Buskin & Batteau have been winning hearts and minds with their soulful acoustic balladry and fun-filled performances for more years than they care to remember. "We're not from the Cambridge, came-over-on-the-Mayflower first wave of folkies [Joan Baez, Tom Rush, Eric Von Schmidt]," says Buskin, "but we'd like to think we've stolen many of their licks." The Washington Post called their work "an irresistible amalgam of melodic, sensual pop, folkie grit and killer wit.” And while their humor runs the gamut from topical irony ("Second Homeless") to terminal silliness ("Jews Don't Camp"), it's their unique combination of instrumental virtuosity (piano and violin, primarily, though both play other instruments as well), soaring vocal harmonies and unparalleled lyric-writing that prompts the standing ovations and rhapsodic reviews: "The most musically sophisticated act in folk" — The New York Times; "Acoustic Heaven" — The Boston Globe. Famous in the eighties as superstar jingle writers — Batteau's "Heartbeat of America" heads a list of a hundred or more hits — they've also divided their time between writing songs for other artists — e.g., Judy Collins, Tom Rush, Astrud Gilberto, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Peter, Paul and Mary and Bette Midler; helping a diverse group of non-profits — Paul Newman's Hole-In-The-Wall Camps, Harry Chapin's WhyHunger, Roger Payne's Ocean Alliance, among others; and hosting their quirky, unpredictable Radio B&B show on WPKN-FM and WPKN.org. Their latest CD, Love Remembered, Love Forgot, was recorded at Neale Eckstein's Fox Run Studios in Sudbury, MA, features some delightful guest appearances.
More than a decade touring the U.S., Heather Aubrey Lloyd has brought her lush, passionate voice to every type of venue, from folk festivals and bars to bait shops and clothing-optional resorts. A recovering reporter, her songs drift from journalistic to deeply personal, each narrative offered up in her distinctive alto and layered over finger-picked guitar. Her sets are rounded out with a few pieces on djembe, the instrument that earned her primal reputation as co-front for the Baltimore-based band ilyAIMY. She’s backed and supported Dar Williams, Ellis Paul, Shawn Mullins, performed as a 2012 Most-Wanted Artist at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and was a DC Lilith Fair Talent Search finalist. In Jan. 2015, she began work on her second solo CD, “A Message in the Mess,” a collaboration with Reno band, The Novelists.
“Lloyd’s voice has a powerful emotional and technical range, using everything from a delicate whisper to a bluesy growl to breathe life into the folk narratives.” ~ Michael Duck, The Morning Call
