The Morning Pages releases Rising Rain
Fusing country authenticity with the grit of city life, New York’s the Morning Pages aren’t just another Brooklyn band. since forming in 2007, the band has been adding some much-needed, rustic soul to the New York scene. with members hailing from everywhere from Nashville to San Francisco, the band draws it’s sound from a diverse set of influences, creating an eclectic mix of folk, country, soul, and good-ole-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll. and as the band prepares to release their debut full length, Rising Rain (May 11, 2010 on Zealous Records) this spring, they are set to become more than just an East Coast secret.
Rising Rain was born out of a chance meeting between the Morning Pages’ lead singer Grant Maxwell and Russell Simins (The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion) at a Manhattan New Year’s Eve Party in 2008. Simins had heard the Morning Pages’ the Company You keep EP earlier and impressed with their music, struck up a conversation with Maxwell. after a few cocktails, Simins signed on to produce the band’s debut full-length. Shortly thereafter, they hunkered down in Brooklyn’s Cowboy Technical Services Studio to record Rising Rain.
the results were pretty spectacular. Bringing musicians like the Pierces for the harmonies, as well as recruiting piano work from Alec Higgins (Alberta Cross) and fiddle accompaniments from Gillian Rivers (Nicole Atkins), Rising Rain is a classic country- folk record that’s as much Beale Street as it is Bleecker Street. the album’s standouts include the heart-wrenching folk ballad and first single “My name is Lion,” joyous foot-stompers like “With the Lord” and “This City Keeps me Down” — tracks that are half folksy soul, half rooftop jam sessions. the record also has a number of plaintive, big-city laments like “Move to the Country” and “Makes me Cry.” above all, the album fuses Nashville twang with New York sensibilities as few bands have done before.
“The Morning Pages write exceptionally organic and emotional music that pulls at the heart strings” – American Songwriter
“Rootsy combo the Morning Pages is based in Brooklyn but delivers a pleasingly vintage, warm, country-rock sound that’s far more suggestive of Nashville. ” -Time out New York
The Morning Pages biography
It began during a downtown Manhattan loft party on New Years Eve of 2008. a somewhat intoxicated Grant Maxwell, lead singer of the Morning Pages, was approached by an equally intoxicated Russell Simins, drummer for the John Spencer Blues Explosion. He had heard the Morning Pages’ EP and was impressed with the band’s unique blend of Country, Soul and Rock ‘n’ Roll. Simins and the band got to talking and eventually agreed he would produce the Morning Pages’ debut album, Rising Rain.
Simins and the Morning Pages hunkered down in Brooklyn-based studio, Cowboy Technical Services (Ryan Adams, Steve Earle), and began work on the 11 tracks that make up Rising Rain. Surrounded by walls of vintage gear and faded Al Green and Waylon Jennings album covers, the band tore through material ranging from the raucous stomp of “With the Lord,” the epic beauty of “My name Is Lion” and the classic country-flavored duet of the title track. the Morning Pages brought in a cast of NYC’s brightest up-and-comers to help out on the record, including sister-duo the Pierces who sing harmonies on over half of the record, Simins himself on percussion, Alec Higgins (Alberta Cross) on piano, and Gillian Rivers (Nicole Atkins) on fiddle.
With prominent influences such as the Band, Waylon, Willie, and Gram Parsons, the Morning Pages, who originally hail from Nashville, Austin, Tulsa, San Francisco, Ohio, and Massachussettes, bring a deep, rural passion to the New York City scene. alongside contemporaries like the Felice Brothers and Blitzen Trapper, the band blends the speed and sophistication of the city with the organic depth of the country. their debut EP, the Company You keep, released in the summer of 2007, perked the ears of critics, with the Tripwire declaring: “The sound that these guys got onto tape comes from the mighty heavens. It’s like American Beauty slept with Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris while cheating on the Band’s version of ‘I Shall be Released.’”
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