In The West

The Horsenecks hail from the western Oregon area of Astoria. They are the duo of Gabrielle Macrae (fiddle, bass, banjo, harmonium, guitar, vocals) and Barry Southern (guitar, banjo, resonator guitar, vocals). This new project, their fourth, is a mix of mostly original tunes from Macrea along with a few from Southern. They are joined by Rick Epping, Brian Bagdonas, Kevin Sandri, Luke Ydstie, and Kati Claborn on a variety of instruments and percussion. 

The songs follow the tradition of old-time and roots music and include fiddle tunes, cowboy songs, lullabies, love songs, and driving instrumentals. Macrae and Southern share the lead vocals and harmonies in the mix between the spritely instrumentals. Songs by Macrae include “Good Times Gone,” “Jinny Lin’s Tune,” “Sweater Bag,” “Never Been So Far From Home,” and “Bake City Blues.”  Songs by Southern are “Lily In The Garden,” “Mountain Rain,” and “Trouble On The Mainline,” co-written with Macrae. The song “Little Old Sod Shanty” by Macrae evokes the life of the pioneers who came west to find a new life, and the title cut “In The West” reflects the pair’s own travels into the music as both performers and writers. 

This is a very pleasant new release from this duo and provides them with one more step in their musical journey.