Root Cellar Xtract, an original band based out of Cincinnati, Ohio and Northern Kentucky have recently released their third album called Dusty Afternoon, which contains soulful arrangements of both country and rock music. Formed in 2016 by guitarist/songwriter and vocalist Clyde Bailey, Root Cellar Xtract’s music is often compared to that of such artists as Buffalo Springfield, Jackson Browne and The Eagles to name a few.
“Root Cellar Xtract’s music and sound is deeply rooted in the earliest origins of true California Country-Rock,” said Bailey. “Our sound harkens back to the era of the mid 60’s to early 70’s and the hills of Laurel Canyon, California, which was the birthplace of Country Rock. We are really focused on staying true to this genre, while continuing to produce new original music.”
What I love about this album is each song has its own unique backing vocals that are enjoyable to listen to. I had myself playing the songs on repeat, with a continuous smile on my face.
“Three and four-part harmonies have traditionally been a crucial part of this genre and we also leaned on this for our previous two albums,” said Bailey. “We were particularly excited about the harmonies for this album because we were fortunate to have local vocal sensation, Krystal Peterson as our harmony coach. She also jumped in herself on a few of the tracks as well. As we like to say, she sprinkled that Krystal dust with her magical talent and spirit.”
Bailey was not alone with the song writing process for the album, as his bandmate Jim Pelz, guitarist/songwriter and vocalist for the group, helped him every step of the way.
“Jim and I split the songwriting this time, as I had written all the songs on the first two albums. We were fortunate to have Jim contribute some of his amazing songs to this album. Jim is an incredibly gifted songwriter, “said Bailey.
Recorded at the beginning of 2020, it took a total of three years to release Dusty Afternoon because of COVID restrictions.
“On March 7th, 2020, we opened up for The Little River Band at Lawrenceburg Event Center,” said Bailey. At that point, we had most of this album recorded except the harmonies. Then of course, right after this show, COVID hit and shut everything down, including any progress on the album.”
Song by song, listeners can get a glimpse of a particular experience or feeling that is familiar to them, making Dusty Afternoon an album that is very meaningful to me. Dusty Afternoon will be an album that I will continue to listen to for a very long time.
“Whether it’s the lyrics, the arrangement, harmonies, smoking solos, however we get there, each song is a ride, and the album is the bus we are on. It represents what we were thinking, breathing, experiencing, feeling at that moment in time when we wrote it and when we recorded it,” said Bailey. “Music is such a unique form of communication that involves what you hear, see, think, feel. It can impact your soul. We are all creatures of vibrations. We chose to vibrate with our music. I don’t think we try to give listeners messages. I do know what we hope for and that is that in some small way we share a musically human experience with you.”
