Starling Arrow

The members of the female fronted super-group Starling Arrow share a common devotion for the love of songwriting, which they elegantly captured in their debut album, Cradle, coming out in January 2023. Starling Arrow is an all star cast of spirit-folk songstresses featuring Leah Song and Chloe Smith of Rising Appalachia, Ayla Nereo, Tina Malia, and Marya Stark. These artists are brought together by a deep mutual love of beauty, the power of music as a sanctuary, and the deep joy of encountering the muse. Powerhouse songwriters in their own right, and innovative leaders within the industry, this joining is a potent gift of synergy.

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. Then, 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. And thanks to a spontaneous meetup in person, the desire to sing together, and Tina Malia bringing some mics at the last minute, an album began to record itself. And these songs are what fed the creation of Cradle, to be shared January 2023, with 3 singles coming this fall.

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 such 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 both 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 music videos will accompany the release that focus on and individually share the magic of each muse as part of this collective whole. Footage from their debut performance at the Hawk and Hawthorne in North Carolina this past July will be shared soon too. Additionally, a handful of performances to support the release will be announced across the U.S. for the new year. Until then, there are these amazing recordings to let go into…