Tallahassee

http://www.nowthissound.com/ntsib/2013/05/15/tallahassee-old-ways/ - Now This Is Sound

http://soundcheck.wnyc.org/blogs/soundcheck-blog/2013/may/15/erin-mckeown-sports/ - WNYC's Soundcheck

http://soundcheck.wnyc.org/blogs/soundcheck-blog/2013/may/15/erin-mckeown-sports/ - WNYC's Soundcheck

http://twangville.com/14724/with-the-radio-on-a-special-boston-playlist/ - Twangville

http://www.americana-uk.com/reviews-cd-live/latest-cd-reviews/item/tallahassee-old-ways?category_id=175 - Americana UK

http://www.americana-uk.com/reviews-cd-live/latest-cd-reviews/item/tallahassee-old-ways?category_id=175 - Americana UK

http://www.boston.com/ae/music/2013/05/02/noisy-neighbors-tallahassee-old-ways/tb6yGtgn8tpCPYl2pqBSxJ/story.html?camp=rss:ae&dlvrit=834313 - Music Savage

http://www.boston.com/ae/music/2013/05/02/noisy-neighbors-tallahassee-old-ways/tb6yGtgn8tpCPYl2pqBSxJ/story.html?camp=rss:ae&dlvrit=834313 - Boston Globe

http://www.boston.com/ae/music/2013/05/02/noisy-neighbors-tallahassee-old-ways/tb6yGtgn8tpCPYl2pqBSxJ/story.html?camp=rss:ae&dlvrit=834313 - Boston Globe

http://www.americansongwriter.com/2013/04/album-premiere-tallahassee-old-ways/ - American Songwriter

http://www.myoldkentuckyblog.com/?p=39494 - My Old Kentucky Blog

http://www.myoldkentuckyblog.com/?p=39494 - My Old Kentucky Blog

http://allstonpudding.com/tallahassee-talks-the-new-old-ways/ - Allston Pudding

The other morning, we made French toast and it went well. You can't mess them up too much, but you can be inattentive. You can have the fire too hot and forget about the slices you've got on the griddle and they can burn in a hurry. It's been known to happen and bring out the curses for the foolishness. This morning, there was none of that. The slices were damn near perfect - a good golden on both sides, not too mushy and not too firm, with the appropriate hints of butter, vanilla and cinnamon to seal the deal. Still, the kitchen and other parts of the house smelled as if some burning had happened. It lingered all day and all night, every time we came in the door - that thick stench of someone fucking up a meal.

The horrible smell that we had to deal with reminded me of some other smokes, particularly the ones that Boston, Massachusetts, band Tallahassee call to order. Whether they know it or not, the four-piece, fronted by former New England Patriots lineman Brian Barthelmes, makes us think about the way certain things smell when they burn. Most of this is entirely unintentional. They meant for little of it and yet, when Barthelmes sings about things smelling like cedar trees and smoke on the brilliantly minimal song of sadness and loss, "Jealous Hands," we can't help but be thrust into this sensory overload and this imagery of those blue and gray ribbons of exhaust coming off of more than just logs and candle wicks. We imagine the smoke that begins to billow slowly from the surface of bliss, when it's winding down, when everyone involved with it starts to sense that these are the end times and there's almost nothing that could stop the smoke from coming. This might be the smell of cedar that Barthelmes was singing of, a smell that can't really be hated, for it brings to mind a smell that we find delight in. It's not like a tire fire or the smoke that comes off an overheated car engine. It's a smell that we covet, that we inhale into our bodies, relishing the way that it sticks in our nose for days, like a pleasant stain. Smoke typically comes after the burn has stopped. It comes at the end of a flame and there's but a finite period of time for the smoke to behave before it fades from view. Even with it out of sight, it stays around to remind us that all of what came before did happen.

Much of what Tallahassee - which is completed by guitarist Scott Thompson, bassist Shawn Carney and drummer Matt Raskopf - wants to convey to us is that of the limitations of time. They're specific about it frequently, reminding us that "time ain't no friend" to any of us. We're real dopes if we think it is. It's our friend when we've already got all the friends we could ever want and aren't looking for any more friends like that. It betrays us and leaves us beaten. When it's finished with us, it leaves behind that smoke that we will always smell living in the fibers of our clothing, as if the smoke was all that we were wearing. People leave us and we leave other people. We leave a trail of smoke that very leisurely weakens and finally dissipates forever. Sometimes it's too soon and others it's never soon enough.

