““A sonic rodeo of original Americana, Alt Country Twang, old school Rock ‘n’ Roll and Spaghetti Western,” is how E. Christina Herr & Wild Frontier’s music is described on the band’s publicity one-sheet; a “Western Gothic” sound. This Albuquerque quartet was curiously born of a Craig’s List advertisement, and their latest album “Americana Motel” is an equally curious gathering of twelve songs, eleven of which are penned by Herr. With the first few notes, a distinctive vibrato comes at their listener, and Herr’s poetic lyrics serve to set a mood, and serve her well when they tell a story. On the lonesome, western rock title track, she is on the road looking for a place to spend the night, while “So many dreams shake my faith/So many thoughts ride my mind.” Romantic and soulful “Bluebirds” floats on pedal steel, and a haunting arrangement with locomotive percussion backs the singer on “Townes” where she observes, “Hey look, one more silver dollar/Shining so bright/On the cold hard ground.” There’s a Springsteen cover (“State Trooper’) and a half-sung in Spanish, south-of-the-border “Sparks Fly;” in poignant gem “Little Blue House” she says all that’s left of a relationship has got a “for sale sign” out in front of it, and “Look For Me” is dead-on honest about the futility of loving someone with an alcohol problem. Cool surprise wrap up of the record is catchy, spunky rocker “Who Luvs You,” where Herr confesses: “I talk to myself as if someone’s listening/…Just pipe down…there’s no need to shout.”” - Janet Goodman

“Bands to Watch from Santa Fe While much of New Mexico's live music scene revolves around songwriters and roots bands, Albuquerque has its own underground scene, and a few of its bands have earned some mainstream success. Playing a kind of post-punk power pop, Lousy Robot have released three albums and had their music featured on MTV, the Travel Channel, Bravo and Animal Planet. Another band, the two-piece Elevator Boys, play a bashing style of garage-psych. The James Douglas Show, an outlandishly costumed, six-piece "funk-n-soul-n-rock-n-roll" band, has shared stages with Tom Petty, Keith Urban and Sammy Hagar, and they are the house band for the syndicated TV show The After After Party, hosted by Breaking Bad alum Steven Michael Quezada. Santa Fe's the Strange play their own brand of original "desert rock," fashioning themselves as young outlaws and touring throughout the West. Based out of Taos, the Art of Flying, composed of former San Franciscans Dave and Anne Costanza, play a kind of modern freak-folk, an acoustic-based music layered with reverb and distinctive touches including a bicycle bell. Another musical couple, Las Cruces' Far Corners (originally from Boston), play a noisier, electric style of minimalism. For the last few years, the state's Music Awards have been dominated by hONEyhoUSe, a trio of female songwriters – Hillary Smith, Yvonne Perea and Mandy Buchanan – who draw from blues, gospel, soul and Americana to form a unique blend that is distinctly regional. This year, the group won the Norman Petty Producer's Award for their album Medicine Lodge. Local favorite Wild Frontier have been compared to "Joni Mitchell's long-lost sister backed by a haunting Western band." Their recent album Americana Motel features the spaghetti Western-style title track and a New Mexico-centric reworking of Bruce Springsteen's "State Trooper.” - James Sullivan

“2013 New Mexico Music Awards honored E. Christina Herr & Wild Frontier winning Best Americana Song for Townes! A song Christina wrote about the great singer /songwriter Townes Van Zandt and his journeys from Colorado to Texas back and forth through New Mexico.”

“Headin' For A Wreck on the No Depression Music Player!  #1 with a Bullet!  ”

“Albuquerque's E. Christina Herr & Wild Frontier is all about Americana.Yeah, there are some 
similar acts floating around New Mexico,but this one offers you plenty 
of  bang for your buck." ---Santa Fe Reporter, March 2012”

“Chrissie Hynde, Joni Mitchell, Wanda Jackson and Demi Lovato – a short list of singers that may remind you of E. Christina Herr, whose voice sails on a countrified breeze of bass, pedal steel, harmonica, twangy guitars and drums. Blending rock, folk, rockabilly and gothic country, Herr and her band, Wild Frontier, serenade audiences with colorful tales about the West and Southwest. --- Pasatiempo, Santa Fe New Mexican, 2011”

“ In between Jim Lauderdale & Shelby Lynne Christina gets interviewed by Mike from Concert Blast! The interview is here about 17 minutes in... Live from the Mercy Lounge in Nashville, TN! ” - Mike Arnold

