Biography
Formed in Chapel Hill, North Carolina during 2009, the project that became Mandolin Orange centered on singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Andrew Marlin alongside violinist and guitarist Emily Frantz. Their sound blended bluegrass, gospel, folk, country, and pop, evoking the grounded timelessness and natural vocal blends of Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, the unpredictable melodic turns of Nickel Creek, and the atmospheric gothic Americana associated with the Civil Wars.
Initially working as a duo, Marlin and Frantz issued This Side of Jordan in 2013 and Such Jubilee in 2015 before recruiting additional players for the 2016 release Blindfaller, which introduced fuller sonic textures while retaining the core Appalachian character of their earlier work.
The two musicians, who share both a creative and personal partnership, self-produced their first recording, Quiet Little Room, for CD Baby in 2010 and followed it with the double album Haste Make/Hard Hearted Stranger the next year. Their third album, This Side of Jordan, appeared on Yep Roc and earned placement on NPR’s year-end roundup of standout folk and Americana releases. All ten tracks on Such Jubilee originated from Marlin during touring stretches, and the duo tracked the material themselves with a restrained approach at Echo Mountain studio in Asheville, North Carolina.
For the fifth album, Blindfaller, the lineup expanded to six members in the studio, adding Josh Oliver on keyboards and guitar, Allyn Love on pedal steel, Clint Mullican on bass, and Kyle Keegan on drums. The 2019 set Tides of a Teardrop again featured an ensemble that included returning contributors Mullican on bass and baritone guitar plus Oliver on guitars and keyboards, with Joe Westerlund taking the drum chair for the first time. By 2021 the group had returned to its original duo configuration of Marlin and Frantz and adopted the new name Watchhouse.
Initially working as a duo, Marlin and Frantz issued This Side of Jordan in 2013 and Such Jubilee in 2015 before recruiting additional players for the 2016 release Blindfaller, which introduced fuller sonic textures while retaining the core Appalachian character of their earlier work.
The two musicians, who share both a creative and personal partnership, self-produced their first recording, Quiet Little Room, for CD Baby in 2010 and followed it with the double album Haste Make/Hard Hearted Stranger the next year. Their third album, This Side of Jordan, appeared on Yep Roc and earned placement on NPR’s year-end roundup of standout folk and Americana releases. All ten tracks on Such Jubilee originated from Marlin during touring stretches, and the duo tracked the material themselves with a restrained approach at Echo Mountain studio in Asheville, North Carolina.
For the fifth album, Blindfaller, the lineup expanded to six members in the studio, adding Josh Oliver on keyboards and guitar, Allyn Love on pedal steel, Clint Mullican on bass, and Kyle Keegan on drums. The 2019 set Tides of a Teardrop again featured an ensemble that included returning contributors Mullican on bass and baritone guitar plus Oliver on guitars and keyboards, with Joe Westerlund taking the drum chair for the first time. By 2021 the group had returned to its original duo configuration of Marlin and Frantz and adopted the new name Watchhouse.
Albums
