It's in rural southwestern Ohio where ‘The Heartlanders’ make up their own kind of folk tunes. Uplifting and thoughtful, they call their music 'panoramic’ because of its big-sky vocal melodies and wide range of instrumentation. Although they employ the sounds of everything from pianos and cellos to pipe organs and banjos, the staple behind their sound is a folk guitar and a moving lyric. With a subtle throwback to Johnny Cash or John Prine -- their music often has a sincere narrative and
It's in rural southwestern Ohio where ‘The Heartlanders’ make up their own kind of folk tunes. Uplifting and thoughtful, they call their music 'panoramic’ because of its big-sky vocal melodies and wide range of instrumentation. Although they employ the sounds of everything from pianos and cellos to pipe organs and banjos, the staple behind their sound is a folk guitar and a moving lyric. With a subtle throwback to Johnny Cash or John Prine -- their music often has a sincere narrative and a heartfelt delivery. They twist that all up into an eclectic array of Americana songs with classic hooks and foot-stomping energy.
At the core, ‘The Heartlanders’ are two fellas - Chris Sutton & Christman Hersha. Both long-time song-smiths and singers, they’ve had their share of dusty road tours & musical experiences. Sutton, living in rural Washington, performed his brand of ballads from the Cascades all the way down to Mexico where he set up musical residency. Hersha, starting out in the foothills of Appalachia made his way to the southern town of Austin, Texas. There, he toured and performed nationally with an established indie rock outfit called ‘The Story Of’. It wasn’t until 2009 when the two returned to the heartland and met on a kind fall day in southwest Ohio. Not long after, they discovered a kindred spirit and shared love for tall-tales and musical storytelling.
