Whitney Rose readies new album, RULE 62, for October 6 Release On Six Shooter/Thirty Tigers

WHITNEY ROSE READIES NEW ALBUM, RULE 62,

FOR OCTOBER 6 RELEASE ON SIX SHOOTER/THIRTY TIGERS

World-traveling Austin-based artist enlists Raul Malo (Mavericks) as producer,

Niko Bolas as co-producer.

Paul Deakin (Mavericks), Jen Gunderman (Jayhawks, Sheryl Crow), Kenny Vaughan (Marty Stuart, Lucinda Williams), Chris Scruggs and Aaron Till

(Asleep at the Wheel) form Rose’s own hot studio band. 

"Even the chief architect, standing in the ruins of her dream, could laugh at herself —

and that is the very acme of humility.” —Tradition Four, AA

Rolling Stone Country premiered a track

AUSTIN, Texas – There are many useful rules to live by, but for Whitney Rose, there’s one that stands alone as a guiding principle for life as she knows it: Rule 62. The origin of the rule is best summed up by the poignant, pronoun-adjusted excerpt from Alcoholics Anonymous’ Tradition Four cited above, a treatise on how to find harmony between ambition and self-awareness, and how to learn one’s lessons with humor and humility. This truism, officially worded as “Don’t Take Yourself Too Damn Seriously,” is the origin of both the title and ethos of Whitney Rose’s forthcoming album, Rule 62.  

The album is due out on October 6, 2017 on Six Shooter Records through Thirty Tigers.  

Rewind to January 2017. Six months ago, Rose was primed to release South Texas Suite, a countrypolitan valentine to Austin, Texas. (Rolling Stone noted that it “bristles with local flavor.”) Days before the EP hit the streets and Rose kicked off a four-month worldwide tour, the burgeoning songwriting force (and “country hair” disciple) packed her boots for Nashville, where she entered BlackBird Studio A to reconvene with the Mavericks’ Raul Malo. In one short week, Rose, Malo and co-producer Niko Bolas channeled the tumult, turbulence and tension outside of the studio into Rose’s sophomore worldwide release, which includes nine self-penned songs. Playful yet uncompromising, Whitney Rose reminds us of popular music’s rich history of strong female voices and perspectives, and on Rule 62, she channels her inner Nancy Sinatra, Bobbie Gentry and Françoise Hardy. Rule 62 finds Rose “breaking up with patriarchy,” a breakup evidenced by new songs that show verve, swagger and self-assurance in Rose’s instinctive sense of tone, broadened scope and attention to detail.  

Consider “Can’t Stop Shakin’” in the context of the day it was recorded: January 20, 2017. With Malo on harmonies and rhythm guitars, Kenny Vaughn on lead guitar, and saxophones and organ in the mix, “Can’t Stop Shakin’” was originally written as an anti-anxiety treatment in Memphis soul dance party form. Against an ominous political backdrop, the song now reverberates with an undercurrent of uncertainty and anger that reframes the self-calming shimmy as an act of protest. “’Can't Stop Shakin’ started out as something I would sing to calm myself down.” Rose says. “We recorded that song on Inauguration day and you could physically feel the divide between the public and the unrest in the air. I was in the studio that week every day for twelve hours on average, so realized my contribution was going to have to take place within the walls of Blackbird. So the song that started as a personal anthem got a rewrite that day.” 

LISTEN TO "CAN'T STOP SHAKIN'" ON SPOTIFY@Spotify
👉 https://t.co/JlcM0OEj31👈 pic.twitter.com/PuIJaXhQ84

— Whitney Rose (@whitneyroseband) 5 August 2017

Rule 62’s “breakup” theme can be felt in songs like “Arizona” and “Time to Cry,” two fiery, merciless tunes that show Rose at the end of her rope with the manipulation and discrimination of women in the music business and beyond. “For reasons unbeknownst to me at the time, I started writing all these “breakup” songs that were mostly angry. I wasn’t sure where all these feelings were coming from until one day it hit me like a ton of bricks that I was penning these songs to society,” she observes. These sharp-tongued send-offs come with a good dose of humor, and the result is a reassuring sense that Rose isn’t letting anything grind her down.  

Rose’s rising resilience underpins the message of “Better to My Baby,” a standout song that puts into practice the spirit and the letter of the album title. A tuneful take on moving on, the song is a measured spin on the traditional volatility of regret and jealousy that accompanies the end of a relationship. “Better To My Baby” also showcases Rose’s adept handling of ’60s pop conventions in its proud girl group nods: tinkling piano, buoyant harmonies and rueful romanticism.  