- Daytrotter

Brian Barthelmes is a former New England Patriot, which makes me all but detest him. He makes up for it though by fronting a great little Boston band called Tallahassee. Their most recent CD, Jealous Hands, contains a handful of wonderful tunes. The banjos heard throughout drew me in, but Barthelmes’ vocals and strong writing kept me coming back to this release. With every listen, I find something new and exciting. It’s odd, I’ve been listening to Jealous Hands for a few weeks now and I can’t say there’s a standout song for me. Each listen has me dissecting every song and finding so many new nuances that I can’t pick just one. So today, as I write this, I’m introducing you to “Open Grave” and “Winter Trees.” If you like these, check the album out though, because I am certain you’ll like other songs more….at least once in a while you will. - Music is Golden

Tallahassee, our favorite band named after a town in Florida that none of them are from, just released their debut album, Jealous Hands, yesterday. As My Old Kentucky Blog said, the album is full of 'moonshine-sippin' murder ballads.' But even if you have no plans to drink illegal alcohol and commit felonious sins, this is one of those albums that's bound to become the soundtrack for something important. - Urban Outfitters - Blog

Tallahassee, our favorite band named after a town in Florida that none of them are from, just released their debut album, Jealous Hands, yesterday. As My Old Kentucky Blog said, the album is full of 'moonshine-sippin' murder ballads.' But even if you have no plans to drink illegal alcohol and commit felonious sins, this is one of those albums that's bound to become the soundtrack for something important. - Urban Outfitters - Blog

Tallahassee might be the only indie-folk band, or any type of band at all for that matter, fronted by a former NFL New England Patriot. But judging by the haunting beauty of their upcoming full-length Jealous Hands, perhaps we need more of that kind of line-up. Recorded in September 2010 at Perfect Sound Studios in Los Angeles after having raised $15,000 by fans and supporters during a pledge drive to do so, Jealous Hands is handsome payoff for those who invested. Fronted by Brian Barthelmes’ thermal vocals and his vintage guitars and banjos, which are tightly woven with Scott Thompson’s (vocals/guitar/banjo) Shawn Carney’s (bass, banjo, mandolin) and Matt Raskopf on percussion, this country-folk quartet have found a musical crossroads lying somewhere between The Avett Brothers, Iron and Wine, Alabama and themselves. The song Jealous Hands is a heart-stopping standout; a lush, halting, carnivalesque dirge whose lonely, spooky tone is outweighed by the all-encompassing, homey-warmth of Barthelmes’ comforting croon. As is Winter Trees, a straightforward, string-pluckin,’ country-soul hoedown; an authentic backyard charmer, if you’re backyard happened to have a soothing Hammond organ lying about. With moonshine-swillin’ murder ballads such as Open Grave and Minor Blues II, raspy, radio-friendly rocker’s Front Teeth and Wooden Heart, and the gorgeously arranged, delicate splendor of RV Song and The Ghost of John Denver, Tallahassee’s Jealous Hands feels like a never-ending gift of elegant heartache and roughhewn beauty. Mixing folk, country, blue-grass, rock and Americana until it all blends together something terribly familiar yet refreshingly new, Jealous Hands is at once a deeply introspective and open-hearted labor of love, not to be missed when it comes out April 19th 2011. - My Old Kentucky Blog

Tallahassee is a four-piece folk band from Boston (oddly enough). On their forthcoming full-length called Jealous Hands, these guys plunge unapologetically into folk traditions and come out on the other side with something incredibly satisfying, twelve songs of complacent, understated composition for fans of un-freaky folk.

The first thing you'll hear on Jealous Hands is the voice of Brian Barthelmes; he's a former NFL center for the New England Patriots who gave up football to pursue a career in music. Throughout the album, Barthelmes' vocals thrive. The songs themselves are populated with a wealth of folk-instruments masterfully mixed (guitar, banjo, resonator, mandolin, upright bass, keys), which sets the stage for Barthelmes pitch perfect vocals (somewhere between Tindersticks' Stuart Staples and Iron & Wine's Samuel Beam).

