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Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Aubrey Eisenman has a lot going on these days.

Eisenman will soon be giving birth to her second child (Pearl is 2-and-a-half). And if that weren’t enough, she and her band, which includes her husband Justin Eisenman, will also be bringing something else new into the world – a brand new record.

Aubrey Eisenman & The Clydes will celebrate the pre-release of their new album, titled Bowerbird, Friday at Ambrose West. (Get tickets here.)

It will be the first album for the band after signing up with a new record label, Travianna Records, last fall. The label is relatively new and has a focus on getting bands played on satellite radio, says Aubrey Eisenman. That’s great, because with a baby on the way and the need to write some new songs, Eisenman says she won’t be up for much touring.

“I really like writing and playing shows. We’ve also done a lot of that grind and at a certain point, you have to see what works for your type of music,” she says.

Eisenman has been finding her way with the band since moving to Asheville about four years ago. The Clydes (named after a horse Eisenman had growing up in Vermont) have played out as a duo and a three-piece. Today, Aubrey Eisenman & The Clydes include the Eisenmans, with Aurbrey on bass and Justin on guitar, fiddle-player John Duncan and James Kylen on drums.

“About a year ago, we added drums. I wanted to get out of the bluegrass box and more into the Americana thing – whatever that is – and write more for drums,” says Eisenman, who adds that she grew up with a real appetite for punk rock.

Black Flag, Misfits and other punk rock were regular listens, says the thirty-something. In fact, that rebellious youth led Eisenman to join the U.S. Marine Corps, she offers. The structure and discipline were much needed. Part of her work involved traveling planning for President George W. Bush and his administration. She served eight years with the Corps.

All that experience and more feeds the songwriter in Eisenman, who says she’s constantly pushing to be “more edgy, more punky and tell stories that aren’t just mine.” Eisenman says she dealt with her brother’s tragic addiction to heroin through writing.

“I’m looking for that front-to-back story instead of that ‘you broke my heart’ story, which is fine. But I think having that one thing in a song that makes somebody say ‘Oh, she knows that’ is what I’m looking for – really putting thought into someone’s real story, whether it’s me or not.”

Eisenman, who says she gets her love of music from her father, a songwriter and studio engineer, says she can’t wait to kick off the new year with Friday’s show at cozy Ambrose West.

“This is really our debut with our more out-of-the-box stuff. It’s a shorter show, and we’ll have our drummer, so we’ll showcase our newer sound,” she says. “I’m excited about it and I hope people like it.”

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Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

  • 1

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