Cover photo: Juan Two Three Photography (Instagram / Facebook)
Local musicians and labels have released a handful of new music for the new year. Reno creatives continue producing quality releases, from jazz to punk to an “analog artifact” of a former madame at the Goldfield Cottontail Ranch. New releases below were announced either this year or late last year.
Mazer-Smith-Paul-Aller
Longtime Reno jazz musicians Susan Mazer and Dallas Smith collaborated on a new holiday album, “Joy For Our World,” with Erika Paul and David Aller. The digital release features “holiday pieces performed in a relaxed, jazzy style.” Check it out here.
Kasey Christensen
Christensen is a relative newcomer to local music and she shines with a new folk-inspired song and video. Her tune “Get Found” was written on a road trip to the California coast where Christensen camped out in her ’88 VW Westy “and found inspiration in the freedom and the beauty surrounding her.” She’s joined by Gia Torcaso (bass), Joel Ackerson (mandolin), Kris Stosic (drums and percussion) and Andrew David Weber (organ). Weber also produced her video, while Ryan Kutz mixed the tune, and Joel Wanasek mastered the song. Catch her around town. She plays often with another talent, Liam Kyle Cahill.
Spike McGuire
“Folk King” Spike McGuire needs no introduction. But he recorded his latest live release at Good Luck Macbeth Theater. It is available on vinyl, CD, cassette and digital download. From the release notes: “On the rich spectrum of folk music, McGuire resides decidedly closer to Pete Seger than Peter, Paul, and Mary and has spent the last decade and a half drawing parallels between the ethos of punk rock and the spirit of folk music by building community and engaging listeners with his message.” The album can be found here. Bonus points: He toured rural Nevada to promote the record.
Sophie Woodhouse
Sophie Woodhouse offers up an ethereal five-song single over at Spotify. She’s also on Bandcamp, where she describes herself as having “ghostly sounds, siren songs and lullabies.
Dave Masud
The talented multi-instrumentalist Dave Masud released a video for his single “Chrysalis.” He plays everything and sings. It starts slow and bumps up into heavy indie rock territory. He is joined by his spouse, Jenni, on vocals. “’Chrysalis’ is about the joys and the griefs of losing and gaining the people closest to us, and the love that remains throughout.” Find him on Bandcamp.
Vampirates
“Public service” punkers Vampirates, who have been a band for 20 years, are releasing a new song every month for a year, guitarist/vocalist Chris Fox said. Dave Masud (above) is their drummer. Their first single is 32 seconds long. Here’s the video:
Madame Beverly Harrel
Ghost State Records sent me one of the most killer vinyl packages I’ve ever seen (and I have a lot of colored vinyl): “Coming My Way,” an “analog artifact” from 1976. Harrell ran the Goldfield Cottontail Ranch, which closed in 2004 and burned down in 2022.
The brothel is no longer, but its memory has been revived with this re-release. The LP package is beautiful and should be a historic Nevada treasure. According to Ghost State, the recording was “originally available in the brothel gift shop and mail order catalog, along with adult book shops in Las Vegas 150 miles to the south; the record contains stories told my Madame Harrell, as well as recordings made inside the brothel during her weekly classes educating her working girls on providing a classy and memorable experience to all who walked through her doors.”
This record is a must-have for anyone obsessed with the history of the Silver State. The release is remastered and pressed onto parlor-smoke colored vinyl with lengthy liner notes by “Nevada explorer ‘Wonderhussy’ Sarah Jane Woodall.” Portions of sales are being donated to Nevada historical preservation organizations.
Get the record here: https://ghoststaterecords.com/artist/beverly_harrell/
