Americana-inspired duo Hail The Size unveils new CD featuring Maria McKee

Music City’s Charles Ezell and L.A. drummer/producer Matt North have unveiled the songwriting duo’s freshman offering, I Can’t Die In L.A., with cool aid from Americana princess Maria McKee, former lead pipes for Lone Justice.

The dozen-tune CD from Hail The Size, the pair’s namesake, offers listeners themes that run the gamut, from love notes to suicide letters. For their part, the creators have described the effort as “a hilarious, kinda sad, brutally honest journey” that’s reminiscent of Townes Van Zandt now again, yet still an all-original outing.

Joined in the studio by a small cast of local friends and musicians, Hail the Size turned out roots-injected tracks such as Crazy Girl and Booze, Pills and Her for those who favor the upbeat, as well as Right Now, which the players described as “a bonafide anthem for lovesick underdogs,” as well as the CD’s bonus tracks.

Guest contributor McKee, meanwhile, stuck around long enough to lace her vocalwork across three songs, including the title track, Right Now and Drift Away, in addition to lending her ivory tickling to a lucky seven tunes on the disc, which caused Steve Earle to declare, “Now that’s a good record. …”

Beyond McKee, North and Cross, the latter of whom has been touted as a “cross between a young John Belushi and John Prine,” I Can’t Die In L.A. features the musician cellist Matt Fish (Alejandro Escovedo, John Doe), who lends his talents to the final track, Sue, and a cut that’s been cited as perhaps the world’s first football ballad, Hail Mary, and L.A.-based guitar Carey Fosse (Wayne Kramer, Not-In-The-House), who capped off the record with sylings that beckon back to Duane Allman and Captain Beefheart, respectively.

To learn more about Hail The Size or sample tracks from its brand-new offering, which is available for purchase via CDBaby.com, please access www.myspace.com/hailthesize.