The Lonetones | Tennessee Shines

East Tennessee's Own The Lonetones return to the Tennessee Shines stage!

“The Lonetones have perfected contemporary Appalachian music” according to Blank Newspaper. But that might not mean exactly what you think. Wayne Bledsoe of the Knoxville News Sentinel notes that “it's a group that isn't hemmed in by any boundaries… the Lonetones have developed into a genre-bending group that doesn't quite fit into any niche and instead feels right almost everywhere.”

They have been called Americana, Folk Rock, Indie Folk, Folk Pop, Modern Folk, Folkadelic.... Driven by the songwriting of Steph Gunnoe and Sean McCollough, the band artfully fuses urban and rural themes and musical styles. The lyrics are fueled by a search for identity in the changing Appalachian landscape. Sometimes you’ll catch them playing banjo and mandolin. Other times, electric guitar and keyboards

In their early years, they were often compared to revivalists such as Iris Dement or Gillian Welch & David Rawlings. But in more recent years, they have also drawn comparisons to other bands that draw on roots music but expand well beyond it such as Wilco and the Byrds. As they have grown as artists, their sound has become a unique mix of folk, rock, pop, and old-time elements.

In ranking their fourth album, Modern Victims (which placed on the roots music charts for several weeks) in his top ten albums of the year, Wayne Bledsoe of the Knoxville News Sentinel had this to say:

Think of the Lonetones as spiritual kin to Wilco or the Byrds. Led by husband and wife team and lead singer-songwriters Sean McCollough and Steph Gunnoe, The Lonetones are folky, a little rock and are constantly finding new and gorgeous sounds and expanding their horizons. The leaders’ songs and vocals are contrasts that blend into something amazing.

Both the band’s lyrics and music speak to the conflicted nature of a region steeped in tradition while blighted by Walmarts and stripmines. They speak to generational conflicts and the inner struggles of those whose hearts and souls are tied to the mountains but also want to be set free.

Bradley Hanson of Knoxville Voice writes that “their music rings from the mountains of Appalachia with a reverent, enduring and, at times, conflicted spirit. The band mates shoulder their geography with craft and care.”