Jealous Hands falls in the category of folk that doesn't push the genre's boundaries; this is faithful and straightforward interpretation of folk and indie-rock and as a result, might come off a little saccharin or clean-cut. But for their style, Tallahassee excels because the production, musicianship and compositions are so air-tight. Check out "Winter Trees" and the title-track "Jealous Hands" below. They're both great songs and fitting examples of what you'll find on the rest of Jealous Hands.

So if you like it, keep an eye out for Jealous Hands, coming out April 19th. If you're the impatient type, check out the pre-order here. More details on Tallahassee when they're out there. - In Your Speakers

2 hour interview and live song set. Available for listening at:
http://kerfuffle.weebly.com/archive.html
Under date 12/10/10. - 12/10/10 - WMFO 91.5 - Tufts Freeform Radio

There is a perception that arts and sports don’t mix. Just don’t tell that to Brian Barthelmes, the front man for Boston-based band Tallahassee. For one thing, as a former offensive lineman for the New England Patriots, dude is friggin’ huge. For another, his acoustic quartet is really, really good and has garnered numerous national accolades for its rowdy mix of rock and roots — think the Avett Brothers, only waaay larger. Catch them this Friday at Montpelier’s Langdon Street Café and Saturday at the Skinny Pancake in Burlington. - Seven Day's - Vermont's Independent Voice

Feeling A Little Folksy Here

By Nicole Sakin · September 27, 2010 ·

It’s been a long and humid and awful summer full of yucky gray skies from the smog and moisture that collects in your pores and causes zits. I know, gross. It’s fabulous that I’m back now, huh? I agree completely. It is great. So, on to the music that is making me pray every night for a sudden plummet in the temperature. And yearn for fall foliage.

Tallahassee: Gypsy Son

Have you heard this song? I mean, even the name screams “wood-y and fall-like and dash-causing-way-of-describing-things.” It’s really quite soothing. I have to say I’m quite fixated on the violin that suddenly plays in the background. And, the guitar riff mixed in with it just makes it sound like something straight out of Cold Mountain or something of that ilk. Haunting isn’t the right word, but I can’t think of any other term to fully describe it.
- By Nicole Sakin with MMPWorlp.com

Feeling A Little Folksy Here

By Nicole Sakin · September 27, 2010 ·

It’s been a long and humid and awful summer full of yucky gray skies from the smog and moisture that collects in your pores and causes zits. I know, gross. It’s fabulous that I’m back now, huh? I agree completely. It is great. So, on to the music that is making me pray every night for a sudden plummet in the temperature. And yearn for fall foliage.

Tallahassee: Gypsy Son

Have you heard this song? I mean, even the name screams “wood-y and fall-like and dash-causing-way-of-describing-things.” It’s really quite soothing. I have to say I’m quite fixated on the violin that suddenly plays in the background. And, the guitar riff mixed in with it just makes it sound like something straight out of Cold Mountain or something of that ilk. Haunting isn’t the right word, but I can’t think of any other term to fully describe it.
- By Nicole Sakin with MMPWorlp.com

"After seeing a duo version of Tallahassee at the Johnny Cash tribute that we helped put together, we knew we had to get them in for a session as soon as possible. Lead singer Brian Barthelmes honed his songwriting chops as a lineman for the New England Patriots (no joke), but the soulful americana that pours out of this band is probably not what you’d expect from a guy who at one time made a living smashing into other people. They just released their second album, Tallahassee Schmallahassee (a cheeky reference to Harry Nilsson’s magnum opus).

Song list:

1. Gypsy Song 04:22
2. Wolfe Moon 03:16
3. California 04:26
4. Jealous Hands 03:51
5. Minor Blues 03:20
6. Open Grave 02:18

Tallahassee on MySpace

Download individual tracks here, or stream the whole thing."
- Band In Boston

Tallahassee featured on Urban Outfitters "New Music Monday" on 9/27/10. - Urban Outfitters

"We interviewed one of the bands that are being highlighted at the American rock scene today: Tallahassee.

What would you say has influenced the group?

We are mainly influenced by 3 distinct genres: 1) Traditional bluegrass and folk music 2) Classic rock, Americana, and R and B (like The Beatles, Cat Stevens). 3) Punk and Space Rock.
This mix gives us an energetic rock feel that can also make you look introspectively back to your roots in a small town or the country side.

