Quartet Fresh from Trips to Idaho & Colorado

Austin, TX -- MilkDrive, the Austin alt-folk-progressive acoustic string band, has released its latest CD, a live album that captures the band's soulful, textural, multi-layer mix of rhythms, tempos, flavors, downbeats and improvisation; with fingers flying at "unbelievable" speed, original tunes that go beyond extraordinary and "impeccable" arrangements.

Scheduled is an Austin CD Release Show: 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 7, at Fiddler's Green Music Shop, 1809 W. 35th St. Cover is $10; information: www.fiddlersgreenmusicshop.com.

As MILKDRIVE LIVE '09 was independently released in mid-June, the quartet was in the midst of over a week's worth of performances in local clubs in Idaho and at the National Oldtime Fiddlers' Contest and Festival in Weiser, where three members met and two competed as kids 

Hank Williams Jr. has been a walking embodiment of American music for three generations of fans. With the release of 127 Rose Avenue, Bocephus brings all those elements together to forge one of the finest albums of his storied career. All told, Hank says, 127 Rose Avenue is "one of the most special albums I've ever made. I don't think I've ever had a whole album where it came together this well and this quickly. A lot of the songs got written when I was out with my two Labradors and a hickory stick at 7:30 in the morning." In the meantime, his views on life and love, his respect for tradition and the legacy of his forbears, and the preciousness of life and freedom, continue to be poured into his music, which, 70 albums on, still resonates with fans like that of few artists ever has. Check out this new "Family Tradition" here: http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/blogs/2009/06/web-exclusive-hank-williams-jr-performs-his-1979-hit-family-tradition/

Nashville, TN

Singer-Songwriter Reveals Dynamic Spirit Through Activism and Music

Nashville, Tenn. - Austin singer-songwriter Charlie Faye releases her debut album Wilson St. on July 14th. Showcasing her sultry voice, the release also demonstrates Charlie Faye's extraordinary ability to capture the American experience as a songwriter. Aptly named, Wilson St., is much more than an album title or even a street name to Charlie Faye; it is a beautiful tapestry of her experiences across this country, from New York to Texas, sewn together through lyric and melody over state lines.

After making a name for herself in her hometown of New York playing with her band the Jerks and touring as a sideman with Dan Zanes and Friends, Charlie Faye moved to Austin in search of a change of scenery and some new inspiration. She was quickly enveloped by Austin's vibrant local music scene and found herself collaborating with local and traveling musicians alike. She came looking for a community, and between music-filled nights and afternoon barbeques, that's exactly what she found. In the process, she became a rising star in the Live Music Capital of the World.

On Wilson Street in Austin, Charlie Faye found her home, as well as her cause, among the run-down cottages that served for decades as a sanctuary for the city's musicians. When the neighborhood was to be destroyed by a local developer, Charlie single-handedly fought back and devised a plan to relocate the affordable cottages instead. She had discovered magic in that musical enclave, a magic that had been present for generations, and she was not willing to let it go. Her community needed her to save it and she rose to the challenge. An Austinite for two short years, Charlie's undeniable presence has already left a mark, both on Wilson Street and city wide, through music and activism.