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By the time 2019 came to its fitful end, Andrew Marlin knew he was tired of touring. He was grateful, of course, for the ascendancy of Mandolin Orange, the duo he’d cofounded in North Carolina with fiddler Emily Frantz exactly a decade earlier. With time, they had become new flagbearers of the contemporary folk world, sweetly singing soft songs about the hardest parts of our lives, both as people and as a people. Their rise—particularly crowds that grew first to fill small dives, then the Ryman, then amphitheaters the size of Red Rocks—humbled Emily and Andrew, who became parents to Ruby late in 2018. They’d made a life of this.

Still, every night, Andrew especially was paid to relive a lifetime of grievances and griefs onstage. After 2019’s Tides of a Teardrop, a tender accounting of his mother’s early death, the process became evermore arduous, even exhausting. What’s more, those tunes—and the band’s entire catalogue, really—conflicted with the name Mandolin Orange, an early-20s holdover that never quite comported with the music they made. Nightly soundchecks, at least, provided temporary relief, as the band worked through a batch of guarded but hopeful songs written just after Ruby’s birth. They offered a new way to think about an established act.

Those tunes are now Watchhouse, which would have been Mandolin Orange’s sixth album but is instead their first also under the name Watchhouse, a moniker inspired by Marlin’s place of childhood solace. The name, like the new record itself, represents their reinvention as a band at the regenerative edges of subtly experimental folk-rock. Challenging as they are charming, and an inspired search for personal and political goodness, these nine songs offer welcome lessons about what any of us might become when the night begins to break.

“We’re different people than when we started this band,” Marlin says, reflecting on all these shifts. “We’re setting new intentions, taking control of this thing again.”

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MANAGEMENT Jimmy Rhine [email protected]

BOOKING / EU & UK Stuart Kennedy [email protected] Colin Keenan [email protected]

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Past concerts

Payomet Performing Arts Center

North Carolina Museum of Art

Lena Horne Bandshell at Prospect Park

Strings Music Pavilion

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Denver Botanic Gardens

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Recent tour reviews

I wish I had the lyrical and harmonic skills of Mandolin Orange, as I would be able to write a review that does them justice. Stunning would be a word I could use, Spiritual is another. Their complex slow controlled harmonies are out of this world. Maybe they are aliens?

I had first heard them on CBS Saturday morning, and bought tickets as soon as I knew they were coming. However you get their music, the live experience is a destination resort! Whoever designed and controlled the lighting is a genius, and the lighting changes were so amazingly synced to the songs. It was subtle but powerful. I noticed people taking photos to just capture the lighting. So different from the usual ACL lighting.

I have to say that the guitar player made the hair stand up on my arms, and goosebumps (I'm a sucker for a great guitar) but when Andrew and (Joe?, arg, I cannot find the band members names!!) played together it was magical. I couldn't figure out how he could make the guitar play those thick rich notes, and stay synced with the mandolin. All the players, and Emily, were also amazing, and she is so multi-talented. I don't think I've seen musicians sharing the same guitar that much before. Their singing and playing are such a Shared Experience... between themselves, as well as With the audience.

Having seen many shows at ACL I could tell the standing fans were Really Music Lovers, as the level of noice during the songs was amazingly low. Clearly the respect the band was given was well earned.

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I've seen them three times during their European Tour. Nijmegen was OK, Amsterdam very good and London excellent.

Overall they are confident with what they are doing and they are really growing as an act. In Nijmegen the flow of the show was somewhat broken, which wasn't the case in Amsterdam and London. I guess the start with Mother Deer works better for them.

There set list changes for every show, and very often they decide on the next song, based on the quality of the room, or the feedback from the audience. Although still quite young as an act, they have already a couple fo classics, like Wildfire, Gospel Shoes, Old Tides & Companions and Time After Time.

The full a-capella encore (Whistleblow) in both Amsterdam and London was breathtaking.

Andrew is a still an introvert poet, quite stoic, despite the memories to his mother. Emmy is just great, in everything. She has all the talent to become the strong frontwoman of Mandolin Orange.

