With an unforgettable first name, Griffin Anthony’s songs echo the resolute courage of other unmistakable first-named greats: Levon, Townes, Jackson, and Joni.
He writes.
And he sings. Hauling a heavy soul, his wary, deep-set, hickory eyes and 6-foot 5-inch delivery are as indelible as his moniker.
As a teen, the 39-year-old New York native worked his summers as a stagehand for the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals before eventually signing with BMI and Orange Music Publishing in 2008.
He has performed at festivals including Wanee, SunFest and CMJ, while his catalog has garnered licensing by the likes of Netflix, Hugo Boss and Disney. A multifaceted creator, Anthony was the principle film score composer for the Woodstock Film Festival selected documentary, Catskill Park as well as HBO’s Call to Action and I Wanna See You.
Success in commission-based songwriting provided Anthony a leg to stand on, but more importantly, the foresight to distance himself from anything that felt unnatural.
His latest full-length effort The Art of Collecting, released May 6th, 2022 on Big Eyes Records, was written in the small guest bedroom of his Newtown, Connecticut home as the low-light winter days of the pandemic fell on a fearful planet.
Anthony amassed upwards of two dozen self-recorded demos before winnowing the collection down and bringing them to the producer Jon Estes (Kesha, Jon Paul White, Langhorne Slim). In July of 2021, Anthony, backed by Single Lock Records' eclectic
space-country band Steelism and Molly Parden, assembled for a month in West Nashville, where they recorded The Art of Collecting live to tape.
Throughout the ten-track folk-leaning album, Anthony keeps his ear to the ground and heart “on the level”—as he first sang on his critically acclaimed 2018 release Refuge—in ways that feel personal, at times playful, and keenly observant.
After more than a decade of making a living in music, Anthony admits, “my relationship to music and songwriting has changed a lot, but hope is still the thread that connects one lyric to the next."
In a time of limitless distraction and instant gratification, Griffin Anthony isn’t concerned with trends. He leads with his music, owns his words, and represents the genuine article.
PRESS:
"... a professional in every sense of the word."
"His silky baritone vocals are captivating and timeless, and his acoustic-heavy songs are straightforward, comforting, and uncluttered, gleaned from years of rich life experience."
"If John Prine and Bill Withers were to somehow have an offspring, odds are he would be a lot like Anthony"
"Instead of depending on the usual country music 'bells and whistles,' Refuge let’s the lyrics do the heavy lifting."
"Well-crafted and very pleasing to listen to."
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