New York, NY (Top40 Charts) JESSI WILLIAMS & COYOTE (pronounced Kye-Oat)--the Los Angeles-based Americana group led by singer, songwriter and musician Jessi Williams--teamed with The Bluegrass Situation to unveil "Bloodhound." It's the uptempo sophomore single from their self-titled five-song EP due August 24.Click here to listen to "Bloodhound" out this Friday (7/6) on all digital platforms.
"This song was born from a few obsessions of mine: ghosts, shape-shifters and the animal/spiritual duality of human beings," Williams told The Bluegrass Situation. 'Bloodhound' is about a man who believes a woman stole his soul and left him empty when she left him. He goes out, as part man, part bloodhound to find her and get it back. In reality, she took nothing, but left a part of her with him to haunt him forever. Your typical break up stuff!"
Last month (6/1), JESSI WILLIAMS & COYOTE released "Roam,
Little Gypsy, Roam," the EP's lead single--penned by Williams for her fellow country songstress, and friend, Margo Price--that's set to a lulling piano and twangy guitar (listen via Spotify here). Cowboys & Indians premiered the track and raved, "'Roam,
Little Gypsy, Roam,' showcases distinctive vocals, free-spirited writing, and the band's musical expanse...Driven by moody guitar and dwindling piano, 'Roam,
Little Gypsy, Roam' delivers an almost hypnotic sound." (May 31, 2018) Buzzband.LA's
Kevin Bronson backed those sentiments saying, "'Roam,
Little Gypsy, Roam' is a lovely, lilting waltz..." (June 5, 2018)
Born and raised surrounded by cornfields in southern Indiana,COYOTE's songwriter and rhythm guitarist, Jessi Williams, is no stranger to country and bluegrass music. At 14, Williams hid in her bedroom studying the
Neil Young guitar songbook, while her parents hosted regular "pickin' parties" in her old farmhouse kitchen. While, at the time, her interest in the bluegrass genre may have taken a backseat to her love of '60s & '70s rock and Motown, it's has always been a prominent style in her songwriting.
In 2008 Jessi moved to Los Angeles with her two-year-old daughter while her now-ex, husband was fighting in the Iraq war. As an outlet for her frustrations as a military wife and single mom, Jessi flooded her notebooks with stories of personal woe and folkloric interpretations of the world. Guitar in hand, she took to the stages of dive bars and coffee shops where she met Chris Sousa(bass),
Robin Harris (guitar), former member Adrian Prohaska (mandolin), and Conan Skyrme (drums). Through their mutual adoration of folk music, thefive-piece folk rock band known as "Coyote" (pronounced Kye-Oat) was born. Eventually, Coyote found themselves in the live room of the historic East West Studios--home of The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds. There, they laid down eight tracks and prepared for their first release. However, around the same time, Jessi was touring with spaghetti-western-influenced folk rock band, The Lonely Wild. Balancing a demanding tour schedule, a day job, motherhood, spread her too thin and she was forced to put Coyote on a hiatus.
All the while the songs still came....
Now reemerging in 2018 as Jessi Williams and Coyote, the group, with The Lonely Wild member Ryan Ross joining, have new songs in the works and are blowing the dust off of tunes that, like a bottle of wine--and all good old country songs--have ripened beautifully with age.
