VIDEO PREMIERE: Mile Twelve Take a Progressive Bluegrass Odyssey with “Take Me As I Am”

Mile Twelve is back in motion. From the first manic, dissonant downbeat of their virtuosic new record, Close Enough to Hear (due out February 3rd), you’ll discover a band that is ready to explode from a restless pandemic-induced hiatus.

You’ll notice the presence of two new members: fiddler and vocalist Ella Jordan and mandolinist Korey Brodsky. Take note of the new dimension they add to the band, and their ability to lock in with founding members Evan Murphy (guitar, vocals), Catherine Bowness (banjo), and Nate Sabat (bass, vocals). These aren’t session players; this album captures the formation of a new coherent unit.

Both of the bands’ previous full-length albums, as well as their guest star-packed EP, were recorded in Nashville. But the new challenges of traveling and dodging positive covid tests kept the band closer to home. They chose Sam Kassirer’s legendary Great North Sounds in the woods of Parsonsfield, Maine, a studio that’s played host to a murderer’s row of Americana acts and has become a fixture of the New England recording scene.

Heard as a whole, Close Enough to Hear displays the vast potential of acoustic string band music in the hands of capable players. This album lets you listen in close to a band that decided to continue after all of that heartache — a band that’s grown up a bit too. The vocals might be softer, the viewpoint a little weathered, but there’s no chasing of metronomes here, no tuning of vocals. Mile Twelve decided to stand back up and keep going, quietly delivering what very well may be its best album yet.

Today Glide is offering an exclusive premiere of the band’s song “Take Me As I Am” along with a performance video. Written from the perspective of Odysseus during one of his many challenges, the song finds the band blending progressive bluegrass with folk-pop and rock to make for a sound that is lively and invigorating. Evan Murphy wrote the track based off a scene in The Odyssey where Odysseus finds himself being nursed to health by Nausicaa after landing ashore, shipwrecked and nearly drowned. Lyrically, Murphy wonders what was going through Odysseus’ mind, if he was tempted to stay on the island with the woman he grew affection for or continue his journey home to his family in Ithaca. All of this is captured in the kind of emotion conveyed in the music that brings to mind acts like Trampled by Turtles and Yonder Mountain String Band. With plenty of mandolin, banjo and fiddle to savor, this is the kind of song that will please both bluegrass and folk fans.

Evan Murphy describes the inspiration behind the song:

“There is a scene in the Odyssey when Odysseus washes up on shore, shipwrecked and nearly drowned. A young woman named Nausicaa is washing her clothes when she sees the naked man of twists and turns in dire need of help. As Nausicaa’s family nurses Odysseus back to health, he develops an affection for her. I always wondered whether Odysseus started to doubt his voyage at that point, tempted to stay put on that island, imagining a whole alternative life for himself. This song started out as a jaunty folk rock number that I strummed on guitar with my fellow songwriter Danny Erker, but I started to imagine it with double time banjo and a pulsing, anthemic string band groove. Happily my bandmates were more than up for the challenge. I love how this one turned out.”

WATCH:

Related Content

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

New to Glide

Keep up-to-date with Glide

Twitter