Hello reader,
How are you today?
Today, we’re excited to discuss another emerging artist who is making some great music: Nashville-based Americana duo The Prickly Pair.
Featuring college sweethearts Mason Summit and Irene Greene, The Prickly Pair create a sound that – as a press release describes – “combines country and western traditions with strong songwriting and punk influences” and “can perfectly be described as ‘Angsty Americana.’”
The duo met each other while studying at USC’s Thornton School of Music. Greene, a native of Berwyn, PA, reached out to Summit to team up for a class songwriting exercise. They were in the same class but had never met. Both had pursued solo musical careers up to that point.
The experience of writing as a duo made them want to collaborate more. Later, after becoming a couple, they used their downtime during the pandemic to explore what they could achieve together, writing songs. In 2021, they made their live debut as a duo. Now based in Nashville after recently moving from Los Angeles, The Prickly Pair has seen steadily rising support for their unique brand of music.
On Friday, October 24th, the duo will release its self-titled debut EP. From start to finish, the EP is an engaging and lively listen, perfectly showcasing Summit and Greene’s synergy performing together and their sublime musicianship and songwriting skills.
One of SWT’s favorite tracks from the release is “Swamp Angel”, which we’re stoked to highlight for you today. The song has a catchy, swampy melody that entices the listener (“Resonator guitar and harmonica add to the ‘swampy’ vibe,” says Summit).
You can watch the studio version and the acoustic live version of the song below:
Further adding to the song’s charm is Greene’s powerful singing and the duo’s enriching harmonies and engaging storytelling lyrics that wouldn’t be out of place next to Americana’s best murder ballads.
The duo wrote the song after moving to Nashville. During their road trip across the country that passed through Arkansas, they discovered the true story of Arkansas folk hero Helen Spence. According to the press release, “Spence, the real-life inspiration behind True Grit’s Mattie Ross character, showed up to the trial of her father’s murderer wearing a homemade red velvet suit and concealing a pearl-handled ladies’ pistol.” There she avenges her father.
The Prickly Pair sought to capture her lively personality and fascinating story in a compelling song. The song has great, compelling lyrics that support that, including “So young when they sent you back to heaven / In your short life you gave them hell”.
“We’ve always been fascinated by humanistic stories about good people that make questionable choices,” adds Greene. “This song is inspired specifically by the true story of Helen Spence, a young woman who became a folk hero in Arkansas for avenging her father’s murder. Although the song is literally about her, in a broader sense, it’s about seeking justice and empowerment.”
“Swamp Angel” is the second single released from the EP, which Summit produced. You can find the studio and live versions of the similarly amazing single “Winsome Lose Some Game” below:
On the EP, the duo plays everything from guitars and keyboards to mandolin, Mellotron, and Marxophone (a vintage instrument that fans of The Doors’ version of “Alabama Song” will recognize). Guests on the EP include dobro player Jeff Plankenhorn, drummer Jim Doyle (Hot Club of Los Angeles), bassists Jeff Turmes (formerly of Mavis Staples’ band) and Sebastian Jones, lap steel player Harrison Whitford (Phoebe Bridgers), and mandolinist Devitt Feeley. Oliver Roman, Summit’s bandmate in the L.A. band Jaw Talk and co-producer of the new Foo Fighters’ song “Today’s Song”, mixed the EP.
We’re excited to see this duo continue to grow and suspect this is only an inkling of the great art they’re capable of making.
Here’s The Prickly Pair EP Tracklist:
1. Winsome Lose Some Game
2. Swamp Angel
3. Riverside
4. Never Any Good
5. Piece of the Sky
You can follow and listen to The Prickly Pair at the following links:
The fantastic site: Thepricklypairmusic.com/
Facebook: Facebook.com/ThePricklyPairMusic
Instagram: Instagram.com/thepricklypairmusic
TikTok: Tiktok.com/@thepricklypairmusic
Twitch: Twitch.tv/thepricklypairmusic
Spotify: The Prickly Pair on Spotify
YouTube: Youtube.com/@thepricklypairmusic
More Links: The Prickly Pair Links
You can catch the band at the following shows:
Oct. 12 – Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge – Nashville, TN
Oct. 25 – Party in the Pasture at Armistead Barnstead – Nashville, TN
Nov. 14 – WMOT Finally Friday at 3rd and Lindsley – Nashville, TN
Nov. 19 – Springwater – Nashville, TN
Nov. 23 – Mas o Menos – Joshua Tree, CA
Dec. 13 – Underdog – Nashville, TN
Joshua is co-founder of Scummy Water Tower. He’s freelanced for a variety of newspapers, magazines, and websites, including: Rolling Stone, The Boston Globe, Chicago Sun-Times, Guitar World, MTV News, Grammy.com, Chicago Magazine, Milwaukee Magazine, MKE Lifestyle, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, A.V. Club, SPIN, Alternative Press, Under the Radar, Paste, PopMatters, American Songwriter, and Relix. You can email him at josh@scummywatertower.com.
