TENNESSEE – On her haunting new album “A Little Fog,” indie-folk musician Cartinglee is making peace with her ghosts.
Cartinglee began writing “A Little Fog” in her living room the day that Covid lockdowns began in March 2020, drawing inspiration from her magical setting in the Tennessee Valley. She says her songwriting was a way to deal with the escalating anxieties of the global pandemic and other looming threats like climate change.
“I live on a ridge on the edge of the Smoky Mountains, with mountains on either side of me. Up here in the fog, sometimes I feel like it’s a haunted forest. Haunted in a comforting way,” Cartinglee explains. “There’s something really spiritual in this place. A lot of that bled through in this music.”
That music is an eclectic mix of sounds that Cartinglee says is drawn from Appalachian folk music and Southern soul driven by rhythmic piano and her soaring vocals. Influences from indie-rock and jazz add spice without overwhelming her delicate and ethereal soundscape. All the songs are grounded in the real places where she finds comfort like Lauderback Ridge, Laurel Snow state natural area, and Cloudland Canyon.
Cartinglee’s otherworldly music reflects the calming and healing nature of the mountains and forests where she lives and raises her family. It’s an emotional release that we all need in these often-dark times.
“The roots of this project dig into the idea that there’s a connection between our personal traumas and those of the natural world - that we both grow and are torn down together,” Cartinglee says. “We’re all bracing for this intense thing and we don’t know what it’s going to look like. I want people to feel some sense that even through this anxiety and dread, life will find a way, and the woods and the mountains will heal us.”
Cartinglee says the songwriting process on this sophomore album was more deliberate than on her 2020 debut “I Need You, I Don’t Need You,” or in her previous work with acts like Dream Jurnal, Empty Dress, No Thank You John, and Michael De Backer. She and her songwriting partners challenged each other to maintain a consistent songwriting practice.
“It was like building a discipline. Settling into songwriting and making it a habit, to have a little bit more agency in the process of songwriting, so you’re not just leaning on inspiration,” she says. “It’s almost similar to the way I approach my yoga mat, and what happens, happens.”
That discipline naturally led to the growth that’s evident in the lush and evocative sounds on “A Little Fog.”
Cartinglee has a busy summer ahead. She’ll be touring around the South, with shows already planned in Atlanta, Chattanooga, Knoxville, and Ashville.
“I’ve really missed playing live, and I’m so glad to be back,” she says.
She also plans to do a month of daily songwriting challenges that she’ll be sharing to her social media platforms. And in the fall, she’ll be releasing her first vinyl collection.
Keep track of all the latest news from Cartinglee by following her on Instagram and Facebook. Check out all her latest music on Spotify and Bandcamp.