Carving a place in the modern Americana scene, Washington DC-based Kentucky Avenue features at its core the rich and rootsy blend of Stella Schindler’s powerfully poetic vocals and the melodic guitar musings of Dave Ries. When their voices come together, the timeless, razor-sharp harmonies provide a poignant backdrop to their lyrics that evoke the idea behind Leonard Cohen’s famous line “there’s a crack in everything–that’s how the light gets in.”

Kentucky Avenue’s second record Ballad of the Past harkens back to the classic country rock music of 1970s Laurel Canyon, infusing it with their modern Americana spirit. With a nod to Emmylou and Gram, this album presents stories of love and longing, loss and loneliness–but not without a notion that enough is enough or miracles are possible. En route to California, their songs travel through the haunted hills of the South, the misty mountains of Pennsylvania and Virginia, and a stop in Asbury Park with a Springsteen cover.