What sounds transmitted "Wolf Moon"?

The sound of Wolf Moon was made out of necessity. The band prefers to play as a rock outfit with full drums and electric guitars mixed in with a folk/bluegrass feel. But leading up to Wolf Moon we all lived in small apartments in Providence, RI where we could not make a lot of loud electric sounds. Being people who are addicted to making music in any capacity we resorted to writing more acoustic feeling songs. We have always been a group that can play to any type of need and the need for us to be quiet and gentle is one that is evident on Wolf Moon.

Personally I think they have a lot of soul and blues What do you think?

We definitely try to pull in some waltzy blues and old style R and B into the mix. We love so many kinds of music but definitely have our own sound. Experimenting with influences from other genres and making them all our own and still feel like Tallahassee is really important to us.

What do you think of the American music scene?

Thats a huge question but I will talk about how excited I am that roots instruments and old sounds are coming back to life in new, relevant, and progressive ways. Bands we love who are doing this well are Brown Bird, Elvis Perkins in Dearland, The Diamond Doves, Deertick, The ‘mericans, These United States, and Band of Horses.

About that talk about your lyrics?

We try to write lyrics that are very personal to us. We try to paint a picture of very specific situations in our lives and invite others to be a part of them or to find something in them from their own life.

What inspired to compose songs?

There are so many inspirations. Our singer, Brian Barthelmes, was a NFL lineman for the New England Patriots until a few years ago. That was a very dark time for him and he left that life for a simpler life of music friends and family. This experience is one you can hear him singing about a lot in the songs.

How is 2010 for the group?

2010 has been an amazing year. We have a manager now, a new drummer who brings a whole new element to our music, we released an EP called “Tallahassee Schmallahassee.” We just got finished recording a new full length in Los Angeles at Perfect Sound Studios (they have recorded Ryan Adams, Band of Horses, Tenacious D, and so much more great stuff). We made one of the most amazing records there. We see really good things for us as a band because of this record and the amount of time we put into it. It brought us together as friends, musicians, and professionals. 2011 will be even better than 2010!!

Myspace Official:http://www.myspace.com/tallahasseeband


By Marcelo Basaure.
marcelobasaureonline@gmail.com - Mute - Art and Rock Blog - Argentina

"Tallahassee Schmallahassee" gets in your bones and stays in your head. It's haunting but comforting, fun but serious, with a sound old but refreshing at the same time. Expect to hear a lot from this band, which is just starting out but already feels fully formed."
- Jeff Taylor (Freelance Music Journalist)

"Tallahassee Schmallahassee" gets in your bones and stays in your head. It's haunting but comforting, fun but serious, with a sound old but refreshing at the same time. Expect to hear a lot from this band, which is just starting out but already feels fully formed."
- Jeff Taylor (Freelance Music Journalist)

"Tallahassee’s newest EP, Tallahassee Schmallahassee, finds the band growing more and more comfortable in their collective skin, creating tighter songs with more attention to detail while still keeping that loose, ‘let the tape roll’ feel missing from a lot of over-produced new acts. If string bands are the new hipster bread and butter, Tallahassee are the artisan bakers residing just off the beaten path."
- Dan James (25 O'Clock)

"Much like the Local Natives' cover of "Cecilia," Tallahassee's rendition of Paula Abdul's "Straight Up" has become one of our favorite cover songs recorded in a backyard." - Urban Outfitters

"One of our favorite bands, Tallahassee, just released a mini-documentary to kickstart a fundraising campaign to record their next album. Fronted by former NFL lineman Brian Barthelmes, Tallahassee's members are spread across the East Coast, and the film is a portrait of the dedication that drives the band's friendships as much as its music. They're also selling tons of merch, and trust us, after you hear their songs, you're gonna want one of these Tallahassee beard combs." - Urban Outfitters

"And here's a shout for one of our favorite acts, TALLAHASSEE, who have set up a pledge drive at their website, as (former Pats O-lineman) Brian Barthelmes and the crew rally up dough for their next full-length album, to be recorded in LA. If you didn't pick up 2009's Wolfe Moon (or their new EP, Tallahassee Schmallahassee), then you're seriously snoozing and losing. A variety of Tallahassee pledge packages are available, including Barthelmes's hand-crafted shirts, artwork, books, and tote bags, ranging up to a $3000 pledge, whereupon the burly, gentle giant Barthelmes will have your face tattooed on his body! Tallahassee beard combs also available!" - The Providence Phoenix

“Wolfe Moon evokes a cabin in the Appalachians, a place of heartache and hushed beauty… there is a warmth to this album which makes listening to it feel like being held.”

