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Led by a modern-day Linda Ronstadt, Granville Automatic writes songs the Associated Press calls “haunting tales of sorrow and perseverance.” Horses, history, and war are just some of the topics songwriters Vanessa Olivarez and Elizabeth Elkins prefer – all fitting subjects for a band named after a 19th-century typewriter. With sonic references such as Lyle Lovett, Gram Parsons, Emmylou Harris and Willie Nelson, Granville Automatic has created a quiet and lyrical sound devoted to telling stories from the past. After writing together first in the spring of 2009, the pair has more than 100 songs. They have three albums: Live from Sun Studio, Granville Automatic, and the summer 2015 release, An Army Without Music.
An Army Without Music: Civil War Stories from Hallowed Ground is a collection of songs inspired by American Civil War stories from lands that have been lost or threatened by urban development or industry. From the haunting “Goodnight House” (about Dr. James Polk who tried to save wounded soldiers after the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky) to “Mollie Glass” (about a little girl who loses her favorite horse to the army) and on to “Salem Church” (inspired by Elizabeth’s ancestor who deserted on the first day of Gettysburg to walk home to his wife in North Carolina) and “Grancer Harrison” (about one of the most famous ghosts in Alabama) – the record is a throwback to the warm, analog sounds of ’70s country. Produced by Gary Maurer of the band Hem, the nine-song album was recorded at Saltlands Studio in Brooklyn. The band also traveled to the site of each song’s story, recording an acoustic version and video, which will be available online. The album was written when the duo was chosen as the Composers in Residence at Seaside, Florida’s prestigious Escape to Create program.
The girls are now writing their fourth album, Dancing at El Mercado, a collection of songs inspired by Texas and Vanessa’s childhood in the Lone Star State.
Granville Automatic is now playing on TMN Radio.