Album Profile: Hotels & Highways

Complex, robust, and full-bodied. The aromatic presence of Tom Petty, Teddy Thompson, Lyle Lovett, and Sam Cooke. Drink it on the couch, drink it in the smokiest of clubs. Hit up the local wine shop with no guarantee that you will find anything with a finish as lovely as this.

In a market infiltrated with lucrative radio campaigns that contribute to the promotion of damaged goods, Hotels and Highways defied the laws of mainstream radio nonsense with its release of “Lost River.” With a series of well structured, pop-enough, gems, I can only hope that this album receives what it deserves. That is, I hope that the mainstream market appreciates accessible and nostalgic songwriting as much as I do. The album opens with “Train Whistle,” a song absolutely loaded with hooks, wrapped in a simple blues progression. The greatest gift lies here within. When was the last time you bought an album? When was the last time you bought an album in celebration of its entirety? Good luck finding another blues, folk, jazz record that has the hooks to arrogate radio and the substance to get you home.

Who says you need to hit a hook within a minute? By the time you stumble upon “Night Song,” you are sure to think differently. This song was apparently written with such a strong lack of regard for the mainstream and with such bravado that the lead vocal doesn’t surface until the song undergoes an unexpected time change nearly three minutes deep. Close your eyes and let the melody speak volumes. This song is drop dead gorgeous. Kudos for letting your melody tell the story.

Do yourself a favor and buy this record. It’s been quite some time since something so versatile and organic has worn on its sleeve a repertoire of snotty vintage guitars, and evidently, a gritty rotation of singer/songwriters.

- Matt Colligan

www.hotelsandhighways.com

At a crucial moment of quiet intensity, the members of Hotels & Highways heard the wind rustling the trees in their headphones. For any other project it would have been an unwelcome signal to cut the take short and try again when there was golden silence. Instead, the three newly-committed band members smiled at their good fortune and carried on playing, the wind and trees now indelible partners in the song’s performance.

It was September 2010 and Erin "Syd" Sidney, Lisa Piccirillo and Patrick Thomas were getting to be well-versed in letting their temporary home in the woods be a part of the creative process. They’d come to a lakeside cabin in New York to fulfill a mutual, career-long dream of living together while recording an album. A week-long tour of the Northeast had been booked immediately following the 10-day writing and recording retreat. The material was largely unwritten. The sound had not been clearly defined. But with each day’s new songs and each night’s recording sessions, what began as a joyful experiment in creativity and trust evolved quickly into an emerging full-length album and a well-received tour. Hotels & Highways, originally a nom de plume for songs a group of friends wrote together, had quietly and gracefully transformed into a band.

With a stream of updates and videos coming from the cabin, friends and fans watched the project gather momentum and became an integral part of the experience. Real-time support for the group evolved into validation that only a proper release would do this music justice. Through the use of fan-funding website Kickstarter, the band raised over $13,000 (far surpassing their goal of $10,000) to finance the remaining production on their album and a corresponding national tour. With this massive vote of confidence from their fan base, Hotels & Highways' cabin-grown debut, "Lost River," hits digital stands on March 8, 2011.

Syd, Patrick, and Lisa are each experienced touring and recording artists with self-released albums and a thick portfolio of singer/songwriter accolades. Each has performed showcases at prestigious music festivals, opened for national acts, maintained rigorous touring schedules and received plenty of quotable love from the press.

Though comprised of accomplished members, Hotels & Highways is just beginning its journey. Leaving behind the sounds of that lake in New York, the band will share the spirit that defines them and live up to their name with a 6-week tour of the US, including dates at Cafe 939 in Boston, Rockwood Music Hall's new Stage 2 in New York City, Molly Malone's in Los Angeles and 20 other major cities in the Spring of 2011.