Wednesday 15th May, Islington Assembly Hall, London, Mandolin Orange. It’s a big step up for this North Carolinian duo as last time I saw them a couple of years back they were here for a fabulous show in the 200 capacity Lexington. Tonight it’s the Assembly Hall with 900 people.

It’s my first show here since the venue had a new sound system installed. It’s a tough act to follow as the sound was always perfect already in what is my favourite mid-sized venue in London. Never over sold, great sound, good sightlines, best concert hall toilets in London but because of its listed status there is no air con which does make for uncomfortable viewing sometimes and the price of a beer is naughty at £6.45 for a pint of IPA.

Anyway back to the show. We made a special effort to get in early to see the super talented Michaela Anne. Just an artist and an acoustic guitar and a pure perfect voice. With the atmospheric lighting it created a perfect backdrop to her opening set.

Mandolin Orange join a long list of exceptional talent coming out of North Carolina at the moment including Caleb Caudle, Hiss Golden Messenger, Phil Cook and HC McEntire to name a few. Tonight Andrew Marlin, chief songwriter and Mr Mandolin and Emily Frantz are joined by a three piece backing band but they start the set in their usual two piece format.

As mentioned before the sound is immaculate, pin sharp and the unique sound of the mandolin fills the whole room and opener ‘Mother Deer’ from the new album ‘Tides of a Teardrop’ sets the scene for the next ninety minutes. It’s a sad song of course as the album is Martin’s reflection on the loss of his mother and there are many moving moments in what is a mandolin masterclass.

The set is drawn from across their albums and obvious highlights for me include one of my personal favourites ‘Wildfire’ and ‘Hey Stranger’ from the ‘Blindfaller’ album. There are a couple of really nice moments where a song or two is played ‘bluegrass’ style with the band crowded around one microphone and then for set closer totally unplugged with no amplification at all for a hair tingling finale. This is a band at the top of their game and it’s great to see them upgrading the venue to reach a richly deserved wider audience.

Till the next time keep on country rockin y’all

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Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange)

+ alexa rose.

Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange) + Alexa Rose

Watchhouse + Alexa Rose Saturday, June 10, 7 p.m. Adults $40, children 12 & younger $20

Over the past decade, they have released six albums under the name Mandolin Orange, and recently produced their first album as Watchhouse. The latest recording reflects their new direction and intentions as a band and brings the audience along on their journey.

Watchhouse has performed across the United States and Europe, including appearances at Austin City Limits, South by Southwest, Telluride Bluegrass Festival, and MerleFest. 

More Information Watchhouse

Her debut album, Medicine For Living , is a multi-layered Americana merger of old country music and traditional folk songs. The title track was the winner of the 2019 Chris Austin Songwriting Contest. She captures the sweetness of life without avoiding any of the pain, with songs about time and its constraints, peppered with precise details pulled from Rose’s own life that make universal themes seem personal, inviting the listener to make each song their own.

More information: https://www.alexarosemusic.com/

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Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange)

By the time 2019 came to its fitful end, Andrew Marlin knew he was tired of touring. He was grateful, of course, for the ascendancy of Mandolin Orange , the duo he’d co-founded in North Carolina with fiddler Emily Frantz exactly a decade earlier. With time, they had become new flagbearers of the contemporary folk world, sweetly singing soft songs about the hardest parts of our lives, both as people and as a people. Their rise—particularly crowds that grew first to fill small dives, then the Ryman, then amphitheaters the size of Red Rocks—humbled Emily and Andrew, who became parents to Ruby late in 2018. They’d made a life of this.

Still, every night, Andrew especially was paid to relive a lifetime of grievances and griefs onstage. After 2019’s Tides of a Teardrop , a tender accounting of his mother’s early death, the process became evermore arduous, even exhausting. What’s more, those tunes—and the band’s entire catalogue, really—conflicted with the name Mandolin Orange, an early-20s holdover that never quite comported with the music they made. Nightly soundchecks, at least, provided temporary relief, as the band worked through a batch of guarded but hopeful songs written just after Ruby’s birth. They offered a new way to think about an established act.

