The Heavy Horses is the pseudonym under which Justin Mahoney writes about outlaws, angels, and murder. The debut album Murder Ballads & Other Love Songs was nominated for Country Album of the Year at the 2013 East Coast Music Awards and Folk Artist of the Year at the 2013 MusicNL Awards.

The album was recorded and mixed in Toronto by Laurence Currie (Amelia Curran/Wintersleep/The Once), and features Canadian talents including Andrew Collins (Creaking Tree String Quartet, The Foggy Hogtown Boys), Max Heineman (The Foggy Hogtown Boys), Christine Bougie (Amy Millan, Bahamas), and Brad Kilpatrick (Hawksley Workman), among others.