About Chris
Chris McGinnis writes songs that exist somewhere in between a hiccup and a heartache. His last EP, 2019’s Songs For You, touches on the absurdity of your hometown morphing beyond recognition. It tells a story of two Baby Boomers drifting together from across the US into the Golden Gate City, then drifting apart, and then together again. It is about connection and disconnection alike. With his debut full-length album, Mamaw’s Angel, Chris veers deeper into these familiar themes.
“I think this album is largely about manic loneliness. These songs are ultimately about people who are afraid of losing their relationships. They refuse to accept that they may have already lost these relationships, and they refuse to accept that they are to blame.”
The manic aspect of the “manic loneliness” manifests itself in the album’s refusal to rest in one genre. “What If We Went to the Moon?” is what Chris describes as “a cosmic country song with a countrypolitan foundation.” Heartland rocker “Home Away From Home” has all the stomp and 12-string firepower to park a Wilbury. Other tracks like “Mailman’s Son” and “Old Chestnut” teeter between lo-fi indie folk and roots freak out. Tying all of these styles together are the lyrics and the characters at the center of them.
Overbearing grandparents and stubborn grandchildren, washed-up fraternity brothers yearning for the New Year’s Eve parties of yesteryear, a missing Winnebago, a tree that just won’t quit, and other wild personalities run throughout the ten tracks found on Mamaw’s Angel. More than just a few are inspired by people and stories Chris had met and heard back towards his home in Western NC’s Linville Gorge Wilderness area. Mamaw’s Angel is a collection of sensationally-delivered tales about characters struggling on the sidelines of their own realities.
“The characters in these songs are all incredibly flawed. I wanted to write songs that expressed truly ugly emotions. Loneliness, anger, denial, regret. The characters are all being eaten away by these feelings, and it motivates their words and actions. But I also think that that is how some of the absurdity is palatable.”
Mamaw’s Angel was recorded at Clubmen Studio in Blairesville, GA, and produced by Atlanta-based artist Jacob Davis Martin. Among the musicians heard throughout the album are Asheville, NC’s Carly Taich, members of Asheville’s Jack Marion & the Pearl Snap Prophets, Atlanta-based strings trio Me Me Me, and Will Easter of Boone, NC.
Press
Singer-songwriter Chris McGinnis lives the “Boonerang Life” while headlining Boone Saloon
Review: "Songs For You" EP by Chris McGinnis
Interview: Boone, NC Country-Rock Songwriter Chris McGinnis Talks About His EP "Songs For You"
Song Premiere: Chris McGinnis “What If We Went To The Moon”
Obscure Sound - Chris McGinnis – “What If We Went to the Moon?”
Contact
chrismcginnismusic@gmail.com
(828) 448-4229
Photos
Promo shot by Seth Grant Media
Mamaw’s Angel album cover by Mark Rockwood
Live at the Pour House by Olivia Williams
Top Tracks!
Videos
“Mailman’s Son” Official Music Video
Live performance of the track "Music" from Songs For You.
with Jacob Davis Martin.
A live performance of “You Can’t Hide in a Small Town.”
