Recorded on 21 August 2023 at the KEXP radio studios in Seattle, USA, this live session presents Gregory Alan Isakov shortly after the release of his album Appaloosa Bones. Born in South Africa and based in Colorado, where he divides his time between songwriting and market farming, Isakov has become a quiet but influential figure in American indie folk. For KEXP he delivers a full performance of four songs — “The Fall,” “Before the Sun,” “Miles to Go” and “Watchman” — carried by restrained arrangements that foreground his hushed voice and vivid writing, threaded with landscapes, trains and night skies. True to KEXP’s spare aesthetic, the footage favors closeness and instrumental detail over spectacle. This live recording documents Isakov in 2023, at a point when his audience had grown considerably while remaining drawn to the intimacy of his shows. For listeners new to his work or following his path, the session is a representative glimpse of his art of understatement and of KEXP’s continuing role in presenting contemporary folk to a wide audience.
Setlist
- The Fall
- Before the Sun
- Miles to Go
- Watchman
Personnel & credits
- Gregory Alan Isakov — vocals, guitar, banjo
- Max Barcelow — harmonium, backing vocals
- John Paul Grigsby — bass, sub bass, backing vocals
- Steve Varney — piano, backing vocals
- Jeb Bows — violin, backing vocals
- Danny Black — guitar, keyboards, lap steel, backing vocals
- Kevin Suggs — sound engineer, mixing
- Matt Ogaz — mastering
- Carlos Cruz — editing
- John Richards — host
