On her Bloodshot Records debut, Ruby continues to map out a polished-yet-fearless, bare-knuckled self, previously hinted at on her last album, Solitude. In 2016, Ruby met with Lone Star state-bred studio wizards The Texas Gentlemen and the album's eventual producer Beau Bedford. The collective pulled a handful of songs from the 40 she had waiting and began recording at their Dallas-based studio Modern Electric Sound Recorders.The album rips right open with "It's So Cruel," strutting through the door with dual harmonic, bawdy, fuzzed-out guitars, reminiscent of a glammy, '70s southern-rock-soaked Queens of the Stone Age. It all captures the meteoric emotional flares of an adulterous relationship destined to fail. The Gentlemen spell a Stetson-hat wearing Wrecking Crew as they lay down dusty gothic vibes in the Nikki Lane co-written "I'll Make It Through," building towards a crescendoing, persevering, bright chorus. (Lane also sings background vocals on the album's title track.) On "Believe in Heaven," doo-wop beats, dark choral echoes, and a plucked string section lead into ZZ Top full-bodied rawk riffage.
Owen Beverly is INDIANOLA, the culmination of this rare upbringing and a career of performing and writing music all over the world in a variety of endeavors. With a multi-year stopover in Charleston, South Carolina behind him, Beverly moved to New York City and spent years as a touring member of Danish indie-pop act, Oh Land. After six years living in Brooklyn, Owen found himself called back to the South and his roots. The love of the land, the old stories of love and heartbreak, the fierce tenacity of life in the midst of hardship, sorrow, and joy break out in INDIANOLA’S music. The debut INDIANOLA record, produced by Michael Trent (Shovels & Rope) and recorded within the swampy confines of Johns Island, SC is an aggressive stomp through the southern gothic: part old-school rock n’ roll, part singer-songwriter. Not unlike the Mississippi delta itself, known for its mythic crossroads, INDIANOLA finds itself at the intersection of heritage and innovation, with a firm and enduring grasp on the traditions from which it was born.