Bluegrass, but not: An Interview with Golden Shoals
Nashville based roots duo, Golden Shoals, made up of Amy Alvey and Mark Kiliansk, have been making music together for a decade. During that time, they’ve weathered a pandemic, made the choice to change their name to Golden Shoals, and continue to write songs that address the issues that those of us are facing every day, whether it be inflation, climate change, the current political climate in America, or trying to keep your head above water in this crazy world we live in. In November they released two singles, “Ain’t No New Orleans” and “Treading Water”. Although a new album has yet to be announced, these two singles are a step in that direction. Please enjoy the interview we did with Golden Shoals about their current singles and what they have coming up in the new year.
For those out there that aren’t familiar with Golden Shoals or your music, describe your sound in three words.
Bluegrass, but not
The two singles you released last month featured some hard-hitting topics like climate change and how hard it is simply to live in the current economy. It seems like you have a way of writing songs that surround incredibly truthful and sometimes painful lyrics to surprisingly upbeat music. Do you feel like this is something Golden Shoals is known for? Can we expect to hear more tracks addressing issues we’re facing in the post pandemic world on your next album?
The sad lyrics/upbeat music combination is a staple of the bluegrass and old time music we first connected over. It’s not really a conscious decision to bring that to the new sounds we’re exploring, but it’s one of those deeply ingrained elements that keeps a common thread running through our work. The struggles of everyday life are a common theme for folk music, and it’s the kind of stuff people need to connect over to keep sane and fight loneliness. It’s really natural for us to write about contemporary versions of that timeless story. Adding hope and humor with the musical elements brings greater dimension and perspective to the songs.
How has your collaboration changed or grown in the ten years that the two of you have been making music together?
We toured almost non-stop from 2016-2020, and obviously the pandemic brought that to a halt. Like every other touring band, we're navigating the new reality of performing, with all its struggles and triumphs. It's a complicated time to ask people to buy advance tickets to shows, but that's the biggest issue for bands and venues across the board right now. Aside from that, we live in two different places now - I'm in Vancouver and Amy in Nashville, so we'll be working around these home bases in 2023. The creative process remains the same. We each bring songs to the table and arrange together, carving out the best performance we can imagine.
What do you hope that people take away from your music?
Like I said, the music reminds people they are not alone in their struggles and anxieties. We’re all in this crazy world together and singing about our trouble can give us hope and relief. It can help us make sense of ourselves and our world. As we continue writing, we hope to explore as many facets of the human experience as possible.
What’s next professionally (and personally) for the two of you?
As far as releasing music, singles is what we're doing for the time being. We've been enjoying crafting two songs at a time, and it's more manageable than a full album. That said, we'll probably start scheming some sort of full length project soon! When we're not on the road we both teach over the internet and in our homes. We're both becoming parts of our new local music scenes. Amy has a weekly Old Time jam at Dee's, as well as a radio show "The Old Fashioned" on WMOT. I play a weekly stringband night with some local buddies here in Vancouver, and hope to explore some other music scenes and start a square dance in the next year.
Here’s a video from the single, “Ain’t No New Orleans”, one of two singles that Golden Shoals released in November.