Having bought a VIP pass for last month’s Savannah Stopover, I was thrilled to spend part of Saturday during the festival hanging out at Dollhouse Productions on Industry Drive in West Savannah.

I heard two of the Stopover Sessions — a new effort this year to record live tracks from some of the visiting bands. I was on hand both for This Mountain and Field Report, both of which seemed to lay down amazingly tight versions of their songs with ease and professionalism.

Now the final mixes have been posted to bandcamp for those two bands plus Young Buffalo, Country Mice, HOTT MT, Fine Peduncle and mumbledust.

There’s just a single track from mumbledust, a great Savannah-based duo that I’ve written about before. Ryan McCardle and Rachael Perisho sure have some beautiful songs, including “Elvis, TN”:

Most mumbledust recordings have been pretty lo-fi and have generally had Perisho’s voice a bit more dominant than McCardle’s. So this recording is something of a departure — and beautiful.

“Elvis, TN” is only available on the compilation, which you can stream below and which can be purchased for $7:

I was especially impressed with the three-song Field Report Stopover Session, which can be purchased for just $5:

I love the feel of the studio in “Fergus Falls”.

Again, click here to stream and/or purchase all the sessions.

Here’s a shot of Field Report:

Iâ€d listened to mumbledust several times online in recent weeks and was anxious to see them live for the first time. So I stopped at Graveface Records & Curiosities on Friday evening for an in-store performance that also included Alex Killeen and The Moon and You from Asheville.

mumbledust is a duo of Rachael Perisho and Ryan McCardle. Perisho has a clear, almost languid voice thatâ€s especially interesting when sheâ€s playing the saw. On banjo and guitar, McCardleâ€s voice is firm, beautiful, and oddly quiet — at least in Fridayâ€s unplugged performance in the store.

mumbledustâ€s understated folk noir commands attention.

I’ve heard mumbledust a few times since that post last November, and my appreciation for the act has only grown (although I want to buy them the perfect mic for playing in chatty rooms).

A few tunes:

mumbledust — one of the limited number of local acts booked for the Stopover — plays on Thursday, March 7 at 10 p.m. at The Sparetime.

Click here for the full Savannah Stopover schedule. Click here for the Stopover page devoted to Chelsea Light Moving.

In the days leading up to the Stopover, I’m posting quite a number of short previews like this. So far I’ve previewed Stop Light Observations, Mac DeMarco, Little Tybee, Eric Britt, Heyrocco, Roadkill Ghost Choir, this mountain, Triathalon, Field Report, Chelsea Light Moving, and of Montreal.

Click here for all my Savannah Stopover previews.

And a few pics that I’ve taken of the band:

I got there for a little while — there was a great energy among the young crowd.

I had my camera and took a few shots of mumbledust and Christ, Lord.

I’ve rhapsodized about mumbledust before — a duo of Rachel Perisho and Ryan McCardle. See my previous post mumbledust: folk noir from Savannah

Here’s mumbledust’s exceptionally beautiful video for the even more beautiful song “Places”:

mumbledust at The Starland Dairy, including a shot of sound man Peter Mavrogeorgis. And, yes, that’s a saw that Rachel is playing:

And here’s Christ, Lord from Atlanta (most of the band members were in pretty dark spots):

The inaugural piece: The MusicFile: Sorting out the top 10 Southern songs of 2012.

The top five are:
1.“Birmingham” by Shovels and Rope
2. “I Found You” by Alabama Shakes
3. “Numb” by Gary Clark Jr.
4. “Am I That Lonely Tonight” by Justin Townes Earle
5. “Gospel” by The Whigs

But you can click on through to the column for more on those and the rest of the top 10.

The MusicFile’s best new Savannah bands of 2012 (not all are truly brand new, but largely fresh to the scene):

Adam Intrator of Triathalon

The column has links to SMN interviews with numbers 1 through 4.

The MusicFile also has a post with their top 20.

And if you just want to listen, here are The MusicFile’s top 20 songs from the South in 2012:

Fuzzbook’s Top 25 Releases of 2012 includes two Savannah bands: mumbledust at #20 and Sauna Heat at #25.

