Spotlight On… The Blues and Greys
Lindsey Waldon’s New Band is Coming to a Small Screen Near You
You know what they say about the best laid plans, and so does Lindsey Waldon. The NorCal native — and longtime Santa Barbara songbird — had invested no shortage of time into her solo project, Little Indian, when she decided to move back home to Murietta late last year. “I was lost,” she recalled. “I was playing the same venues over and over, and playing with great people, but I wasn’t going anywhere.” Not long after moving home, though, Waldon got the phone call most young songwriters dream of. In her final months in S.B., she had met up with songwriters Thom Flowers (Bad Astronaut) and Jonathan Miller (The Little Heroes) to record vocals on some tracks in their Goleta studio. A few months later, the trio’s songs had made their way into the hands of some publishing houses. Not long after, MTV and Subaru came calling, and Waldon was packing her bags and heading back down south.
“We kind of did things backwards,” she explained. “I was brought in by Tom and John as the talent, but I ended up contributing to a lot of the songs, and that first session kicked off a special little friendship and partnership between the three of us.”
Since then, The Blues and Greys have recruited drummer Austin Beede, bassist Michael Million, and keyboard player Zachary Wallace for the live band, and recorded a debut EP, Bright Lights, which drops next week. Anchored by Waldon’s rich, warm vocals and anthemic lyrics, the EP thoughtfully melds vibrant pop-rock arrangements with something a little darker and dustier. Take “Lost Lines,” a somber, jazz-inspired ballad that immediately calls to mind indie powerhouses like Sharon Van Etten and White Hinterland, or “New Shores,” a galloping, folk-inspired number that incorporates hand claps, reverberating floor toms, and meticulously layered harmonies that beg to be cranked from the car speakers. It’s a bold new step and a much bigger sound for Waldon, who up until now has been happy to go it alone.
“I’ve never fronted a band before,” she said, “but the dynamic is so amazing between the three of us. It’s really exciting, but it’s also really scary and nerve-wracking. Truthfully, I’m scared shitless.”
Listen online at thebluesandgreys.virb.com.
