Wild Iris

Wild Iris is a songwriting collaboration between Kate Mullikin and Bryan Shelton from Santa Cruz, CA. Wild Iris is an acoustic mix of musical genres. Local guitarist Bryan Shelton's folksy picking style along with Kate Mullikin's evocative lyrics and smokey vocals make their duo a fresh listening experience. Formed in the Fall of 2013 at a beach-side convenience store, Bryan already had the name ‘Wild Iris' in mind and Kate dug the double meaning, evoking the image of a flower and an eyeball. They adopted the moniker, released their home recorded debut EP in 2014 and began gigging with a back-up band. Kate's poetic instincts provided the melodic structure for Bryan to build his flat picking under – a style gleamed from years of practice and time well spent listening to Mississippi John Hurt, Woody Guthrie and Ramblin' Jack Elliott, the latter with whom Wild Iris has shared the stage. Wild Iris have since released their first full-length album and are currently working on the follow up. Onstage, the band exuded a kind of therapeutic honesty, which when mixed with their elegant musicality went a long way with the locals and they were encouraged to pursue a professionally recorded debut full length. Their self-titled LP was produced by Andy Zenczak at Gadgetbox Recording Studio where Wild Iris's rustic arrangements were imbued with the rich sound of analogue gear, often accompanied by upright bass, banjo, fiddle and percussion.

Artist sites and sounds: www.wildirissantacruz.com