Hearty road warriors The Good Graces — a shifting collective lead by Kim Ware — reconcile their past, present, and future on their upcoming album Ready, out Sept. 16 on Fort Lowell Records. The band's new song, "Palisade Peaches," channels grief and nostalgia into a smooth, '90s college radio-style track.
Ware comes by the sound honestly. After making music with the high-caliber talent in the Atlanta indie rock scene for 16 years, decamped to her home state of North Carolina just as the pandemic hit.
Ware chugged through it all, launching the Kimono My House livestream concert series on Facebook with her friend Andy Gish. The series launched a still-active community that spreads across the globe, with almost 8,000 active members. The series made the jump from the virtual world to reality in March 2022 with a four-day festival in Atlanta that featured 60 musicians.
For Ready, Ware turned to producer Jerry Kee (Superchunk), a natural fit for her brand of jangle rock: catchy and crafted with discipline. "Palisade Peach" is no exception.
"I’ve been fortunate to attend Song School in Lyons, Colorado, a few times over the past several years," explains Ware. "When I went in 2019, two months after my dad had passed away, on the last day, I was in a workshop with Cara Luft. We started just sharing stuff, going around the circle, talking about what we had learned that week. The man beside me wanted to share a song he had just finished."
This songwriter's idea sparked Ware's own creativity — and memories.
"The refrain was, 'My baby's eating peaches, and she's growing up too fast,'" Ware explains. "I couldn't believe it because, while my dad was not at all musical (never even listened to the radio), I thought, if my dad were to write a song, this would be it. He was a peach farmer, and I grew up around peaches. So I shared that with the group, and the man sitting directly across from me looked at me, eyes wide, and said, 'Have you ever had a Palisade peach? They get ripe on both sides!' I was like, I'm writing that s--- down!"
According to Ware, the Palisade peach is worth the hype. One of her friends, Barry, ran out and got one for her.
"It was AMAZING. I so wished my Dad could taste it," Ware says. "I thought I knew a lot about peaches. And when I first went to Song School, I thought I knew a lot about songs. No matter what we might think we’re an 'expert' in, there’s still plenty to learn and experience."
Music fans have a few chances to see Kim Ware live before the end of 2022 rolls around. Currently, Ware has performances scheduled in North Carolina and South Carolina through the coming weeks.
You can find a full list of concert dates and ticketing information at Kim Ware and the Good Graces' official website.
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| Kim Ware; photo by John McNicholas |
