Diggin' The Field

Cindy Wilson co-founded The B-52s in Athens, Georgia in 1976. Now she’s back on tour, premiering material from her forthcoming, full-length solo album, “Change.” She drops by the studio to chat about her life and music. You can hear music from the new album recorded live in the GPB Performance Studio in the video below.

When Jake Fussell was growing up in Columbus, Georgia, he spent a lot of time on the road with his dad, Fred Fussell. Fred is a documentarian and museum coordinator who would travel around Georgia and the South examining how people lived, the things they made and the music they played. What stuck with Jake was the music. Eventually he picked up the guitar and took as his mentor the legendary Georgia fingerstyle guitar player Precious Bryant . Today Jake Fussell plays much of the music he heard as a kid in that finger picking style. Listen to Fussell from a show in the Field Note Stenographers Living Room Concert Series in Macon. https://youtu.be/eNjxixvopMc

Susto is a disease of the soul that has its origin in Mexico. Think of it as a kind of soul death. Sufferers are said to be walking shells of their former selves. But the good news is it can be cured. Now SUSTO on the other hand is an Americana band from Charleston, South Carolina led by songwriter Justin Osborne. On the band's self titled album, you definitely get the sense that after launching himself from his Southern Methodist roots, Osborne maybe flirted a bit with the affliction he chose as his band's name. The good news? Sounds like he's cured. In this live recording from from the Living Room Concert Series at the Capitol Theatre in Macon, Georgia, Osborne performs a solo set of two songs from that self titled record plus two new ones from the new record slated for release on January 13, 2017. Track List: Black River Gospel County Line-3:02 Waves-6:45 Hard Drugs-10:18 https://youtu.be/pHBkG9Dcbac

Southern music is hot right now. From Americana to hip hop, there are plenty of artists seeking to hang their sound on the hook of some piece of the Southern musical tradition. Meanwhile, there are other artists who have unmistakably carved out a piece of Southern sonic soil for themselves, even if unintentionally. Athens band New Madrid could fall into this second category. On their third full length, " MAGNETKINGMAGNETQUEEN ," the band indulges in some more of the guitar-driven, atmospheric, firework-laden psych rock that characterized their first two albums. And while some of the longer songs (I'm looking at you, "Guay Lo") can feel a little krautrocky, there is still enough spaciousness, languor and rhythmic swing to make you nod your head in understanding when the band tells you they recorded in a cabin on the Tennessee River. Track listing: "Bee Rapture" "Helpless" "Don't Hold Me Now" "Guay Lo" "Dugout" https://youtu.be/Zn5DNrOjzAI

The Grotto in Macon is one of those places that every teenager thinks is their own little secret. That is to say it isn't a secret at all, but it is very special. Built in the early 20th Century by Jesuit seminarians from the nearby St. Stanislaus College, it was the heart of a wooded getaway for the local Catholic community. Today the structure is in peril and is listed as one of the Fading Five properties under the watchful eye of the Historic Macon Foundation. In this Field Session, Cicada Rhythm of Athens perform at the Grotto. Listen to the full session above, subscribe to the podcast or watch the session below. Full Session Singles https://youtu.be/oCLSvtBOaVY

In the first of the Living Room Concert Series shows from the Field Note Stenographers , singer-songwriters Aaron Irons and Justin Cutway. Aaron Irons held down the Macon music scene back in the 1990s with his band the Liabilities. He doesn't play out much these days, which is what makes this set special. Justin Cutway is super literate, witty and blessed with a good voice and serious guitar chops. Enjoy them here and look ahead to the next show on September 29 with Caleb Caudle and Justin Osborne of the band SUSTO. https://youtu.be/oYjO55RpRm4

In this Field Session, we give you singer, songwriter and virtuoso of both guitar and lyric Dylan LeBlanc . In this solo acoustic set from the Bragg Jam Music Festival , LeBlanc performs songs from his debut album "Pauper's Field" as well as the album he's touring now, "Cautionary Tale." Recorded at the Field Note Stenographers Stage at Gallery West in Macon, Georgia. Hear three songs in the video or listen to the whole set in the audio above. Correction: The original intro to the audio of this piece said LeBlanc is on the Rough Trade record label. While his first album was on that label, his new album is on Single Lock Records .

In this Field Session we have a live set from singer/songwriter Andrew Bryant of Water Valley, Miss. You can usually find Andrew behind the trap kit in his band Water Liars , but last year he released an album of his own songs in his voice accompanied by his guitar. This Is The Life is a meditation on fatherhood, being a husband, a son of aging parents and staying true to yourself creatively in the midst of all those obligations. Enjoy a short version of the set in the video or listen to the entire set in the audio link. Recorded at the Bragg Jam Music Festival in Macon. https://youtu.be/dQv5ofQFJuY

Growing up at the foot of the Blue Ridge mountains, Jimmy Haney had one dream. To join the musicians he and his father heard on the radio at the Grand Ole Opry. He got his start on that road in the 1950s with an icon of Country Music, but it almost cost him his life. Haney tells his story in this piece from GPB Music and the Field Note Stenographers

Macon rapper Floco Torres has released something like 20 releases and says he may have 600 unreleased songs lurking on hard drives. He's primed to release a batch of songs this Summer on what he's calling the Porsche EP. In this Field Session, listen to the track '87 911 off the upcoming release plus the song Freedom off of last Summer's Vinsanity release. Recorded at the Cannonball House in Macon, Ga. https://youtu.be/327Qxlr6_ac

On this edition of Diggin' the Field with the Field Note Stenographers we talk about the renaissance of an all ages venue in Macon, get a first look at some of the artists on the bill for the Bragg Jam Festival coming later in the Summer and listen to some tracks from our Field Sessions live performance series. Needle drops at.... :47- Frankie Cosmos : On The Lips 4:48-Andrew Bryant: Do What You Love 10:21-Pylon Reenactment Society: Beep/Live from Fresh Produce Records 16:20-Billy Joe Shaver: Honky Tonk Heroes/Live from the Capitol Theater 24:16- Brett Harris : End of the Rope 31:35- Good Night Alive : Coast 38:04- Plains :Pink Teardrops 43:51- Floco Torres :87 911

In this month's preview of music coming to Macon, we look forward to the holy drone of Lobo Marino, to a tsunami of surf punk from Repeat Repeat, a show from a godfather of lo-fi recording, and to a visit from a veteran of the deep soul scene. With the Field Note Stenographers.