Rule 62 is Rose’s second release of 2017, and sees the songwriter’s increased output matched by increased distinction. With so much touring now under the tires, it’s no surprise that Rose’s best work yet often explores her journeywoman’s experience. 

“Meet Me in Wyoming” and “Trucker’s Funeral” are emblematic of Rose’s clever study of the musician-as-trucker analogy. “Trucker’s Funeral,” a Dolly-caliber yarn with a stranger-than-fiction twist, is in fact a true story: “I had a meeting at Bank of America here in Austin last year and when the meeting was over the teller told me about going to his grandfather’s funeral here in Texas,” Rose recounts. “He found out he had a full second family on the West Coast. His grandfather was a trucker and always on the road, so neither family had any idea. As he was telling me this story, I was jotting down lyrics on my banking papers because it was just too intriguing an experience not be made into a song.”  

Rule 62 boasts the first-class musicianship and studio instincts of collaborator and producer Raul Malo. The comfort and familiarity between the two made for a seamless return to the studio, this time with the added ear of Niko Bolas as co-producer. “Niko brought a lot to the table in the studio (when he wasn't sitting at his table at Waffle House). It allowed Raul to step down from the producer role from time to time and be a part of the band. That man can play and sing. One of my favorite parts of the album is the guitar solo on ‘You Never Cross My Mind’ — that's all Raul,” Rose observes appreciatively. Other musicians in the studio included Paul Deakin (The Mavericks) on drums, Jay Weaver (Dolly Parton, Tanya Tucker, The Mavericks) on bass; Jen Gunderman (Sheryl Crow) on piano; Chris Scruggs (Marty Stuart) on steel; Aaron Till (Asleep at the Wheel) on the fiddle; and Kenny Vaughn (Marty Stuart, Lucinda Williams) on lead guitar.  

Rule 62. Don’t Take Yourself Too Damn Seriously. It’s the only rule that Whitney Rose needs to keep going.  

RULE 62 TRACK LISTING:  

1. I Don’t Want Half (I Just Want Out) (3:06)

2. Arizona (3:58)

3. Better to My Baby (3:13)

4. You Never Cross My Mind (4:02)

5. You Don’t Scare Me (4:14)

6. Can’t Stop Shakin’ (4:22)

7. Tied to the Wheel (4:41)  

8. Trucker’s Funeral (5:04)

9. Wake Me in Wyoming (3:29)

10. You’re a Mess (3:48)

11. Time to Cry (3:56)  

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Whitney Rose delivers a Lone Star State Love Letter with South Texas Suite, out January 27

WHITNEY ROSE DELIVERS

A LONE STAR STATE LOVE LETTER

WITH SOUTH TEXAS SUITE, RELEASING JANUARY 27

 ON SIX SHOOTER RECORDS

Americana enchantress follows Raul Malo-produced Heartbreaker of the Year

with more country-pop charm, accompanied by

Haybale!’s Redd Volkaert, Earl Poole Ball, Tom Lewis and Kevin Smith

AUSTIN, Texas — Before moving to Austin, Whitney Rose had never danced the two-step. Now, the country-pop singer’s infatuation with Texas’ rich musical culture, from stage to studio to dance floor, informs an enthralling new project, a love letter to the Lone Star State. Her new EP, South Texas Suite, is a touch nostalgic, deeply romantic and defiantly personal — it’s Texas, through Whitney Rose’s eyes and ears. 

South Texas Suite is a meticulous study of sound and place, but also a product of unexpected circumstance. Last October, shortly after the release of her album Heartbreaker of the Year, Rose packed up her boot collection and headed south to play a two-month residency at Austin’s famed Americana bastion, the Continental Club. But that November-December engagement went so well, she wound up staying. Since then, she’s toured with Sam Outlaw, made her European debut and signed with Thirty Tigers-distributed Six Shooter Records.

Rose became smitten with Texas, and the warm welcome from Austin’s vibrant musical community made her feel right at home. Songs started pouring out — so many that she just had to start recording.

The first result is this new EP, which will be released January 27, 2017. Rose herself produced South Texas Suite, a first for the poised countrypolitan songwriter. Top to bottom, the EP is the work of an artist who is both an insider and an outsider, an observer and a maker, a listener and a storyteller — no matter where she lives.

