Buried Treasure, April 2
By Adeem Bingham, Staff Writer
Happy Friday, everybody! Hope you all found ways to celebrate Trans Visibility in spite of the wave of bigoted legislation washing across the states right now. It’s been a rainy week here in East Tennessee and I have spent it listening to a lot of great music.
Due to the pandemic, my toddler spends a lot more time missing all of their favorite former activities so we have procured a monthly membership to the Car Wash. We watch the rainbow soaps drizzle on the windshield and turn the radio up loud and have a dance party as we’re whisked through the suds machine.
“Up All Night” by Aaron Lee Tasjan is currently the kids’ favorite Car Wash jam and with the rain being so bad, we’re the only folks there. No line or anything – we can buzz right back through a second time. Maybe breeze through my Buried Treasure playlist. Anyway, we’ve all got to find ways to nurture our joy and to preserve our fascination. One of my favorite tools for nurturing joy is listening to songs so with that, I give you a new installment of Buried Treasure.
Your friend, Adeem
Terry Blade
We’ve mentioned Terry Blade on here before. Based out of Chicago, Terry is a singer-songwriter who covers a broad range of genres and social topics. One of my favorites from his newest album is called “MtF” and it details the story of a trans sex worker who is trying desperately to finance gender confirmation surgery and after defending herself from the violence of a client, ends up in a prison for men. It reminds me of CeCe McDonald — though I’m not sure if it’s about her — and it’s a really moving song.
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Zoe Cummins
Zoe is a Nashville-based singer-songwriter from Oklahoma. Her new cover of the Leon Bridges’ song “Beyond” reimagines the narrative with a queer perspective. It is a simple acoustic guitar and vocal demo that feels live and authentic. It’s her soulful, weathered voice that really takes the stage on this. Breaking in all of the right places, her delivery feels honest and confessional.
Cryan
Cryan is a Queer duo from Belfast who describes their sound as “Sad Country Doo-Whop.” Their debut single is out today on Bandcamp and it’s a messy, lo-fi quirky production. A xylophone makes interplay with the leading vocal with the suggested vocal rhythms. I’m especially enamored with the tragic way Ciara sings, “Do you want to be my baby?”
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“Buried Treasure” is your bi-weekly guide to under-the-radar queer artists in country, Americana, and folk. Know an artist who should be included? Contact us!