Ticket Sales & Notable Appearances as a Headlining Act
Carolina Indie Fest, Sanford, NC - 5/10/24 - approx. 12,000 attendees
One World Brewing West, Asheville, NC w/ Patrick French - 5/9/24 - 19 tickets
Green Lantern, Lexington, KY w/ Melanie A. Davis, Basil Jane - 3/24/24 - 25 tickets
Cherry Street Tavern, Chattanooga, TN w/ Nick Shanahan - 3/9/24 - 20 tickets at the door
Burger Bar, Asheville, NC w/ Boat Command, Nick Shanahan - 3/8/24 - (donation-based, approx. 40 in attendance)
The Gas Hill Drinking Room, Winston-Salem, NC w/ the Pearl Snap Prophets (co-headlining) - 10/26/23 - 16 tickets
Live at Ted’s, Wilmington, NC - Writer’s in the Round w/ Sam Foster, Nick Shanahan - 9/9/23 - 34 tickets
The Grey Eagle, Asheville, NC - w/ Boat Command - 8/27/23 - 26 tickets
Boone Saloon, Boone, NC w/ Will Easter (co-headlining) - 8/26/23 - 592 tickets
The Flat Iron, Greensboro, NC w/ Will Easter (co-headlining) - 8/25/23 - 30 tickets
The Blue Plate Special, Knoxville, TN - 8/24/23
Red Barn Radio, Lexington, KY - 8/23/23
The 5 Spot, Nashville, TN w/ Earleine, Meredith Lane - 8/22/23 - 20 tickets
Smith’s Olde Bar, Atlanta, GA w/ the Pearl Snap Prophets, Jacob Davis Martin (co-headlining) - 6/23/23 - 15 tickets
The Pour House, Raleigh, NC w/ the Pearl Snap Prophets - 6/19/23 - 12 tickets
The Purple Fiddle, Thomas, WV w/ the Pearl Snap Prophets (co-headlining) - 6/1/23 - 17 tickets
The Gas Hill Drinking Room, Winston-Salem, NC w/ the Pearl Snap Prophets (co-headlining) - 5/31/23 - 24 tickets
Boone Saloon, Boone, NC w/ The Pearl Snap Prophets - 11/5/22 - 189 tickets
North Carolina State Fair, Raleigh, NC - 10/16/22 - approx. 2,000 guests
The Evening Muse, Charlotte, NC w/ Todd Johnson - 7/30/22 - 25 tickets
The Flat Iron, Greensboro, NC w/ Sam Foster - 7/29/22 - 30 tickets
The Pour House, Raleigh, NC w/ The Pearl Snap Prophets, Jon Ward Beyle - 7/28/22 - 40 tickets
The Grey Eagle patio show, Asheville, NC w/ Jacob Davis Martin - 7/23/22 - 26 tickets
Boone Saloon, Boone, NC w/ The Pearl Snap Prophets - 4/23/2022 - 129 tickets
The Grey Eagle patio show, Asheville, NC w/ Jacob Davis Martin - 7/17/2021 - 34 tickets
The Grey Eagle patio show, Asheville, NC - 10/17/2020 - SOLD OUT - 56 tickets
Boone Saloon, Boone, NC w/ The Pearl Snap Prophets - 2/15/2020 - 66 tickets
The Pour House, Raleigh, NC w/ The Pearl Snap Prophets and Whiskey Foxtrot - 8/8/2019 - 60 tickets
Ticket Sales as a Supporting Act
The Pour House, Raleigh, NC w/ Chris Kasper - 5/22/24 - 19 tickets
Boone Saloon, Boone, NC w/ Sam Burchfield and the Scoundrels - 4/7/24 - 35 tickets
The Grey Eagle, Asheville, NC w/ William Elliott Whitmore - 2/18/24 - 134 tickets
Smith’s Olde Bar, Atlanta, GA w/ Garrett Wheeler - 10/28/23 - 10 tickets
The Evening Muse, Charlotte, NC w/ Colby Acuff - 2/17/23 - 95 tickets
Boone Saloon, Boone, NC w/ Kind Hearted Strangers - 2/11/23 - 339 tickets
Cat’s Cradle Back Room, Carrboro, NC w/ Colby Acuff - 2/4/23 - 83 tickets
The Flat Iron, Greensboro, NC w/ Sam Burchfield - 1/14/23 - 66 tickets
Eddie’s Attic, Decatur, GA w/ Jacob Davis Martin - 10/22/22 - 60 tickets
Eddie’s Attic, Decatur, GA w/ Jacob Davis Martin - 10/22/21 - 100 tickets
Petra’s, Charlotte, NC w/ Lua Flora, Elonzo Wesley - 10/9/21 - 35 tickets
The Pour House, Raleigh, NC w/ Kevin Daniel - 8/19/21 - 30 tickets
Cat’s Cradle Back Room, Carrboro, NC w/ The Vegabonds - 10/4/2019 - SOLD OUT - 200 tickets