Those tunes are now Watchhouse , which would have been Mandolin Orange’s sixth album but is instead their first also under the name Watchhouse, a moniker inspired by Marlin’s place of childhood solace. The name, like the new record itself, represents their reinvention as a band at the regenerative edges of subtly experimental folk-rock. Challenging as they are charming, and an inspired search for personal and political goodness, these nine songs offer welcome lessons about what any of us might become when the night begins to break.

“We’re different people than when we started this band,” Marlin says, reflecting on all these shifts. “We’re setting new intentions, taking control of this thing again.”

When 2020 dawned, Emily and Andrew hatched a plan to break old habits: For the first time, they’d leave Ruby with Emily’s mom and escape with their longtime bandmates to a cabin on the edge of Smith Mountain Lake, a sprawling hideaway at the foot of the Appalachians. Also for the first time, after a decade of Andrew engineering and producing most of the music the band made, they’d bring help—Josh Kaufman, the producer and multi-instrumentalist who had wowed them with his work alongside the likes of The National and his trio Bonny Light Horseman. There were no expectations. This was simply a full-band retreat with a new friend and co-producer, working together in the refulgent sunshine of grand lakeside windows.

Almost immediately, they realized this wasn’t some audition; they were making Watchhouse . On the first day, Kaufman told Emily and Andrew to imagine this were their first record and to realize that conceptions of how they had worked, recorded, or even sounded belonged only in the past. In a way, Andrew had new permission and space to lean into his vision for what Watchhouse might become.

“Andrew is so confident in what he wants to hear, so full of ideas. Even beyond what we’d worked out together on tour with these songs, he knew what he wanted,” Emily says. “Having Josh in the studio meant Andrew didn’t have to bear the whole weight of getting there.” Alongside drummer Joe Westerlund, guitarist Josh Oliver, and bassist Clint Mullican, Andrew and Emily indulged novel structures and textures. “Better Way,” a kind-hearted meditation on online meanness, shifts slowly from a bluegrass trot into a spectral marvel before an immersive acoustic drone frames a new future. The gentle harmonies of “Belly of the Beast” eventually turn into a tangle above baying strings, Andrew and Emily guiding each other through the shared perils of whatever comes next.

These songs, after all, started with a fundamental shift in Emily and Andrew’s life. In the first few months after Ruby’s birth, they split the day into shifts: Emily minded Ruby during the waking hours, while Andrew sat beside Ruby all night, watching their firstborn sleep as he quietly strummed strings. In those wee hours, he allowed his writing to wander, capturing the uncanny sense of wonder and intrigue that pervades the darkest parts of night. “If I didn’t have Ruby in my hands, I had an instrument in them,” remembers Andrew. “And watching Ruby sleep, being surrounded by that mystery at night, led to a feeling of magical realism in these songs. I used melodies and ideas I’d never use.”

Long-lost relatives, for instance, gather with him around the crib in communion during “Lonely Love Affair,” mentoring him through this staggering upheaval. He expresses the fears of a new father, alleviated by the possibility and goodness he sees in his sleeping baby. These songs allowed Marlin and Frantz to take the chance Kaufman proposed because they’re about the value of doing exactly that, of trusting in grand acts borne of personal uncertainty.

Likewise, Emily’s dual turns here as lead singer are absolute breakthroughs, equally wrought from the confidence of past success and the excitement of present energy. As Emily coolly considers the ups and downs of mere existence, “Upside Down” pirouettes from the country thump of Neil Young in 1971 to the surging epiphanies of Radiohead a quarter-century later. Andrew wrote “Beautiful Flowers” after crashing into and presumably killing a butterfly with his car—this quiet triumph is a history of the automobile that doubles as a poignant chronicle of the modern tragedies and miracles we normalize. It reckons with climate change and the fatal side-effects of our industrious, industrialized nature with beguiling humility. Emily delivers all this with a gospel conviction, astral horns slowly unspooling beneath her as a reminder of the fragility at work.

With harmonies so easy they sound like kitchen-table talk, Andrew and Emily sail through “New Star,” an ode to the self-sacrifice and renewal of trying to create something, like a child, that might make the world better. Revolutionary kindness, social responsibility, collective understanding: These simple but staggering ideas are the unseen threads of Watchhouse , a miraculous expression of measured domestic protest.

