Hilary Saunders

⟦ writes things ⟧ Managing Editor @NoDepression 🎶 Previously in Paste / ESPN / Next City / Bitch / Complex / etc. Rock and roll can save the world. She/ella/זי

Featured in: Favicon

nodepression.com Favicon

bandcamp.com Favicon

espn.com

complex.com Favicon

siriusxm.com Favicon

pastemagazine.com Favicon

consequence.net Favicon

miaminewtimes.com Favicon

forward.com Favicon

bkmag.com + 7 more

Articles

Introducing No Depression’s Spring 2025 Journal + Playlist

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

EDITOR’S NOTE: Managing Editor Hilary Saunders’ letter, below, opens our Winter 2024 quarterly journal, featuring the best and most timely stories in roots music today. Buy the Winter 2024 issue in print or digitally here. Music has taken me all over the world. Last year, I went to Kansas City, Juneau, Tulsa, Bentonville, Wichita, Park City, Tønder, Copenhagen, North Adams, Mississauga, Niagara, and St. Louis for music.
BONUS TRACKS: Michael Hurley Passes Away at 83 and More Roots Music News from Bruce Springsteen and Kelsey Waldon

2 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

The roots music community was stunned to hear about the passing of “outsider folk” singer-songwriter Michael Hurley yesterday at the age of 83 years old. The news was ostensibly broken by Brooklyn-based venue Union Pool, which posted a photo of musician in front of its red, velvet stage curtain and framed by bulb lights. As his family wrote in a statement:It is with a resounding sadness that the Hurley family announces the recent sudden passing of the inimitable Michael Hurley.
No Depression's Best of March 2025 Playlist

3 weeks ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

Today might be April Fool’s Day, but last month’s playlist is no joke. March 2025 saw the return of some of roots music’s biggest stars like Jason Isbell and Alison Krauss and Union Station. Additionally, ever-prolific Charley Crockett released his 15th studio album last month and bluegrass stalwarts The Seldom Scene keep reinventing themselves in their fifth decade. Sierra Hull released her first new album in five years and Lucy Dacus released her first solo material in four years.
BONUS TRACKS: FreshGrass | North Adams Announces Lineup for 2025

1 month ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

The FreshGrass Foundation, No Depression‘s nonprofit publisher, has announced the lineup for its 2025 edition of FreshGrass| North Adams — its flagship, three-day music festival in the Berkshires.
BONUS TRACKS: How Southwest Airlines' New Policy Impacts Musicians and More Roots Music News

1 month ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

This week, Southwest Airlines announced that the Texas-based company will end its highly-favored policy of two free checked bags for each passenger flying. The change is set to take place starting May 28, 2025. According to Reuters, via the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics, baggage fees yielded more than $7 billion in revenue for major US airlines in 2023, but Southwest only earned about 1% of that.
No Depression's Best of February 2025 Playlist

1 month ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

Help us continue to keep our web content free and accessible to all – without paywalls or invasive pop-up ads. Your support is important because it helps us cover our costs so that we can continue bringing you the independent music journalism you know and trust. Please consider subscribing or donating to No Depression now.
No Depression’s Best of January 2025 Playlist

2 months ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

Help us continue to keep our web content free and accessible to all – without paywalls or invasive pop-up ads. Your support is important because it helps us cover our costs so that we can continue bringing you the independent music journalism you know and trust. Please consider subscribing or donating to No Depression now. As one of the last resources dedicated to covering roots music and related stories, we need the support of our readers.
2025 Grammys Go to Sierra Ferrell, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, and More

2 months ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

Help us continue to keep our web content free and accessible to all – without paywalls or invasive pop-up ads. Your support is important because it helps us cover our costs so that we can continue bringing you the independent music journalism you know and trust. Please consider subscribing or donating to No Depression now. As one of the last resources dedicated to covering roots music and related stories, we need the support of our readers.
BONUS TRACKS: The Importance of Public Media

2 months ago | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

As one of the last resources dedicated to covering roots music and related stories, we need the support of our readers. While No Depression is read in print and digital by over a million people annually, only a small percentage support us through subscriptions or donations. Your support is vital in keeping No Depression’s website free and our coverage independent. Please consider becoming a subscriber or providing a donation.
BONUS TRACKS: New Albums Coming from Jason Isbell, Sierra Hull, and Lucy Dacus

Jan 17, 2025 | nodepression.com | Hilary Saunders

This week was rich in new music releases, including from three big names in roots music — country singer-songwriter and rocker Jason Isbell, bluegrass singer-songwriter, mandolinist, and guitarist Sierra Hull, and folk and rock star Lucy Dacus. Isbell’s first completely solo acoustic album, Foxes in the Snow, is due out March 7 on his own Southeastern Records. Check out the lead single, “Bury Me” below. Hull’s A Tip Toe High Wire, also due out March 7, will be her first independent release.