This track is from the album Flatland Tourists and is available for purchase on CD Baby here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/flatlandtourists

No Work, No Pay

Our Time (Hallelujah)

Elvis At the Fast Fare

Front Porch is the sophomore Flatland Tourists release on Little King Records.


01 Sunshine Follows Rain

02 Front Porch

03 Whatcha Gonna Do

04 Intro to Appalachia

05 Appalachia

06 Tote Sack Full of Love

Dirt Road Jubilee

Nashville, TN

They knew the same people. Fans of their earlier, individual projects had long suggested they needed to get together, but for several years, other commitments kept them from it. The timing just wasn’t right. Then, one early fall evening in 2013 a local cover band was playing an outdoor show in the area. It may have been serendipity, blind luck, or just a coincidence that guided Billy Bost, Rachel Garcia, Frank Sutton, Joe Williams, and Kevin Winchester to that show. But that evening, all five of them eventually found themselves standing near the water tower in the rustic town of Waxhaw, North Carolina. Something brought them there. The timing, finally, was right. A week later the first Flatland Tourists rehearsal took place. It didn’t take long before they all knew they’d found something special. They focused on writing songs, building harmonies, tightening the band.

A few months later, they started playing gigs at the Americana venues in the Charlotte area. More shows followed, the fan base grew. Mark Williams, Grammy winning producer and engineer (REM, Southern Culture on the Skids, Hootie & the Blowfish) heard them at a show in Charlotte and approached them about producing their debut EP. The band quickly agreed. All the tunes were recorded live at Old House Studios. The vocals were recorded at East Oak Media Studios. Williams utilized a binaural recording technique to help achieve a very natural "live-listening" ambiance to the recording.

Little King Records picked up the EP and released the self-titled debut in November of 2014. Their songs are honest and real. The music reflects the band’s roots music upbringing and influences combined with the technical and vocal skills honed during several years playing in regional projects. A review of the EP by Nancy Pfingstag sums up the band perfectly:

“Flatland Tourists’ debut EP offers the best of Americana—a big tent collection of country, rock, and folk, with a little bit of gospel thrown in for good Southern measure. The band’s sound ranges from melancholic and evocative (The Only Thread) to wonderfully, respectfully irreverent (Elvis at the Fast Fare) to foot-stomping blue grass joyfulness (Cold Water River.) The clear vocals and tight harmonies bring to mind Emmylou Harris, Alabama, even CSNY (think Southern Cross), only different. The Flatland Tourists band has its own distinct sound that pays homage to the North Carolina red clay roots of its members. Gorgeous vocals, haunting lyrics, and spartan accompaniment—music to the bare bone."

The band doesn’t think blind luck or coincidence brought them together that evening. No, not at all. Instead, they know that some form of musical karma, some force in the musical universe brought them together. You can see it when they play live, you can hear it in their music. More than that, you can feel it. They play the music of their southern, roots heritage, the music that courses through their blood and bones. They play it with peace and love in their hearts and nothing makes them happier than sharing it with their fans because, after all, we’re all Tourists on this journey, aren’t we?

So, get on the Tourists bus. Download the EP. Go see them at a live show. Request their songs at your favorite local or on-line Americana radio station. You'll be glad you did!