In our era of recalcitrant typecasts and incessant cultural churn, it is rare to witness anyone press ahead into the unknown while holding fast to what’s best about their past, too. That’s what Watchhouse have done with their self-titled debut. Emily and Andrew have discarded neither their tenderness nor thoughtfulness; instead, they’ve enriched those essential qualities by submitting to the risks of new sounds, structures, and inputs. They’ve embraced surprising notions that make their steadfastness stronger.

It will be tempting to summarize this record as Watchhouse’s inevitable parenthood record, or maybe the one where they got a little strange, or maybe the one where they change their name. It is, instead, a record about growing up without growing old, about experiencing the world and letting it change you, whether through the mystery of a newborn or the vagaries of improvising or the comforts of familiar and wondrous love. Watchhouse is a perfectly rendered link between their longtime allure as Mandolin Orange and an unwritten future as the band Watchhouse, one that’s only as hopeful as we can imagine it might be.

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Watchhouse on The LAWN with special guest Bella White

It is our incredible honor to announce the Americana/folk duo Watchhouse (formerly known as Mandolin Orange) will make their debut performance on The LAWN, Saturday September 2nd. Supporting Watchhouse is the singer/songwriter Bella White . This is certain to be an evening under the stars you will not want to miss. 

• Saturday, September 2nd
• Box Office: 5pm | Doors: 6pm | Bella White: 7pm | Watchhouse: 8pm
• General Admission: $60
• All ages welcome (kids 12 and under are free)

For venue questions go HERE. For any ADA requests please email  eddie @surfhotel.com  

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Experimental folk-rock duo Watchhouse (formerly known as Mandolin Orange) comprised of husband and wife Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz performs earnest yet masterfully crafted songs that encompass the unknowable mysteries, existential heartbreak, and communal joys of modern life.

Over a year after Marlin and Frantz reintroduced themselves on their 2021 self-titled LP, the pair shared a special surprise release: Watchhouse (Duo) , a self-produced recording of Marlin and Frantz performing the most elemental possible arrangements of all nine songs from Watchhouse. They celebrate this release with a short run of shows that feature just the two of them, harkening back to their earliest days of performing.

Starting over a decade ago playing coffee shops and local restaurants around North Carolina, Watchhouse is a grassroots success story that’s been driven by Marlin’s poignant songwriting. They’ve sold out iconic venues (Red Rocks, Ryman Auditorium) and attract hundreds of millions of streams while producing exploratory music that “redefines roots music for a younger generation” ( The Washington Post ). 2022 was filled with many endeavors including the American Acoustic Tour with Punch Brothers, headlining shows across the US, collaborating with Planet Bluegrass on Mabon, an autumn equinox concert series, and of course Watchhouse (Duo) .

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Watchhouse (Formerly Mandolin Orange) with Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves – SOLD OUT!

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Door time: 6:30

Show time: 7:30

Over a year after Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz of Watchhouse (formerly known as Mandolin Orange) reintroduced themselves on their 2021 self-titled LP, the pair shared a special surprise release:  Watchhouse (Duo) , a self-produced recording of Marlin and Frantz performing the most elemental possible arrangements of all nine songs from  Watchhouse . It’s a project that captures the fundamental power of Watchhouse: Two singers and musicians with profound chemistry, performing earnest yet masterfully crafted songs that encompass the unknowable mysteries, existential heartbreak, and communal joys of modern life.

Starting over a decade ago playing coffee shops and local restaurants around North Carolina, Watchhouse is a grassroots success story that’s been driven by Marlin’s poignant songwriting. They’ve sold out iconic venues (Red Rocks, Ryman Auditorium) and attract hundreds of millions of streams while producing exploratory music that “redefines roots music for a younger generation” (Washington Post).

2022 was filled with many endeavors including the  American Acoustic Tour  with  Punch Brothers , headlining shows across the US, collaborating with Planet Bluegrass on  Mabon , an autumn equinox concert series, and of course  Watchhouse (Duo) . In 2023, Marlin and Frantz will celebrate the release of  Watchhouse (Duo)  with a short run of shows that will feature just the two of them, harkening back to their earliest days of performing.

