly on point. A song so simple, that says so much more. “The Moon” is a celebration of how far these two songwriters have come with years of experience, maturing into what “Far From Me,” celebrates; original music you can listen to straight through.
TRACK NINE: Good Times kicks in with a Neil Young like harmonica line, and dances along with a perfect mix of uplifting musicianship and lyrics capturing imagery of the natural world and the bonds that tie us together. “These are the good times honey, these are the stories we tell…” a perfect ending to a record that can be listened to all the way through. the best kind of record. Written and recorded by some of the best people on this planet. Get out there and support FOXROW, find and share the music, buy the album and for goodness sake go see them live.
