‘The Here & The Now’ on Rykodisc – January 11, 2010.
It’s rare when new artists meet the challenge of addressing universal themes in unique ways. But that’s exactly what Rykodisc duo SAM & RUBY have accomplished with the dozen songs on their debut album THE HERE AND THE NOW, released January 11, 2010. If the best music sometimes defies category, then Sam & Ruby are in a league of their own—with a unique blend of pop, folk/R&B, and a sprinkling of Americana roots mixed in.
Gifted songwriters and artists on their own terms, Sam Brooker and Ruby Amanfu came together amidst the pressure cooker that is the Nashville music community, finding creative commonality despite very different backgrounds.
Brooker was raised in Green Bay, Wisconsin, while Amanfu was born in Ghana and eventually raised in Tennessee. Those geographical influences, along with the experiences gained via living the artistic life, give the tracks on THE HERE AND THE NOW a sound that comes from everywhere and nowhere simultaneously.
Beguiling and entrancing, these ultra-talented musical soulmates envelop listeners into an emotionally charged world of flawless harmony. The Tennessean’s Dave Paulson describes the duo as “effortlessly unique.” Songs like the opener “What Do I Do Now,” with Brooker’s funky, finger-picked backbeat introducing Amanfu’s expressive vocal, sets the stage for the pair’s musical mesh. SAM & RUBY, together with co-producer Chris Farren seem unafraid to throw in whatever instrumentation the communication calls for, giving each track character-- appropriate to the moment.
“While most of the songs dabble in softer hues, the supple arrangements -- a hint of violins on “Heaven’s My Home,” a bit of brass on “Too Much” -- vary the shadings and add to the allure,” says Lee Zimmerman of Performing Songwriter magazine.
The foundations of relationships – human and otherwise – inform most of the songs on THE HERE AND THE NOW. The Grammy-nominated “Heaven’s My Home” (written by Amanfu with Katie Herzig and as previously recorded by Canadian roots outfit The Duhks) speaks to the pair’s spiritual side, but even tracks like “The Suitcase Song” can be looked at through the lens of both the literal and the metaphysical.
But the core of the album’s subject matter comes from the joys and pains of one-to-one, man-to-woman interaction. From the lifting up of love on “This I Know,” to the realization of needed separation found on “More,” to the abject statement “Ain’t Love Somethin’,” SAM & RUBY come at the idea of human contact with fresh eyes and empathetic souls.
Says Ruby, “We try not to fear honesty in our writing and tackle the things that hurt, the things that aren’t always pretty. We wanted this record to be honest and conversational.”
It’s that smooth, sexy take on the everyday that makes the music on THE HERE AND THE NOW stand out, and makes the story of SAM & RUBY one that’s begging to be told.
The album THE HERE AND THE NOW is released on Rykodisc – January 11, 2010
For more information visit www.myspace.com/samandruby