On their debut album The Cedar Creek Sessions, the Austin, Texas-based quartet Stonehoney delivers a bracing set of 14 original tunes that effortlessly transcend genre restrictions, merging rootsy grit with savvy melodic hooks and lyrical insight. The foursome’s tunes are matched by their seamless vocal harmonies and punchy ensemble performances, which make the most of the band members’ musical rapport and personal chemistry.
Stonehoney is comprised of four smart, seasoned singer/songwriter/instrumentalists who possess distinctive yet complementary songwriting approaches, and who trade vocals with ease. The group (accompanied on stage by a variety of drummers and keyboardists) is already a local favorite in its adopted hometown of Austin, and has built a large and enthusiastic fan base thanks to their soulful, high-energy live shows. Equally at home in honky-tonks and rock clubs, in dancehalls and intimate house concerts, Stonehoney has also won acclaim with successful appearances at such prestigious festivals as the International Folk Alliance Conference, the Kerrville Folk Festival and the Falcon Ridge Festival.
The craft and spontaneity of Stonehoney’s live gigs are prominent on The Cedar Creek Sessions, which ranges from the jangly twang of “Two Years Down” to the upbeat infectiousness of “Lucky One” to the bittersweet pop of “I Don’t Wanna Go Home” to the exhilarating road-warrior rock of “White Knuckle Wind” to the balladry of “Headlight On A Midnight Train.” The album (on Austin’s artist-friendly label Music Road Records) was cut entirely live in the studio without sonic trickery, with the four band members joined by such esteemed guest players as ex-Wilco drummer Ken Coomer and legendary pianist Earl Poole Ball, whose extensive resume includes work with Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Gram Parsons and The Byrds.
The members of Stonehoney bring four lifetimes’ worth of experience to the band, hailing from diverse musical and personal backgrounds before fate led them to join forces. California-born Shawn Davis cut his teeth playing guitar in Hollywood hard-rock bands before gravitating towards country music. After an unsatisfying attempt to write mainstream country material in Nashville, he returned to Los Angeles determined to build a creative community of compatible singersongwriters. Davis found a kindred musical spirit in Nick Randolph, a Boston native who’d moved west and earned acclaim for a trio of independently released solo albums.
