Molly Parden directs “Traveling Souls” to Danny of Besides Daniel

Molly Parden live in concertIf you’re a “regular” here at The Blue Indian, you’ve probably grown accustomed to the music of Besides Daniel. And if you’ve grown accustomed to Besides Daniel, then you’ve probably traveled down the beaten path of Danny’s (frontman of Besides Daniel) heart-breaking story of a love that used to be vibrant but now seemingly a thing of the past. In fact, there are a couple YouTube videos that, if watched in order, pretty much represent the timeline of the break-up. (Watch in this order: Video 1, then Video 2). Hopefully not stating the obvious here, but Danny is one of my favorite songwriters right now. He has a way of being transparent in his songwriting, yet maintaining a mysterious flair that is nothing short of intriguing.

Perhaps just as impressive is this little dazzling singer/songwriter from Stockbridge, GA, named Molly Parden. You’ve probably read about her here and there on The Blue Indian from time to time. After catching her at one of her shows at The 567 in downtown Macon, GA last weekend, I was quickly reminded why I’ve been so into her music lately as well. She’s actually been hanging out with Danny of Besides Daniel quite a bit lately, as the two have been working on some collaborative work that will be released sooner rather than later. You can actually see the two cover Jump Little Children’s “Mexico” right HERE.

Ok, let’s get to why I’m posting this little blurb. I was on my way home from my other job the other day and suddenly my mind began to connect some dots while thinking about these two artists. Obviously, the thoughts began dancing around in my head when I was thinking about how sick their tour will be together from May 6th-22nd. Check it: Both artists, Besides Daniel and Molly Parden, have gone through their share of heartbreaks. And both of them have a rather ingenious way of telling these stories in the form of a song. I compare Besides Daniel to Sam Beam of Iron and Wine with a touch of Nick Drake and Sufjan Stevens and Molly Parden to Patty Griffin with an obvious influence from Mindy Smith. Undoubtedly though, it should be said that both Besides Daniel and Molly Parden are doing their own thing. With intelligent songwriting and delightful melodies, Molly Parden is strong at work writing new tunes. And one of them, in particular, is bluntly directed right to Danny of Besides Daniel. Check out a live version Molly’s new tune, “Travelin’ Souls.”

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