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by Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange)

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Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange) Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Watchhouse is Andrew Marlin & Emily Frantz (formerly Mandolin Orange). The self-titled new album is available now!

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I don't listen to much country music, so I don't really know where this one lands, but I find it has some pretty good tunes and definitively good musicianship. Some of the songs mights soound a bit cheesy, but I enjoy this album overall nonetheless. The tunes which are more sounding like ballads get my preference, such as Northern Babe, and North Country Blues. Thibaut Devigne

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The instrumentation and songwriting in this album is really top-tier. Aofie is one of my favorite folk/alt-country artists and she performs wonderfully, bringing her unique tone of voice to this project. This album was my first step into Aofie's artistry, and is firmly one of my favorite albums. rileyridgway

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Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange)

This show is sold out! To join a waitlist for tickets (not guaranteed) please call our box office, 802.760.4634. 

Tickets: $25 to $35

We are thrilled to welcome folk duo Watchhouse (supported by Jordan Tice) to Spruce Peak Arts this winter, Saturday, March 4 (originally scheduled Sunday, March 5, 2023) at 7PM . Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz of Watchhouse known for their pragmatic storytelling and tender harmonies are hitting the road in 2023 for a limited run to celebrate their release Watchhouse (Duo). This limited tour will harken back to their earliest days of performing.

About Watchhouse

Over a year after Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz of Watchhouse (formerly known as Mandolin Orange) reintroduced themselves on their 2021 self-titled LP, the pair shared a special surprise release: Watchhouse (Duo), a self-produced recording of Marlin and Frantz performing the most elemental possible arrangements of all nine songs from Watchhouse. It’s a project that captures the fundamental power of Watchhouse: Two singers and musicians with profound chemistry, performing earnest yet masterfully crafted songs that encompass the unknowable mysteries, existential heartbreak, and communal joys of modern life.

Starting over a decade ago playing coffee shops and local restaurants around North Carolina, Watchhouse is a grassroots success story that’s been driven by Marlin’s poignant songwriting. They’ve sold out iconic venues (Red Rocks, Ryman Auditorium) and attract hundreds of millions of streams while producing exploratory music that “redefines roots music for a younger generation” (Washington Post).

2022 was filled with many endeavors including the American Acoustic Tour with Punch Brothers, headlining shows across the US, collaborating with Planet Bluegrass on Mabon, an autumn equinox concert series, and of course Watchhouse (Duo). 

Jordan Tice is a singer, songwriter and guitarist who combines witty, well-crafted songs with deft fingerstyle and flatpick guitar playing. His performances have been compared to those of legends like Leo Kottke, John Hartford, and David Bromberg for their mix of virtuosity and playfulness and his songs have been compared to those of writers, Bob Dylan and John Prine for their humor, introspection and philosophical nature.

His 5th record, Motivational Speakeasy, features only Jordan, his voice and his acoustic guitar. It was produced by Kenneth Pattengale of the Milk Carton Kids and has garnered rave reviews from outlets such as NPR Music, PopMatters, American Songwriter, and No Depression. Though a solo outing, there is a wide variety of moods, textures, and influences found on the record’s songs, from the classic Mississippi John Hurt style melodic blues of “Matter of Time” and “Goin on Down”, to the dissonant Tom Waits-like shuffle of “Creation’s Done” to the philosophical early Dylanesque chatter of “Walkin'” and “Where I’m At”. In addition to his songs which muse on life, relationships and time, the album contains 3 instrumental tracks where Tice showcases his narrative guitar-playing and composing with performances that range from British Isles inspired wistfulness (“Stratford Waltz”) to quirky ragtime (“Bachelorette Party”, “Ghost Story”). Folk fans might recognize Jordan Tice as a member of the instrumental bluegrass supergroup, Hawktail as well as his sideman work with many other artists in the folk/bluegrass genre such as Dave Rawlings, Andrew Marlin (Mandolin Orange), Yola, Tony Trischka, and comedian Steve Martin.

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