Breanne Marie & The Front Porch Sinners have a new album called Two Trees. Some songs are very moving, and some will get you moving – and a couple do both. The album release show is Saturday, November 15th at Sir Ben’s in Duluth. It was great to get some of the song backgrounds.
Was there an intention or focus to the album? To me Two Trees feels like a celebration of short stories about/from/for women – but that men could enjoy too. I feel like I learn something from each song.
I listen to a lot of Americana and alt-country music. My favorite artists are women. Dolly Parton, Kacey Musgraves, Brandi Carlile to name a few. I am inspired by their work and the way they work within the industry. The songs on this album are short stories about women with a similar thread woven through. Each song falls under the topic of trauma/healing. I don’t write fictional stories often but a songwriter group I joined in 2021 has inspired me to try new things. Ida Mae and Under the Grove are the result of that. Two Trees, the song, rounded out the fictional trilogy perfectly while tying it to me personally. Even the song Most of All, which is a great message for anyone, was written for one of my daughters and I had young women in mind while writing it.
I’m Gonna Bend is the song I needed to hear today. I’m on vacation. It’s raining. Hassles from home are trying to seep into my day. Yadda, yadda. I’m wondering if art follows life in the song or the opposite. Did you write it feeling committed to the notion to bend or hoping to commit?
I’m so glad you heard it when you needed it. That is what music is all about! ❤ The song takes the listener through my experience as a teen mom. When I was pregnant with Alyssa, I made a promise to myself that I was going to fight like hell to survive and thrive. For me and her. We’ve been bending, and not breaking, ever since. I could’ve written a ballad about the struggle it is being a teen mom but instead I felt it needed to be an upbeat rock song. The band crushed this one. From Kailyn’s rip-roaring intro into Evan’s electric solo through the bridge, it doesn’t let up. And that’s what life is like when you’re fighting to survive. It’s loud, it’s fast, and if you want, it can be fun. We started the album with this track and we often start our live shows with it. It’s a great song to set the stage and invite Sinners to the porch.
I love the two versions of Half truths. It’s funny how much the sound changes the reaction to the story in the song. What made you decide to include both? (Do you have a favorite version?)
I love these questions. Jillian, our producer, and I played around with fast and slow versions of songs during pre-production because I wanted a good mix and because the band rocks. For example, Dashboard Dandelion was originally a ballad on an acoustic guitar with a finger-picking style arrangement. Jillian helped me turn it into a Sheryl Crow style rock song and it became the first song I recorded my electric guitar on. When it came to Half Truths I liked both versions equally and didn’t want to let one go. The reprise version has such a great finale feel to it, but I am a sucker for the original ballad version. Plus, how often do we sing an F bomb in a ballad? So that one is my favorite of the two.
Can you tell me more about Two Trees, the song. It’s a beautiful and touching song.
Thank you. First of all, the two trees I wrote about are right outside my window. I had a word prompt “slump” from my songwriting group and a dead tree was slumped against a living one in my yard. That’s how it began. As it often does, the song ended up being about the grief I carry from loss. In 2006 I lost my dad to suicide. In 2009 my little brother Tim and his best friend were killed in a car accident. In 2018 my big brother Justin died in an ATV accident. Loss on top of loss on top of loss. In 2020 I spent a year working with a grief therapist. That processing and reflection led to lyrics in Half Truths but it also changed the way I write about grief. I think the pandemic changed my approach, too. Now, more than ever, I find myself reassuring the listener that all of us have grief – you’re not alone in these feelings. I don’t feel so alone in my sorrow anymore and I don’t want others to feel alone either. I’m an experienced griever and a songwriter/storyteller which puts me in a position to help others. That role feels good to me.
Please tell us about the upcoming album release show.
The release show is Saturday, November 15th at Sir Ben’s in Duluth. Sir Ben’s is a free, all ages venue that has serious family cabin vibes. Great food, drinks, big tables, board games. It’s a place that just feels good to play in. We’re on at 8 PM followed by our friends The Yeah Scherz. We will be playing a lot of songs from the new album and some older favorites. Kickstarter backers can come pick up their CDs and maybe vinyl if they make it here on time (vinyl ETA is gonna be a nail biter). The release show is truly a celebration and an opportunity to thank all the people who supported this album.
Mostly Minnesota 