Appalachia Moderna deal with some serious unfinished business in their new single and lyric video — premiering exclusively on Tinnitist.
Fusing hauntingly angelic vocals, earthy traditional melodies and edgy atmospheric slide guitar, the fittingly named duo’s seventh single was written as the title song for an independent series of the same name. Simultaneously stark and lush, nostalgic and and innovative, the ominously powerful track — imagine Bobbie Gentry in the 21st century and you’re on the right track — is available now on all streaming services via Symphonic Distribution.
Appalachia Moderna are the unlikely duo of Jaida James and Jeff Scornavacca. They don’t share the same sonic roots — Jaida earned her chops at home, growing up in a family constantly creating or listening to music, while Jeff studied audio engineering at Berklee and spent years touring as an audio engineer and a production manager. Their favourite-artist lists don’t share much crossover, and their past songwriting credits navigate different genres. But their differences make for a perfect storm: Clear vocals over vibrant chords, presenting melodies rooted in folk and adorned in edgy production. Between the duo, tendrils of their appreciation of folk, rock, soul, jazz, Americana, and country can be found in their sound. “We differ on a lot of things,” Jaida says, “but I think where we come together is where we made those things overlap.”
The result is a unique offering that feels both traditional and edgy. Folk sensibilities are the solid mahogany in their songs, while the edge of the guitar and the rhythmic, modern production place the folk in new context. The contrast brings out the emotion in each of the songs, which feel custom built to soundtrack the important moments in one’s life. Jaida and Jeff chose Appalachia Moderna as the perfect representation of their distinctive sound: The melodies would have felt at home a century ago, but the production is much more modern. It’s a unique combination of words that reflect their unique combination of music.
The coming together of Appalachia Moderna is a creative bright spot in a year full of pandemic stress and unexpected turns. As everyone turned to digital co-writes in the spring, Jaida and Jeff first met and connected to write on Zoom. That first writing session went so well that the song went on to become their first release Time To Fly. Even before its official release, industry insiders began to buzz about Appalachia Moderna’s music. “It’s just amazing that the first thing that we wrote together ended up being something that became our first release because other people loved it too,” Jeff says.
Watch Unfinished Business above, hear more from Appalachia Moderna below, and find them at their website, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Bandcamp.