“Ever since I moved here I’ve been going out and watching live music, and falling in love with musicians around town,” says Rose. “The music scene here is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before. So I have been writing njava-script, I’ve written close to 40 new songs since I arrived.” 

Rollingstone: See Whitney Rose Introduce New Texas Sound in Twangy Mini-Docu

Canada native salutes her new Lone Star State home on the upcoming EP 'South Texas Suite'….


“My Boots” (Six Shooter Records; Single) released on US iTunes on Oct 21, 2016

South Texas Suite EP:

1. Three Minute Love Affair
2. Analog
3. My Boots
 4. Bluebonnets for My Baby
5. Lookin' Back on Luckenbach
6. How 'Bout a Hand for the Band

She recorded South Texas Suite over two days at Dale Watson’s Ameripolitan Studios in North Austin, accompanied by Grammy winner Redd Volkaert, Merle Haggard’s former guitarist; Earl Poole Ball, who spent two decades tickling keyboards for Johnny Cash; Kevin Smith, now playing bass in Willie Nelson’s Family Band; and Tom Lewis, who’s drummed with the Mavericks, among others. All four play in Haybale!, the Continental Club’s Sunday-night stalwart; Lewis also plays in Rose’s band, along with guitarist Bryce Clark, steel player James Shelton and acoustic guitarist Sophia Johnson. They’re also on the EP, along with fiddler Erik Hokkanen and accordionist Michael Guerra.

The sensuous waltz of the opening song, “Three Minute Love Affair,” with its Tex-Mex flavorprovided by Guerra’s Flaco Jiménez-worthy accordion, beautifully sets the tone for South Texas Suite  “I love the dance culture in Texas; I’m completely enamored,” says Rose. 
“That’s absolutely what inspired ‘Three Minute Love Affair’ — as a song starts, the world kind of stops and you’re like lovers for three minutes, and then it’s over and you’re strangers again. But there’s this beautiful little moment in time.” 

Of course, no self-respecting two-stepper would take to a dance-hall floor without Rose’s favorite footwear; her heel-stomping honky-tonk ode to that Texas wardrobe essential, “My Boots,” is also a feminist statemen

“I’ll go if I can wear my boots/I don’t feel like high heel shoes/And that don’t mean that I’m crazy/That don’t mean I ain’t a lady,” she sings in her sugary-smooth voice. 
She sounds even sweeter on “Lookin’ Back on Luckenbach,” a wistful mid-tempo ballad about leaving a beloved place behind.

Rose didn’t write “Analog” or “Bluebonnets for My Baby,” but the “sultry country classicist,” as The New York Times called her, certainly identifies with both songs. In “Analog,” by Brennan Leigh, Rose sings the praises of lazy rivers and “that needle skipping on my old hi-fi,” as opposed to the soul-sucking conveniences of modern, digital life. And in “Bluebonnets for My Baby,” by Teri Joyce, Rose could almost be Shelley Fabares singing “Johnny Angel” to one of her ’60s-flick leading men.

“‘Bluebonnets for My Baby’ is everything that I love about music in a song. And it’s the state flower,” she observes. “I wanted this EP to be a little love letter or thank-you note to Texas, so I chose the songs that I perceived to be the most ‘Texas.’ And I love to cover songs written by women.” (It’s also no coincidence that both of the songwriters Rose has chosen hail from Austin.) 

The Bakersfield-style instrumental closer, “How ’Bout a Hand for the Band,” originally was the outro for “My Boots.” 

“I had amazing musicians, so I wanted the end of ‘My Boots’ to be a big jam,” says Rose. “But the song ended up being really long, so we had to cut that. But it’s such incredible playing, I didn’t want to rob the world of getting to hear it. It was a cool way to tie it up.” 
Indeed it is.

Lauding Rose’s blend of “the purer sides of pop and country” in its Heartbreaker review, American Songwriter magazine noted, “The most exciting part is seeing where she goes next.”

Her immediate plans include more songwriting and work with Raul Malo, who produced Heartbreaker of the Year and will helm her next full-length; they’ll record in January at Nashville’s Blackbird Studio. Then she’ll head on tour for several months with dates in North America, Europe and Scandinavia. After that, it’ll be time to release the new album.

But until then, there’s South Texas Suite, a compelling tribute to the Lone Star State.

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