Humming House

In the wee hours of a mid-September night, at Nashville's legendary Station Inn, a young, hip-looking quintet took to the stage. The audience was growing sleepy; in the midst of a non-stop schedule at the Americana Music Association conference, the remaining patrons had already been through an impressive lineup that night, from emerging bluegrass charmers Della Mae to gospel greats The McCrary Sisters, to class-act Steep Canyon Rangers.... and now this final act. Such a lineup would be near-impossible to top, and the free-flowing pitchers of Bud Light were making everyone's eyelids heavy.

Suddenly the rousing opening licks of Cold Chicago woke everyone up with a start. The band, Humming House, quickly demonstrated how a barely-recognized name that had been in existence for less than a year got placed into such a prestigious, competitive lineup. And from that moment, everyone knew they were watching an emerging, exciting piece of the Americana landscape (though, as vocalist Kristen Rogers and frontman Justin Wade Tam explained later, you can tag them as any genre you'd like....).

The group is made up of Justin, who serves as bandleader, lead male singer, guitarist, and primary songwriter; Kristen, with her powerhouse pipes and percussive skills; Joshua Wolak on mandolin, with his bluegrass and folk pedigree ('String pickin' and harmony singin' kill me. Best sounds ever.'); and Benjamin Jones, a bass player with a background in classical, jazz and punk rock -- three genres that blend together into the backbone of the band (a fiddle player also occasionally joins the lineup). The Sitch recently sat down in Nashville to learn more about our latest ARTIST OF THE MONTH...

[read more at http://www.thebluegrasssituation.com/artist-of-the-month-humming-house ] - The Bluegrass Situation

In the wee hours of a mid-September night, at Nashville's legendary Station Inn, a young, hip-looking quintet took to the stage. The audience was growing sleepy; in the midst of a non-stop schedule at the Americana Music Association conference, the remaining patrons had already been through an impressive lineup that night, from emerging bluegrass charmers Della Mae to gospel greats The McCrary Sisters, to class-act Steep Canyon Rangers.... and now this final act. Such a lineup would be near-impossible to top, and the free-flowing pitchers of Bud Light were making everyone's eyelids heavy.

Suddenly the rousing opening licks of Cold Chicago woke everyone up with a start. The band, Humming House, quickly demonstrated how a barely-recognized name that had been in existence for less than a year got placed into such a prestigious, competitive lineup. And from that moment, everyone knew they were watching an emerging, exciting piece of the Americana landscape (though, as vocalist Kristen Rogers and frontman Justin Wade Tam explained later, you can tag them as any genre you'd like....).

The group is made up of Justin, who serves as bandleader, lead male singer, guitarist, and primary songwriter; Kristen, with her powerhouse pipes and percussive skills; Joshua Wolak on mandolin, with his bluegrass and folk pedigree ('String pickin' and harmony singin' kill me. Best sounds ever.'); and Benjamin Jones, a bass player with a background in classical, jazz and punk rock -- three genres that blend together into the backbone of the band (a fiddle player also occasionally joins the lineup). The Sitch recently sat down in Nashville to learn more about our latest ARTIST OF THE MONTH...

[read more at http://www.thebluegrasssituation.com/artist-of-the-month-humming-house ] - The Bluegrass Situation

Alt-country has been pushing the boundaries of country music for nearly three decades now, fusing old school rockabilly with new school punk and a wealth of bluegrass more inspired by The Pogues than Bill Monroe. Humming House is the latest band to try to break something new into this formula with their debut album. For the most part, they succeed. Their debut album is a mischievous, foot stomping collections of songs that evoke Old Crow Medicine Show, early Ryan Adams and BR549 without ever imitating them. Lead by singer/songwriter Justin Wade Tam the band throws everything, including a singing saw, into their music to excellent effect. Humming House’s debut is a ruckus, jubilant good time.

The band sets he tone with the opening “Gypsy Django” a tribute to jazz musician Django Reinhardt. The song finds Justin Wade Tam highlighting his ukulele with a wit that encompasses both the improvisational nature of jazz and the sweet ease of Island life. The band follows this up with “Stop Me Still” a barn burner that finds Tam’s rich baritone playing off Kristen Roger’s elegant alto “Cold Chicago” is a pretty ballad of wanderlust, focused around the travels of a guitar. Joshua Wolak’s mandolin takes front and center as Tam softens his voice into a softer, prettier and more lonesome sound. The music becomes less frenetic and more jovial on the almost deliberately retro “Mrs. Wurley.” “When we hear his sweet old soul untied, lay it down on the mountain side” the band sings wistfully. “Baltimore Boats” is a tender, lilting ballad that follows Wolak’s lovely mandolin. “Lift you head my childhood friend,” Tam croons, in a voice both sweet and resonant. “Dawn” finds the mandolin and ukulele chasing each other around lightly, like school children stepping from rock to rock in a creek. This interlude opens into “When Dawn Becomes the Day,” a joyous song that continues to rely on the interplay between mandolin and ukelele. The plucking of these soft, stringed instruments perfectly reflects the sunny sentiments of the song. “Tower Park” opens with a stronger sway, less syncopated yet more off kilter rhythm. “A two step smile and a fox trot wink, as the bandstand plays the wedding march,” Tam sings, before observing “She’s a pretty thing and he looks real nice. “ “Southern Seamstress” finds Tam sounding more like Raul Malo than a casual listener might this possible. This is a pretty, harmony laden track, whose execution more than makes up for occasional lazy writing choices. The band follows up a reference to “Eyes on the Island” with a brief Gypsy meets Caribbean fling of a musical track. “The driving gets dark sometimes, but the headlights are always sincere,” Tam growls in “Gasoline.” It is a darker track than the rest of the album, haunting and almost sinister with it crashing percussion and tightly wound mandolin riffs. The album closes with “Young Enough to Try” an intriguing, mission statement of a ballad. The song celebrates having time to make mistakes and recover from the injuries one might sustain jumping blindly into a leap of faith.


