Two Ways Home are the songwriters: Isabella MaK, originally from Vienna, Austria and Lewis Fowler, who grew up in Gloucestershire, UK. The pair fuse catchy melodies with luscious harmonies and rocky guitars, often referring to their style as folk/rock with a country twist. After their inception in 2014, presenting 3 well received Eps, a debut album and several standalone singles, they have crafted a sound, which pairs well with artists like Lady A, The Lumineers and Fleetwood Mac.
Opposites attract, which is certainly one of the reasons the pair were first drawn to each other. They may have stark contrast but music has always been their middle ground with their voices blending effortlessly. An expedition to Nashville helped the two hone their sound combining traditional country storytelling, Austrian Alpine folk-lore and British innovation, which has taken them around the world, playing shows across the UK, Europe and America. Now based in London, they stand together in this time of uncertainty, striving for unity. Two Ways Home have had to rethink their journey after releasing their debut album moments before the Corona pandemic took hold and made it impossible to play live shows. Navigating their way through turbulent times the pair have managed to stay present, bringing a little bit of joy through regular live streams and other content.
In the years that have passed since the release of their debut EP ‘Wood For Trees’(March 2015), the band have enjoyed radio play across the UK & Europe, toured internationally, sharing stages with artists across the country/Americana spectrum from Russell Dickerson to Sarah Darling and have been featured extensively in print publications including Maverick Magazine, Record Collector and The Sun, with the latter describing their sound as “…crystal clear harmonies tinged with melancholy”. Although their live setup is sometimes an acoustic duo or trio, Two Ways Home often play as a full band.
Their acclaimed follow up EP, ‘Better Days’ highlighted as “a stunning piece of art” by One on One Music, secured their reputation as a key player in the UK country & folk scene, with single ‘Just For Now’ being played across BBC Regional Radio, Amazing Radio and on Chris Country among others. Described by The Upcoming as ”unique, unexpected and brilliant”, interest in their music has also led to increasing demand for Two Ways Home as a songwriting team, with other artists turning to the duo to bring their distinctive sound to collaborations and co-writes. They have written with/for UK and American artists such as Liz McClarnon (Atomic Kitten), Twinnie and Kenny Foster to name a few. The duo have also been trailblazers for the country scene in London, hosting their own regular songwriters event ‘The Round Up’, which has attracted high-profile names from Nashville such as Charlie Worsham and Lainey Wilson, whilst giving a fantastic platform for homegrown talent.
After collaborating with a lot of different songwriters and artists, Two Ways Home released their 3rd EP: ‘Closest Stranger’ in 2017. ‘Best Part Of Me’ and the title track have been staples on Country Hits Radio since its conception in early 2019 alongside their 2 new singles.
2018, saw the pair release 2 stand-alone singles: ‘Outlaws’ and ‘As I Leave’ (90,000 streams on Apple Music) and play some of their biggest shows to date including: appearances at The Long Road Festival, Nashville Meets London and a headline show at London’s prestigious Under The Bridge for “Nash Nights”. They also toured throughout the UK, Germany and Austria with a festival packed summer.
The beginning of 2019 saw Isabella and Lewis working on their debut album after raising over £10,000 via crowd funding platform: IndieGogo. After recording their album and completing the sound track to Austrian documentary ‘Daheim is Kein Ort’, which was premiered at the end of October 2019 at the ‘Burg Kino’ Vienna and shown on national TV in 2020. Lewis and Isabella embarked on their longest tour to date including shows in Nashville, New York, Germany, The Netherlands and 35 dates in the UK. They also paired up with Caffe Nero and played in many of their stores subsequently being crowed Caffe Nero “Artist of the Month” for October, building up over 120,000 in-store plays in October alone.
The first two singles from their debut album “Speed of Anything” and “Out on the Road” can be heard on the Caffe Nero playlist as well as all Austrian McDonalds Stores and several big shopping centers. Both tunes were streamed over 10,000 times in their first week of release and their debut album, which was released in February 2020, has already surpassed 90,000 streams on Spotify.
2020 had Two Ways Home think outside the box, they stayed busy by successfully live streaming and securing various brand collaborations as well as growing their online following. Instead of time spent on the road, the pair have been in their studio writing new music and recording tracks. They started 2021 with a bang, winning ‘Best Duo/Group’ at the Country Music Spotlight Awards and releasing 3 re-worked tracks from their debut album followed by a run of shows including appearances at several Foodies Festivals across the UK between Lockdowns. In late 2021 the pair were nominated for best band/duo at the British CMA and have spent time writing and recording new songs creating an ever-growing buzz for new releases in 2022.
