Starling Arrow is an all-star cast of spirit-folk songstresses featuring Leah Song and Chloe Smith of Rising Appalachia, Tina Malia, Ayla Nereo, and Marya Stark. The members of the female-fronted super-group share a common devotion for the love of songwriting, which they elegantly capture in their debut album, Cradle, out now. The artists of Starling Arrow are brought together by a mutual love of beauty, the power of music as a sanctuary, and the deep joy of encountering the muse. Powerhouse songwriters individually and innovative leaders within the industry, this joining is a potent gift of synergy. The new album is out now and available everywhere you stream music, download and save here: https://sa.ffm.to/cradle.
The ensemble of Starling Arrow was unintentionally conceived during the pandemic’s lockdown. In the wake of canceled tours, the 5 musicians were inspired to meet weekly over Zoom to collectively sing and alchemize the chaos of a changing world into their craft of songwriting. Each week they choose a topic and style of song to inspire their writing. The following week, they would share what they had created in the round, each taking a turn to unveil their song.
The collective wrote countless songs over nearly 2 years of this weekly communing and creating. Deep in their own creative exploration, the 5 muses chose to keep the music to themselves, but the universe had other plans. Thanks to a spontaneous gathering in person, the desire to sing as a collective, and Tina Malia bringing mics at the last minute, an album began to record itself. These songs are what fed the creation of Cradle.
Cradle is a time capsule of a selection of this music, 2 original songs from each artist, all layered in gorgeous 5 part harmonies, with all 5 singing on each other’s compositions. The songs range in topic and style, documenting the story of a shared human experience, colored by the backdrop of a unique history in the making. It is an album to soothe the body and mind, lullabies for the child in all of us. In addition to 10 original songs, the mostly acoustic album includes 1 traditional lullaby and an improvisational hum track. Produced and engineered by Tina Malia in Nevada City, California and Asheville, North Carolina, Cradle is a musical offering of nourishment, melodies for restoration, healing for the pandemic weary soul.
The group name, Starling Arrow, was born after learning more about the starling, an iridescent songbird known for its cooperation with its fellow birds to create beautiful murmuration patterns in the sky. Arrow speaks to the aim all 5 artists have together as songbirds, to create a song from collaborative inspiration and have it land in a place of unique beauty. Starling Arrow is meant to convey “The song sent with aim from the bow of the muse."
5 singles and 5 music videos accompany the release, focusing on and individually share the magic of each muse as part of this collective whole. The group’s 1st single, ‘Wild Sweet’ by Ayla Nereo, was released October 7, 2022. The reaction to the song on Spotify was robust after being added to the official playlist Fresh Folk and encouraging their Spotify listenership grow from 0 to 60,000 monthly listeners in 2 months. Footage from their debut performance at the Hawk and Hawthorne in North Carolina in July 2022 will be shared soon. Additionally, a handful of performances to support the release will be announced across the U.S. for late 2023. Until then, there are these amazing recordings to let go into...
~ C R A D L E ~
A Collaborative Album by Starling Arrow aka
Leah Song + Chloe Smith of Rising Appalachia, Ayla Nereo, Tina Malia,
and Marya Stark
Audio Singles from Cradle
Wild Sweet (written by Ayla Nereo, out 10/7/22)
Into The River (written by Chloe Smith, out 11/4/22)
By The Jordan (written by Tina Malia, out 12/2/22)
Fly Away (written by Marya Stark out 1/6/23)
Oh Darlin’ (written by Leah Song out 1/27/23)
Music Video for Singles from Cradle
Wild Sweet (out 10/14/22)
Into The River (out 11/11/22)
By The Jordan (out 12/9/22)
Fly Away (out 1/13/23)
Oh Darlin’ (out 2/3/23)
