Twin Forks
Some may look at TWIN FORKS as a supergroup of sorts with members of Dashboard Confessional, The Narrative, and Bad Books part of the band, but for frontman CHRIS CARRABBA, it’s not about where they’re from but what their music does.
“Whatever makes the audience stomp their feet and sing at the top of their lungs, that’s what I want to be doing,” he says. That description perfectly describes Twin Forks much-anticipated self-titled debut.
Returning to the great roots songwriting tradition, TWIN FORKS – released March 17th here in the U.K.- is an album that is as well-suited to anthemic stadium concerts as it is to intimate campfires. The album is replete with sticky melodies and soaring boy/girl harmonies courtesy of Carrabba (vocals/guitars, Dashboard Confessional) and Suzie Zeldin (vocal/mandolin, The Narrative). Kicking off with the rhythmic bass drum beat of “Can’t Be Broken”, the album brims with visceral and celebratory energy that permeates throughout. The rousing hoedown of the singles “Cross My Mind” and “Back To You” a lovesong singalong that begs for knee-slappin’ hootin’ and hollerin’. The optimistic balladry of “Plans” twangs and bends in all the right places, reaching an emotion high with its soaring chorus.
“When I started playing acoustic-based music, I wasn’t trying to avoid traditional folk because I didn’t love it — I just loved it so much and didn’t wanna do an injustice to it,” Carrabba notes. “And I had other influences and I thought, why can’t I combine this punk and hardcore feeling with this classic folk feeling -because they were both such massive loves of mine. But right now I’m more excited about utilizing the age-old, time-tested thing and trying to excel within the parameters of a traditional template.”
Pulling together friends from other bands – Zeldin from The Narrative, Ben Homola from Bad Books on drums and old friend Jonathan Clark on bass, Carrabba crafted a sound that balances their punk and alt-rock backgrounds with music of a more traditional flair. They showcased at last year’s SxSW, performed a set at Montreal’s massive Osheaga Festival, and played national tours with Ivan & Alyosha and The Lone Bellow.
