Trailer Bride was a Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...

, North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

-based alternative country

Alternative country

Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...

 rock band signed to Bloodshot Records

Bloodshot Records

Bloodshot Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois which specializes in roots-inflected indie rock, punk blues, and a Chicago brand of outlaw country...

. Formed in 1993, the band consisted of Melissa Swingle (vocalist, guitarist), Robert Mitchum (bass guitar), Brad Goolsby (drummer), Bryon Settle (guitarist) and Scott Goolsby (guitarist). In the summer of 1997, after the release of their first album, Daryl White replaced Mitchum as bassist.

The band is known for a southern gothic

Southern Gothic

Southern Gothic is a subgenre of Gothic fiction unique to American literature that takes place exclusively in the American South. It resembles its parent genre in that it relies on supernatural, ironic, or unusual events to guide the plot...

 sound, with lyrics reminiscent of the works of Flannery O'Connor

Flannery O'Connor

Mary Flannery O'Connor was an American novelist, short-story writer and essayist. An important voice in American literature, O'Connor wrote two novels and 32 short stories, as well as a number of reviews and commentaries...

. Their songs are described as "spooky", and often contained dark themes of death, sin and sex. The first album, Trailer Bride

Trailer Bride (Trailer Bride album)

Trailer Bride is the self-titled debut album by the Alternative Country band Trailer Bride.-Track listing:All songs written by Melissa Swingle.# "Sorry Times" - 3:11# "Mardi Gras" - 3:32# "Let Mama Drive" - 3:32# "Rouge" - 2:53...

, features songs of local character that celebrate Chatham County, North Carolina

Chatham County, North Carolina

Chatham County is a county located in the Piedmont area of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 49,329. Its county seat is Pittsboro.-History:...

, and the main route to the nearby town of Chapel Hill, US 15-501. The first track of their album High Seas, "Jesco" is a homage to Jesco White

Jesco White

Jesco White, the "Dancing Outlaw", is an American mountain dancer and entertainer. He is best known as the subject of three American documentary films that detail his desire to follow in his famous father's footsteps, while trying to overcome depression, drug addiction, and the poverty that...

, the Appalachian "Dancing Outlaw". The band met White while playing a show with Hasil Adkins

Hasil Adkins

Hasil Adkins was an Appalachian country, rock and roll, and blues musician, though he was frequently considered rockabilly and sometimes primitive jazz...

. White told Swingle, "I don't get out much on account of being famous", which was used as a line in the song.

Swingle started playing music when she was pregnant with her child, Isabel. She learned that fumes from her oil painting could affect the baby, so while looking for another creative outlet, she began to play guitar. Isabel's artwork is on the album High Seas

High Seas (Trailer Bride album)

-Reviews:No Depression Magazine :"...A spooky, swampy triumph....unsettling and addictive with each subsequent spin..."Magnet Magazine :"...Fun...showcasing Swingle's unique talent for whistling in the dark..."...

.

Discography

Year	Title	Label
1997	Trailer Bride Trailer Bride (Trailer Bride album) Trailer Bride is the self-titled debut album by the Alternative Country band Trailer Bride.-Track listing:All songs written by Melissa Swingle.# "Sorry Times" - 3:11# "Mardi Gras" - 3:32# "Let Mama Drive" - 3:32# "Rouge" - 2:53...	Yep Roc
1998	Smelling Salts Smelling Salts (Trailer Bride album) Smelling Salts is the second album by the Alternative Country band Trailer Bride, the first on Bloodshot Records.-Track listing:# "Quit That Jealousy" - 2:53 # "Wildness" - 2:59 # "Porch Song" - 2:57 # "South of the Border" - 3:59...	Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois which specializes in roots-inflected indie rock, punk blues, and a Chicago brand of outlaw country...
1999	Whine de Lune Whine de Lune -Track listing:# "Work on the Railroad" - 2:52# "Too Many Snakes" - 2:55# "Crazy Love" - 4:05# "Felt Like a Sin" - 2:30# "Clermont Hotel" - 3:20# "A Song for Emily" - 2:47# "Left-Hand Cigarette Blues" - 3:02# "Dirt Nap" - 2:36# "Sapphire Jewel" - 2:59...	Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois which specializes in roots-inflected indie rock, punk blues, and a Chicago brand of outlaw country...
2001	High Seas	Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois which specializes in roots-inflected indie rock, punk blues, and a Chicago brand of outlaw country...
2003	Hope Is a Thing with Feathers Hope Is a Thing With Feathers Hope Is a Thing With Feathers is the fifth and final album by the Alternative Country band Trailer Bride. Its title is the first line of a poem by Emily Dickinson.-Reviews:Mojo Magazine :...	Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois which specializes in roots-inflected indie rock, punk blues, and a Chicago brand of outlaw country...