I’ve written about both bands here on my blog. mumbledust was profiled by Shawndra Russell in her Music Matters column in the Savannah Morning News.

Here’s mumbledust’s EP Vacations:

And a few pics of Rachel Perisho and Ryan McCardle of mumbledust from a previous post here on Savannah Unplugged, taken during a set at Graceface Records & Curiosities:

Here’s mumbledust’s video for “Places”, which uses found vacation footage from 1958:

Click here for mumbledust on Bandcamp. Click here for mumbledust on Facebook. Click here for mumbledust on tumblr.

Sauna Heat is a side project of Michael Younker, best known around town as the bass player for Triathalon.

Here’s Sauna Heat’s Dead Again:

Sauna Heat at The Sentient Bean

Michael is focusing his creative energy on Triathalon, but I suspect we’ll hear more from Sauna Heat.

By the way, here’s fuzzbook’s #1 release of the year, the self-titled album by the California duo Summer Twins:

mumbledust is a duo of Rachael Perisho and Ryan McCardle. Perisho has a clear, almost languid voice that’s especially interesting when she’s playing the saw. On banjo and guitar, McCardle’s voice is firm, beautiful, and oddly quiet — at least in Friday’s unplugged performance in the store.

mumbledust’s understated folk noir commands attention.

From Shawndra Russell in one of her Music Matters columns in the Savannah Morning News:

Of their name, Ryan says: “I think itâ€s very telling of the sounds we make and the words we speak — very gentle and minimal with some concern for the happenings of the past.”

They credit the first song Ryan wrote for the band, titled “Elvis, TN,” as the inspiration for their name. The songâ€s first line is:

In the dust we start to mumble

about things we should have had

things we should have had

Here’s a taste of the music:

And a few pics from the really quite wonderful and wacky Graceface Records & Curiosities:

mumbledust is about to go out on a short tour, beginning at Slims Downtown in Raleigh on Tuesday, Nov. 13.

Update, 11/19:
Here’s mumbledust’s new video for “Places”, which uses found vacation footage from 1958. It’s well worth a look and listen:

Click here for mumbledust on Bandcamp.

Click here for mumbledust on Facebook.

Click here for mumbledust on tumblr.

Christian Lee Hutson is a member of The Driftwood Singers, but he’ll be on his own for this gig. He has a good, twangy sound:

Mumbledust is a Savannah act:

Shawndra Russell’s Music Matters column in Do in the Savannah Morning News covers Mumbledust this week:

Rachael Perisho (singer and musical saw player) and Ryan McCardle (banjo and guitar player) have combined their talents in Mumbledust to create a sound they call folk noir/dark folk.

Of their name, Ryan says: “I think itâ€s very telling of the sounds we make and the words we speak — very gentle and minimal with some concern for the happenings of the past.”

I have yet to hear Mumbledust, but I like the ethereal sound.

And a reminder as you think about whether to check out these two acts: The Sentient Bean now serves beer and wine.

“Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Katie Mullins is sure to capture the attention of those who love the simplicity of chick indie rock with her latest album, Pastoral. At first listen the lyrics seem to be basic storytelling, offering anecdotes that remind you of easier, younger days, but Mullins has a way of catching your ear with a line that speaks straight to the heart.” —The Deli

After studying classical singing, Katie Mullins moved to Berlin in search of the unknown. During her six year stint in Germany, her musical pendulum swung from one extreme to the other. She sang in operas at the Komische Oper, played shows with a country band, Roseâ€s Shoulder, and acted in plays and films. Katie was hired by European and American theater performance artists for her versatility as an entertainer, and has performed in Madrid, Geneva, Düsseldorf, Berlin and New York. All the while, Katie has quietly and continuously written music, weaving folk, experimental and classical influences into her distinctive original songs. Her debut album, Pastoral, is a collection of love songs written about and within Berlin and New York.

I can’t find any embeddable tracks of Mullins, but she’s got a gorgeous voice, which you can hear on her Facebook page.

Local act Mumbledust will open. Here’s “Last Night I Walked with a Zombie”:

Katie Mullins