Not far from the tiny town of Floyd, Virginia, surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains, is the childhood home of The Wildmans. The sibling duo are currently navigating the release of their debut album, “Longtime Friend,” for New West Records. And today truly feels like a full circle moment.
“It’s surreal. It’s weird,” says Elisha Wildman. “We’re really excited for something to happen, to share our original music. And this feels like a really great jumping point.”
Alongside his sister, Aila, the Americana/indie-folk act have been garnering a lot of attention in recent years, with “Longtime Friend” showcasing their interlacing harmonies and musical virtuosity—the sound itself at the sonic crossroads of Americana, alt-country and folk.
“It feels like we’ve been building up to this, and in the right way,” Elisha says. “Taking our time and setting all the pieces in line to have a good launch.”
“[With ‘Longtime Friend’], we’ve gone more under this indie-folk umbrella,” Aila adds. “But, we still are doing these old-time tunes, where we’ve realized it’s an important aspect of music, which ties us to the roots of our musicianship and how we grew up.”
Captured at Applehead Recording in Woodstock, New York, by producer Nicholas Falk, the 12-song LP was cultivated in the midst of Aila and Elisha each finishing school at the prestigious Berklee School of Music in Boston, Massachusetts.
“In a certain way, Woodstock reminded me of Floyd,” Aila says. “It was nice to get out of Boston and be back in the mountains, in the woods, to be part of this artistic experience [at Applehead].”
Growing up in Floyd, Aila and Elisha were immersed in the rich, vibrant bluegrass and old-time music scenes. As kids, Elisha picked up the guitar and mandolin, while Aila reached for the fiddle. They became enamored with their instruments, which parlayed in both winning numerous competitions around Southern Appalachia.
“Floyd holds an important place in our hearts and in our music,” Aila says. “It also has been pretty natural to have all of this happen while we’re here.”
On the surface, “Longtime Friend” is a blend of original melodies, traditional instrumentals and a handful of covers. But, digging deeper, there’s an array of subtle odes to the musical heroes of The Wildmans, including to the late singer-songwriter Gram Parsons on “Hot Burrito #2” and “Luxury Liner.”
“[Gram’s] harmonies with Emmylou Harris are really inspiring,” Elisha says. “And also, how he kind of created this genre that’s just unique and really blends a lot of the aspects of music we like together, to create a new thing. His songwriting has always been inspirational.”
“And we’ve taken a lot from listening to [Gram and Emmylou],” Aila adds. “It fits well with the way our voices are and the way stuff works between us.”
That collage of sound and scope is at the heart of what it is The Wildmans aim to do. It’s taking the essence of their intricate musicality in the bluegrass and old-time realms and sliding that into more contemporary tones of Americana and indie-folk.
“[Bluegrass and old-time] is something natural to our musicianship,” Aila says. “The other natural counterpart of that is growing it and taking it in different directions, which is something that’s always naturally happened in that music, anyways.”
And just like the “Father of Bluegrass,” Bill Monroe, was known to say, “If you can play my music, you can play anything,” so, too, remains this genuine attitude of curiosity, exploration and discovery in the melodic hearts of The Wildmans.
“When you take it in your own hands to write your own music, it’s much easier to meld those influences and make it your own, make it applicable to what you’re doing,” Aila says.
“It feels good to not try to fit into something,” Elisha adds. “To just be true to ourselves and kind of let loose.”
Aila emphasizes that going-with-the-flow approach is the underlying ethos of “Longtime Friend,” this personal and profound joy of simply playing what you want to play in the way you want to play it.
“It’s not, ‘Oh, we’re going to take this old-time tune and make it different,’” Aila says. “It’s, ‘We’re going to take this old-time tune and rock out, groove with some drums and electric drums.’ That’s what feels good—it’s fun for us.”
With “Longtime Friend” released into the ether, the time for rest and relaxation for The Wildmans in Floyd is fleeting. A slew of tour dates lurk on the horizon, as do the endless miles on the highways and backroads of America. No matter, for this is what the siblings have yearned for since they were kids wondering just what lies beyond the mountain ridges surrounding their home.
“When you’re siblings—and if you’ve made it as close as we are—you’ve probably been through most of the things that could tear apart people’s relationships,” Aila says. “We’re in it. We’ve been in it.”