ladycouch: A Matter of time

Words by Raf Kenny-Cincotta

“As our town changes, we’re all changing with it,” Keshia Bailey says, contemplating the release of LadyCouch’s sophomore LP A Matter of Time.

Of course, the town she’s referring to is Nashville, where Bailey and Allen Thompson first formed LadyCouch in 2017 at the famed Exit/In. However, the group didn’t stay a duo for long. Now a 12-part ensemble, LadyCouch has spent the better part of the last decade refining a rock-and-soul sound all their own. Their debut album The Future Looks Fine was released in 2021.

So what is different about LadyCouch in 2024, and how does A Matter of Time fit into their story? “There’s the obvious: We’re getting older,” Keshia quips. The band has also reached a new level of cohesion and collaboration, with Allen and Keshia happily sharing songwriting duties. “We knew we’d all be making music together for a very long time, but it’s pretty damn impressive that we are all still growing together,” Keshia adds.

In addition to Keshia on vocals/percussion and Allen on vocals/guitar, LadyCouch encompasses guitarists Grayson Downs and Clint Maine, as well as Ray Durham (drums), Gordon Persha (bass), Jake Blumberg (keys), Mary Hull (keys), and the LadyCouch Horns: Ben Classon, Seth Fox, Paul Thacker, and Diego Vasquez.

A Matter of Time was recorded over 10 days at Southern Ground Studios in Nashville, where the group performed live as much as possible, completed eight tracks, and even planted the seeds for future releases.

“Everyone is bringing in their own tunes now, getting together, and making them LadyCouch songs,” Allen explains. He points to jazzy call and response number “Alpaca Suitcase” as one of the band’s most collaborative ever, spanning five writers, several iterations, and quite a few in-the-moment improvisations.

In the music world, that level of teamwork is almost unheard of. Getting 12 people to agree on a restaurant, let alone an album, is an accomplishment worth celebrating.

“You have no idea!” Keshia laughs.

“But when it works, it works great,” Allen adds. “When it doesn’t, it’s a case study in behavioral therapy.”

Ironically, A Matter of Time certainly offers its own dose of musical therapy. The album’s first four tracks were designed as “a real vinyl experience,” best consumed as a single movement. Instrumental opener “Hulumaja” segues smoothly into the brassy bar-room rock of “Dirt to Dust,” to the offbeat, reggae rhythms of “Breathe Better,” and finally into the electrified triumph of “Seasick,” where the band celebrates being “closer to the shore than we realize.”

Mike Harris and Cory Younts of Old Crow Medicine Show added guitar and mandolin to the southern-fried “Limbo,” a tune Keshia wrote late one night in the sprinter van, as the lights of Atlantic City faded behind her (the band had just performed a raucous Phish after-party).

And, as a true testament to what Keshia calls the “LadyCouch community,” Willow Maine and Aurora Maine (the young daughters of guitarist Clint Maine) make their studio debut as the backing vocalists on “Dirt to Dust.” Allen surmises that listening to the kids’ isolated vocals may be one of the best musical experiences of his life: “They were like tiny Christine McVie and Stevie Nicks.”

Yet, despite all of this collaboration, LadyCouch’s true lightning-in-a-bottle has always been the vocal interplay of Allen and Keshia. His voice: a crisp authentic belt, with a healthy dash of Appalachian growl. Hers: a force of nature, counterbalancing smoky croons with barn-burning resonance. (It’s also worth noting that Keshia is a direct descendent of jazz icon Bessie Smith.)

And while there’s no proper duet on A Matter of Time, which some may expect given the duo’s first-ever song “Foolish and Blue,” Allen and Keshia’s synchronicity is apparent all over the LP, even on the dreamy, rollicking album closer “Dreams of a Working Man,” where the narrator throws caution into the wind, following quixotic dreams.

Ending the album with that courageous sentiment showcases the joy, community, and deep friendship of LadyCouch, a team of musical allies, spawned from a pair of Nashville veterans.

“There’s so many variables and so much uncertainty, but the one thing that's constant is Keshia and I’s ability to sing together,” Allen grins. “I’m lucky enough to have a job where I get to write and sing with my very best friend.”