"I recorded Judsonia in a room which had one chair and one lamp. I had a notion that it would be sort of a radio drama that played through the speakers of a car which was passing through that small town in Arkansas.
It came together over a period of a few months where I was collecting sounds and recordings which didn’t clearly relate to one another until it was time to assemble them. At that point, the various pieces fell
together into one long piece that now makes me think about liminality. Being in between political boundaries, inside and outside, old and new, sleep and consciousness, town and country.
When I made it, I was reflecting on several years (maybe a lifetime) of
making decisions that were not in my best interest in one way or another. It’s not exactly an original thought, but it seemed like the essential quality of at least my own behavior was a persistent push and pull between self-preservation and self-sabotage.
Sometimes we get to live in that space in the middle."
- Austin Cash
"In all its earthiness and subtle grandeur, Judsonia really is a gorgeous listen, as Cash takes Americana to the world’s darkest corners, twisting and weaving the genre in bold new ways. It’s a journey that doesn’t disappoint."
- Sun 13 sun-13.com/2023/02/21/weirdo-rippers-4/
"Look, really, this is Americana, it says so there on the Bandcamp page. I know it’s built on drones and feels so creepy you keep glancing over your shoulder but it’s definitely Americana. It’s split into three tracks and at about half way through the second twenty seven minutes long piece you realise that the drone has dropped away and you are listening to something else possibly a guitar but possibly the sound of the lights going out, everywhere. It then switches slowly and incredibly subtly to a beautiful rising and falling and a conversation over the top, it is both peaceful and calm. But then… you knew I was going to say that didn’t you, well, it’s back to tiny unsettling noises over a light static drone with hidden sounds that emerge as a violin, then guitar and a distorted chorus of voices that slide over you soothing the pain and hurt. The last track is delicate and cold. melting slowly away into the mist.
Austin Cash: Guitars, keys, harmonica, glockenspiel, programming, field recordings
Zachary Orten: Keys, programming
Conner Breen: Bayan, concertina, field recordings
Nathan Riggs: Found sounds, noises
Executive producer: Nathan Riggs
Mastering: Jason Tedford
Composed and mixed by Austin Cash in September-December 2021. Recorded in Fayetteville, AR, Benton, AR, Chapel Hill, NC, and Chicago, IL.
Design/layout: Nathan Riggs
Special thanks to Loren, Miss Gertrude, Chance Cash, Laura Dern, Anita Davis, Geneva Joy, Courtney Werner, Chaz Knapp, Nathan Smerag
Inspired by a battle that took place in contested land in Beirut, Mayssa Jallad creates beautifully haunted folk songs. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 5, 2023