“Bringing It Home E. Christina Herr was told by her mother that her melodies are as soothing as lullabies. Her words, however, often convey stories of life’s sometimes treacherous twists and turns, and thus she titled her first New Mexico album Lullabies & Cautionary Tales. So don’t listen to this CD at bedtime—the lyrics are often haunting. Besides, you’ll find your toes tappin’ hard enough that you might hop out of bed to dance. Folks who like the vocal style of the Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde and the gritty lyrics of Lucinda Williams will enjoy this disc, which Herr describes as Western Gothic. She uses her alto voice to sing words with crystal-clear enunciation, and can handily sustain notes with a pleasing vibrato. Born in San Antonio, Texas, Herr moved as a youngster to California. Besides growing up in a musical family, she had the good fortune of having Linda Ronstadt as a neighbor. Ronstadt served as Herr’s mentor, taking her to many musical performances. Herr went on to perform in many California bands, and was involved in the alt-country scene there before moving to New Mexico five years ago. “I had visited this place for 20 years and I feel so at home here,” she says, adding that New Mexico has helped her hone her songwriting skills and has brought her much happiness. “A lot of people talk about the dangers of Craigslist.com,” she says, “but I put an ad out looking for musicians and ended up with a great partner”—referring to Martin Rowell, who plays acoustic and electric guitars. Rowell hails from Louisiana, and has become Herr’s life partner as well as her bandmate. The two form the core of her band, Wild Frontier, which has featured a variety of players over the past few years. On Lullabies & Cautionary Tales Herr plays acoustic guitar, a vintage bass guitar, and tambourine, and also brought in two young Albuquerque musicians who regularly perform with the popular blues guitarist Ryan McGarvey, as well as with their own group, Grand Canyon. The pair, Samuel Beath Miller (bass) and August Hunter Johnson (drums, percussion, congas), add much energy to Herr’s album. Jim Mooney plays the lilting mandolin. “One Road,” “Whiskey Flats,” and “Going Back” demonstrate Herr’s ease in composing country melodies. “One Road,” a great two-stepper, captures the feeling of taking one’s chances along the various paths chosen in life, in the blind faith that they will lead to the heart’s desire. Herr asks, “Will I wander forever? Will I find my way? / Will there be a garden at the end of my traveling day?” Once a designer of gardens, Herr finds the garden a great symbol for contentment and peace amid life’s chaos. Anyone who has spent a spring in the Land of Enchantment can probably relate to “Devil Wind.” Herr, an avid cyclist, said the lyrics came to her while she was riding in a windstorm. In the song’s background, you can hear windy, atmospheric sounds. The musical accompaniment is often unsettling, with psychedelic electric-guitar riffs and what sound like voodoo rhythms. In the refrain, Herr sings, “Devil wind makes me crazy / Makes me hot, makes me cold / Devil wind rubs up against me / Makes me mad, makes me old.” Herr rocks out on several tracks here. The playful classic-rock sound of “In Memory” contrasts well with the pensive lyrics, in which Herr reflects on a painful relationship. In the chorus, she laments, “Some people want to know / Was it worth the cost? / Some people want to know.” The album ends with a raucous rockabilly song, “Doggone Lonesome.” --- Emily Drabanski – New Mexico Magazine, March 2010” - Emily Drabanski

“Listen to Lullabies & Cautionary Tales, the latest release from Albuquerque band E Christina Herr and Wild Frontier, and at times it’s easy to think Joni Mitchell’s long-lost but equally talented sister has suddenly found herself backed by a haunting Western band. Herr has been playing professionally since 1989, but her familial musical roots trace back to the 1920s when her grandfather was in a Dixieland jazz band in Virginia. Her career stems from varied influences, including childhood excursions with her friend Linda Ronstadt to Los Angeles night clubs and alt.country venues in the ’80s. The band’s current Southwestern home influences its dry Western style. While the musicianship behind Herr’s clear voice is solid and steady, the tremulous soprano rings in over the players as an almost eerie reminder that these songs are not merely lullabies; they are cautionary tales about life in America, about what it is to exist in the West under vast skies and about the way experiences can follow you like a long shadow cast on sagebrush.” - Charlotte Jusinski

““Romance of Ghosts” by Bone Orchard. There are two covers on the record, including E. Christina Herr’s “Whiskey Flats.” Morgan- Eagle sings lead on this one, and she has a precise, almost breathy lead style and practiced vibrato. There’s a nice rolling feel to this tune, a pretty song with chiming mandolin.” - Deonne Kahler ~ The Hum

“Lullabies & Cautionary Tales E. Christina Herr & Wild Frontier On the outer perimeter of the Western Music herd ride some ghostly figures. E. Christina Herr & Wild Frontier are quite used to being out there. It's been their home ever since they appeared at the very first Western Music Association Festival in Tucson (1989)! They're still at it with a mix of acoustic and sort of an Ennio Morricone-tinged rock. Threaded through it are their Western lyric themes in songs like "Whiskey Flats," "Showdown," "Devil Wind" and "Ballad Of Clara Mae." Vocally Herr isn't your Western "norm" either. She brings an intriguing feel of certain 60s vocalists like Sandie Shaw and Lulu to the party. Folks with the widest acceptance and a varied music background will likely appreciate it. This group's output rides easiest among the outlaw Western of players like Cowboy Nation or Bone Orchard. They do what they do well and with deliberate artistic vision, and it's all but guaranteed to make the more conservative element among us blanch at the thought of the adventure. But exactly when were we ever "cutting-edge??" ---  Rick Huff ~ Best of the West, 2009” - Rick Huff