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First Watch: The Wild Reeds, 'Everything Looks Better (In Hindsight)'

On a single great night in 2015, I saw Loretta Lynn, Steve Earle and Valerie June play live in Nashville, and I also saw another band that has stuck with me as much as those great favorites. The Wild Reeds is a band with three talented singers and songwriters — Kinsey Lee, Mackenzie Howe and Sharon Silva — who have a great understanding of dynamics and heart. This song, "Everything Looks Better (In Hindsight)," from their new EP Best Wishes, is one that sticks with me. Sharon Silva told me that this song and those on their new EP are a deviation from their 2014 album Blind and Brave and a departure from "the expectations of women in the entertainment industry, and who we were as young people when we made Blind and Brave. Ultimately it's our way of saying, 'We've grown up a little and we are more concerned with originality than what's expected of us.'"

The video was made by their dear friend Han Su. It's a documentary of sorts and captures the L.A.-based band members' friendship and the process of creation in their hometown. "Heartbreak can be like a broken record that repeats the good songs and skips the bad ones," Sharon Silva said. "This song is about the tricks that nostalgia plays on the mind. The irony is that it's one of our more triumphant and cathartic songs to perform.

The EP Best Wishes is a glimpse into what The Wild Reeds are up to in 2016. I suggest you look at their tour schedule and see this talented band in an intimate setting. You can also find their Tiny Desk concert here.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Bob Boilen
In 1988, a determined Bob Boilen started showing up on NPR's doorstep every day, looking for a way to contribute his skills in music and broadcasting to the network. His persistence paid off, and within a few weeks he was hired, on a temporary basis, to work for All Things Considered. Less than a year later, Boilen was directing the show and continued to do so for the next 18 years.