Gillian Brassil
College Hill Independent
- College Hill Independent

One aspect that differentiates Providence-based band Tallahassee from the rest of their acclaimed indie-folk peers currently blooming around these parts is a lead singer/guitarist who wore a Pats uniform and gave guitar lessons to linebackers and fellow linemen. But a sneak peek at the debut full-length disc, Wolfe Moon (available November 14), proves this is no gimmick or hobby-turned-craft. Tallahassee frontman Brian Barthelmes speaks softly and carries a big beard, a burly dude who just switched vocations from bruising offensive lineman to social worker and budding singer/songwriter, penning most of the lyrics with help from Rhodes piano/banjo man Scott Thompson.

Barthelmes attended the University of Virginia, where he learned how to “finger pick a guitar and banjo and fell madly in love with Bluegrass and old-time country music. Of course, I had to listen to some metal to get rowdy before a game, but my real pleasure came after a game with a porch, a drink, an old folk record, and my friends and family,” Barthelmes recalled via email while vacationing with the in-laws last week. And one need not be NFL-obsessed (guilty as charged) to get a kick out his recollections while earning a paycheck with the Pats:

“Creating art has always been my first love. I really did not care for football whatsoever . . . In 2009 I realized that I was miserable playing football professionally as I had no time for music, art, or giving back to humanity. I laugh in retrospect at my final training camp; I should have been memorizing plays and watching film, but instead I was giving guitar lessons to Junior Seau, Dan Koppen, Matt Light, Mike Vrabel, and mandolin lessons to Tedy Bruschi. I had started an illustrated poetry book for adults, and recorded an EP in my hotel room, which I debuted in the weight room. Coach Bill [Belichick] politely told me as he cut me that I may want to pursue a different profession, so here I am.”

Wolfe Moon is a gorgeously crafted merger of folk, country, and blues (the band’s name derives from the Muskegon Indian translation “old town”) in the spirit of Fleet Foxes and Crooked Fingers, and Iron & Wine and Townes Van Zandt are proclaimed major influences. The disc follows their self-recorded ’08 EP Cellar Songs; Thompson conceded the band was “never quite satisfied with how the EP turned out. “The new album is a big step forward for us,” he said. “We tracked the new record in just four days, whereas we spent about four months recording the EP piecemeal. Whenever we start to overthink something it usually gets discarded pretty quickly.”

The hasty process for the 11 songs on Wolfe Moon is belied in its overall grace and beauty. The finale, “Greg’s Song,” peaks and dips with delicately orchestrated mandolin, upright bass, Rhodes piano, and Alex Spoto’s violin. Drummer Abraham Kelso picks up the fiddle-picking with a rumbling crescendo as Barthelmes floats on through a simmering hush: “Through your teeth I know you lied/when the truth is found the sun will rise again.” But “California” is the one that has stuck with me all week. “ ‘California’ is sort of about ambition and having a sense of urgency about what you love and how that interacts with the relationships you have,” Thompson said. “We finished the music in a cabin in the woods up in New Hampshire, where we were celebrating the end of Brian’s bachelorhood.”

And only Barthelmes could dig up beauty behind a twisted line in “Hiding On a Hill”: “Walked out of the front door to find the bones of our first cat/Well, they had been drudged up by the neighbor’s dog the night before last.”

“Brian came up with the first line to make me laugh because I’m particularly fond of my cat, and it ended up sticking,” Thompson told me. “That’s one of Brian’s superpowers, he’ll just start singing and it will sound like a fully-formed song.

“We’re all still pretty new to this, but we feel incredibly blessed to be part of this Providence indie-folk boom,” Thompson noted. “Each band is unique, and we complement and influence each other without it ever feeling incestuous. We’re just trying to make the music that comes naturally to us.”

Barthelmes left the NFL trenches for more peaceful (and fulfilling) pastures, as clearly evidenced by the closing line in his email: “I love a soft song, a finger-picked guitar, and a good story.” - The Providence Phoenix