Shawna Virago Shines On Brassy New Alt Country Single "High Road No. 6" • Independent Music Promotions

Shawna Virago Shines On Brassy New Alt Country Single “High Road No. 6”

Transgender Music Pioneer and cult solo alt country artist Shawna Virago has announced the release of her second lockdown single/music video “High Road No. 6”, out June 15th via Tranimal Records.

Virago shines on the new single, both vocally and with her stellar guitar work, and the song serves up a high-energy, lo-fi cowpunk sensibility.

Let’s give some context: Virago has been performing as an out trans artist since the early 1990s. She is the voice of a generation who existed long before celebrities, the Internet, and the media started making all things queer or transgender a rising trend. While Virago is called anti-folk and punk, and while she is both of those, she is first and foremost a singer-songwriter, rightfully celebrated for her striking Alt Country and lyric-based songs. When you listen to Shawna Virago, you know you are hearing from someone who’s been around the block several times.

I was broke and living in a haze

From my station in life

Trouble started when I slept with the mayor

Then the mayor’s wife

Next time I won’t fall for the line

“Trust me I love you for your mind”

Alt Country artist Shawna Virago — Shawna Virago photo by Sean Dorsey (seandorseydance.com)

Written during this record-breaking year for legislative attacks against transgender people, Virago says, “I’d been a little depressed from the non-stop level of hate aimed at trans people, and needed to write something that gave me some hope and comfort. I needed something to supercharge my resilience.” ‘High Road No. 6’ is that song, about escaping the entrapments and negative forces wanting to take you down. It’s a visual and cinematic song, plus you can shine up your boots and break out some the line-dancing.

The music video for High Road No. 6 – available now on YouTube – is a queer romp, where Virago and her guitar are framed by fashion-forward gay cowboys against the backdrop of San Francisco’s Bay.

Driving at noontide
Cigarette trees on either side
Turning off the lane at the old salt flats
Out past where the dust devils dance
To cast my line into the river of chance
On the High Road…

High Road No. 6 is available for download (Bandcamp, CDBaby, iTunes) and streaming (SoundCloud).

Recently Shawna spent some time with us to pen a tribute to her favorite band, Los Angeles punk band X.