Humming House, as a band, follows a fairly standard formula. They are another band in the long line of post Neko Case meets post OCMS acts that have hit the scene in the past decade. However, they do bring a few things to the table. For starters, they are fronted by Justin Wade Tam, who has a voice that is elastic in its range and elegant in its execution. More importantly, they have a sense of fearlessness that allows them make the kinds of musical choices that lift their music far above the average. From any band, this would be a good album, but from a new band it is darned close to perfect. - Roughstock

Alt-country has been pushing the boundaries of country music for nearly three decades now, fusing old school rockabilly with new school punk and a wealth of bluegrass more inspired by The Pogues than Bill Monroe. Humming House is the latest band to try to break something new into this formula with their debut album. For the most part, they succeed. Their debut album is a mischievous, foot stomping collections of songs that evoke Old Crow Medicine Show, early Ryan Adams and BR549 without ever imitating them. Lead by singer/songwriter Justin Wade Tam the band throws everything, including a singing saw, into their music to excellent effect. Humming House’s debut is a ruckus, jubilant good time.

The band sets he tone with the opening “Gypsy Django” a tribute to jazz musician Django Reinhardt. The song finds Justin Wade Tam highlighting his ukulele with a wit that encompasses both the improvisational nature of jazz and the sweet ease of Island life. The band follows this up with “Stop Me Still” a barn burner that finds Tam’s rich baritone playing off Kristen Roger’s elegant alto “Cold Chicago” is a pretty ballad of wanderlust, focused around the travels of a guitar. Joshua Wolak’s mandolin takes front and center as Tam softens his voice into a softer, prettier and more lonesome sound. The music becomes less frenetic and more jovial on the almost deliberately retro “Mrs. Wurley.” “When we hear his sweet old soul untied, lay it down on the mountain side” the band sings wistfully. “Baltimore Boats” is a tender, lilting ballad that follows Wolak’s lovely mandolin. “Lift you head my childhood friend,” Tam croons, in a voice both sweet and resonant. “Dawn” finds the mandolin and ukulele chasing each other around lightly, like school children stepping from rock to rock in a creek. This interlude opens into “When Dawn Becomes the Day,” a joyous song that continues to rely on the interplay between mandolin and ukelele. The plucking of these soft, stringed instruments perfectly reflects the sunny sentiments of the song. “Tower Park” opens with a stronger sway, less syncopated yet more off kilter rhythm. “A two step smile and a fox trot wink, as the bandstand plays the wedding march,” Tam sings, before observing “She’s a pretty thing and he looks real nice. “ “Southern Seamstress” finds Tam sounding more like Raul Malo than a casual listener might this possible. This is a pretty, harmony laden track, whose execution more than makes up for occasional lazy writing choices. The band follows up a reference to “Eyes on the Island” with a brief Gypsy meets Caribbean fling of a musical track. “The driving gets dark sometimes, but the headlights are always sincere,” Tam growls in “Gasoline.” It is a darker track than the rest of the album, haunting and almost sinister with it crashing percussion and tightly wound mandolin riffs. The album closes with “Young Enough to Try” an intriguing, mission statement of a ballad. The song celebrates having time to make mistakes and recover from the injuries one might sustain jumping blindly into a leap of faith.


Humming House, as a band, follows a fairly standard formula. They are another band in the long line of post Neko Case meets post OCMS acts that have hit the scene in the past decade. However, they do bring a few things to the table. For starters, they are fronted by Justin Wade Tam, who has a voice that is elastic in its range and elegant in its execution. More importantly, they have a sense of fearlessness that allows them make the kinds of musical choices that lift their music far above the average. From any band, this would be a good album, but from a new band it is darned close to perfect. - Roughstock

“Their debut album is a mischievous, foot stomping collection of songs that evoke Old Crow Medicine Show, early Ryan Adams and BR549 without ever imitating them. Lead by singer/songwriter Justin Wade Tam the band throws everything, including a singing saw, into their music to excellent effect. Humming House’s debut is a ruckus, jubilant good time. From any band, this would be a good album, but from a new band it is darned close to perfect.” - Roughstock

“This is a fun, promising debut… In fact, opener ‘Gypsy Django’ could easily pass for a Ramseur-era Avetts outtake. The song is a tribute to “gypsy jazz” legend Django Reinhardt– replete with handclaps, hums and zydeco flourishes. Elsewhere, the band offer winning glimpses into their quirky, adventurous side on the driving, rockabilly stomp ‘Stop Me Still’ and the singing saw-laden ‘Mrs. Wurley.’” – American Songwriter


“Humming House, (is a) mix of folk, blues, and bluegrass with pop sensibilities.” – Will Griffin – WPLN – Nashville Public Radio

"...an emerging, exciting piece of the Americana landscape" - Amy Reitnouer - The Bluegrass Situation
“A new Nashville band with a throwback sound” – Blake Farmer – All Things Considered – NPR

“Humming House reminds us how to have a good time with…. Classic sounds and a timeless look…. a crossroads between folk, blues, gospel and bluegrass make this band one our favorite new sounds.” - STETSON - (Various)