Blake Brown & The American Dust Choir
After years of collaborating in bands, Blake Brown shifted his focus to his own project: Blake Brown & The American Dust Choir. The intention was to create a project with full flexibility where he could play solo, duo (with his wife and mainstay member Tiffany), and with a rotating cast of musician friends. Rooted in acoustic sounds and characterized by seemingly simple, but nuanced melodies and heartfelt lyrics, Brown ignites a sense of bold honesty across a catalog of sincere songs spanning the genres of Singer-Songwriter, Folk, Rock n’ Roll, Indie, and Americana. Throughout many years of establishing himself in the Colorado music scene, the American Dust Choir has included members of The Fray, The Films, American Football, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, and Tennis. Marked by a captivating subtleness, Brown’s music and stage presence draws in his audience and leaves them wanting more.
March of 2018 found the band releasing its debut full-length album, Long Way Home; a ten-song collection of well-crafted, Indie-Americana works produced by Joe Richmond (Churchill, American Authors, Bon Iver). Upon the release of the album, the band performed multiple official showcases at SXSW in Austin, TX, including Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater supporting Keith Urban. Following SXSW, Brown went on the road supporting Justin Townes Earle as an acoustic duo. Arriving home from tour, the band continued to perform regional festivals in the Rocky Mountains and performed with such acts as Rayland Baxter, The Band of Heathens, ZZ Ward, and Son Volt. Brown also appeared at Moeller Nights GAS Feed & Seed Festival IV in Davenport, Iowa alongside Early James and Ruston Kelly. Songs “Fever Dreams” and “Between the Lines” were licensed to MTV while “Kissing Knives” was featured in The CW hit series, In The Dark.
On the heels of Long Way Home’s success and maintaining their momentum, Blake and band returned to the studio to record Turning Tides again with Producer/Engineer Joe Richmond. The band continued to add to its repertoire, this time approaching a less straightforward Americana sound, and striving for a more minimalistic and spatial sound with high sonic production influenced by Brown’s love for Daniel Lanois, U2, and The Cure. Turning Tides was released in Fall of 2019. Upon its release, the band continued to play locally and regionally, all while picking up steam nationwide and performing in high reputable venues such as Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles, Rockwood Music Hall in New York City, and SPACE in Chicagoland.
Just as all pistons were firing, years of hard work came to a screeching halt when the COVID-19 pandemic was announced. It was due to this new found era of unlimited time that Brown found himself in a state of self-reflection and reassessment. During this uncertain time, he found a sense of comfort and familiarity in picking up his guitar and returning to songwriting basics.
With a new view on the preciousness of life, Blake, Tiffany, and their two-year-old daughter left Colorado and relocated to Nashville, Tennessee. Shortly after settling into Nashville, and with a new batch of songs, Blake and Tiffany hit Cartoon Moon Recording Studio with Producer Ken Coomer (Uncle Tupelo/Wilco) in East Nashville. On production duty and drums, Coomer brought a lively perspective to the songs. With Blake on guitars/vocals, Tiffany on keys/piano/vocals, Sam Wilson on guitars and Scotty Huff on bass, the result is a new 5 song EP titled, Don’t Look Back.
Don’t Look Back will be released via all digital platforms on September 30, 2022.
Brown is now based in Austin, Texas