The Civil Wars Return to Decatur in October

Darenw | June 29, 2011 | 3:00 pm

“The Civil Wars are by far the BEST live band i have EVER seen. They are magical and stunning, they make my heart hurt but make it a bit stronger at the same time too! perfect timing! please check them out, their record is beautiful.  i’ve never been so blown away. i could go on gushing forever…”

I know, I know…that sounds like a teenage girl going over the top about some new CD. Actually, it’s a twenty-three-year-old. Named Adele.

In the past year, the Civil Wars have toured with Adele, and played A Prairie Home Companion, All Thing’s Considered and The Tonight Show, where even Steven Tyler, of all people, went kinda crazy over them. If you’ve got Steven Tyler, Adele, Taylor Swift (who has been all a-twitter about them), Paste’s Josh Jackson and Garrison Keillor all gushing about you at the same time, you’ve got to be doing something right.

All this for a act barely three years old. Live at Eddie’s Attic was their first release, a 2008 live recording from down there on N. McDonough of the second show the duo of Joy Williams and John Paul White ever played under the name “The Civil Wars,”.  It’s been downloaded over 100,000 times.

These days, when people talk about the history of Decatur music, they talk about how the Indigo Girls are from here, and how John Mayer worked the door at Eddie’s Attic, and how Sugarland formed here and how Shawn Mullins broke out of here. The Civil Wars’ 2011 Album, Barton Hollow is lining up awards, selling like crazy, and next year, everyone will be talking about Decatur’s connection to them in the same breath as those others. I’ve been proud of every act that we’ve brought to Agnes Scott under the Eddie and Agnes banner, but these guys are something very special.

What do they sound like? Alison Krauss, Hem, The Cowboy Junkies, maybe even a little Nick Drake at times. But, at heart, they are a duet, and it is the shimmering interplay between Williams and White that defines them, and it is something absolutely unique.

And no, that isn’t Johnny Depp lip syncing in the video.

The Civil Wars will play Agnes Scott’s Presser Hall on October 9, tickets on sale today.

For more,

Civil Wars website

NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert

Live at Eddie’s Attic free download

KCRW review

Yes, you can download Barton Hollow from iTunes, but I’m not going to link to it. Instead, go buy a copy from Decatur CD. It’ll sound better.

P.S.–We’ve got another great act lined up for October, for Eddie and Agnes, just need to work out ticket sales. Stay tuned…

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6 Responses to “The Civil Wars Return to Decatur in October”

  1. decaturite16 says:
    June 29, 2011 at 5:18 pm

    Nice, but Over the Rhine was doing the same thing 20 years ago. Still is.

    • DarenW says:
      July 1, 2011 at 12:05 am

      Comparing Detwiler & Berquist to The Civil Wars is like comparing Hemingway to Faulkner. Yeah, they’re both American novelists of the same era, but that’s about it. Berquist sings big and bigger, while The Civil Wars are a much more subtle act, both on record and in person.

      • decaturite16 says:
        July 1, 2011 at 2:31 pm

        DarenW: When it comes to the musical artists — not the authors — I think that’s a pretty subtle distinction. They may not share exactly the same address, but they’re next-door neighbors musically and lyrically.
        That said, I think there’s plenty of room on my hard drive for both. And homegrown talent always makes me proud — whether it’s from where I live or where I grew up.

  2. Rick Julian says:
    June 29, 2011 at 7:29 pm

    #beauty

  3. Rick Julian says:
    June 30, 2011 at 7:40 pm

    must admit i’ve developed a massive crush on these two over the last 24 hours. thanks, Daren.

  4. invinciblesummer says:
    July 1, 2011 at 10:46 am

    That guy does look like Johnny Depp in The Tourist. Not his best look. Anyway, I like this! Thanks, Daren!