WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT MAY?!!

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

May 30, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

This weekend I was readying my half-year favorites list, given the fact that we were facing the onset of June. This exercise was delayed when an associate mentioned that we would not meet our halfway point until the end of June. In light of that revelation, we'll turn our collective attention to our ten favorite songs for the month just passed. 

Not an easy exercise, given the fact that May has unloaded such a wealth of records to consider. Heck, we're not even done picking thru the wreckage left by May 20th's record-setting release storm. Nevertheless, we foolishly persist: 

WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT MAY?!!

1. Laney Jones, "Can't Stop the Rain" Stories Up High  (Tone Tree, May 20)

2. Wilco, "Tired of Taking it Out on You" Cruel Country  (dBpm, May 27)

3. 49 Winchester, "Second Chance" Fortune Favors the Bold  (New West, May 13)

4. Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, "I Just Came Home to Count the Memories" Something Borrowed Something New: Tribute to John Anderson  (Easy Eye, Aug 5)

5. Drive-by Truckers, "Every Single Storied Flameout" Welcome 2 Club XIII  (ATO, Jun 3)

6. Amanda Shires, "Hawk For the Dove" Take it Like a Man  (ATO, Jul 29)

7. Caleb Caudle, "Little Reminders" single  (Soundly, 22)

8. Willi Carlisle, "Life on the Fence" Peculiar, Missouri  (Free Dirt, Jul 15)

9. Wynonna & Waxahatchee, "Other Side" single  (Anti, May 24)

10. Joan Shelley, "Amberlit Morning (feat. Bill Callahan)" The Spur  (No Quarter, Jun 24)

--------------------------

Even as we assess the damage left in the wake of May, we continue to add stuff to A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster, our lovingly tended release calendar. The last few days included the second solo album by former Uncle Lucius frontman Kevin Galloway. Secondhand Starlight will arrive June 22 on Nine Mile Records. Begun as a lark in 2008, the collaboration between M Ward and Zooey Deschanel has lasted longer than expected. Expect the next She & Him project on July 22, with Melt Away: A Tribute to Brian Wilson (Fantasy). Also in 2008, Joe Pug released a revelatory Nation of Heat EP. Pug revisits those earliest songs on Nation of Heat Revisited, re-recording them in light of all he has learned in the ensuing years (Nation Head, July 22). Possibly distracted by her work with Jason Isbell's 400 Unit and the Highwomen, it's been four years since Amanda Shires' last non-holiday solo LP. That will change with the release of Take It Like a Man (ATO, July 29). Finally, we're thrilled to announce the next collection by one of our favorite songwriters. Andrew Combs has planned an August 19 release for Sundays (Tone Tree). 

ROUTES-cast MAY 29, 2022

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country & roots music

May 29, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

- Wilco, "Bird Without a Tail / Base of My Skull" Cruel Country  (dBpm, 22)

- Mavis Staples & Levon Helm, "This is My Country" Carry Me Home  (Anti, 22)

- Early James, "What a Strange Time to Be Alive" Strange Time to Be Alive  (Easy Eye, Aug 19)  D

- Steve Earle, "Hill Country Rain" Jerry Jeff  (New West, 22)

- Rachel Brooke, "Log Train" single  (Brooke, 22)  D

- JD McPherson, "It's Raining" Warm Covers EP  (New West, 22)

- Greyhounds, "Big Bend" Adobe EP  (Nine Mile, 22)

- Kevin Galloway, "Like Before" Secondhand Starlight  (Nine Mile, Jun 22)  D

- Freedy Johnston, "There Goes a Brooklyn Girl" Back on the Road to You  (Forty Below, Sep 9)  D

- Buffalo Hunt, "Which One of Us is To Blame (feat. Shakey Graves)" Ambitions of Ambiguity  (Nine Mile, 22)  D

- Andrew Combs, "(God)less" Sundays  (Tone Tree, Aug 19)  D

^ Amanda Shires, "Hawk For the Dove" Take It Like a Man  (ATO, Jul 29)  D

- Zach Bryan, "Heavy Eyes" American Heartbreak  (Belting Bronco, 22)

- Teddy & the Rough Riders, "Livin' in the Woods" Teddy & the Rough Riders  (Appalachia, Jul 1)  D

- Wynonna & Waxahatchee, "Other Side" single  (Anti, 22)  D

- Ryan Adams, "Rollercoaster" Romeo & Juliet  (PaxAm, 22)  D

- Bright Eyes, "Solid Jackson" Collection of Songs Written and Recorded 1995-1997  (Dead Oceans, 22)

- Cut Worms, "Dreams Most Wild" single  (Jagjaguwar, 22)  D

- Andrew Bird, "Make a Picture" Inside Problems  (Wegawam, Jun 3)

- Angel Olsen, "One Too Many Mornings" Shining Girls  (Sony, 22)  D

- Field Guides, "Margaret" Gingko  (Whatever's Clever, Jun 24)

- Peter Matthew Bauer, "Knife Fighter" Flowers  (Fortune Tellers, Sep 23)  D

- Tommy McLain, "Greatest Show on Hurt" I Ran Down Every Dream  (Yep Roc, Aug 26)

- Alex Dupree, "Fortunado" Thieves  (Keeled Scales, Jul 15)

- Parker Twomey, "Counting Down the Days" All This Life  (Twomey, Jul 15)  D

- Why Bonnie, "Galveston" 90 in November  (Keeled Scales, Sep 19)  D

- Mapache, "Light My Fire" Roscoe's Dream  (Innovative Leisure, Jun 10)

- Jenny O, "Prism" single  (Mama Bird, 22)  D

- Left Arm Tan, "Angels Anyway" Undefeated  (LAT, 22)

- Jose Medeles, "Please Send to JF (feat. Marisa Anderson)" Railroad Cadences & Melancholic Anthems  (Jealous Butcher, 22)

Earlier ROUTES-casts have been removed; subscribe to our Spotify page to keep up with all our new playlists!

ROUTES-cast MAY 22, 2022

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

May 22, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust 

- Willi Carlisle, "Life On the Fence" Peculiar Missouri  (Free Dirt, Jul 15)

- Nicki Bluhm, "Learn to Love Myself" Avondale Drive  (Compass, Jun 3)

- Left Arm Tan, "Pamplona" Undefeated  (LAT, 22)

- Simon Joyner, "Live in the Moment" Songs From a Stolen Guitar  (Grapefruit, 22)

- Joseph Huber, "Dog Days" The Downtowner  (Huber, 22)

- Delta Spirit, "Pick it Up" One is One  (New West, 22)

- Craig Finn, "Jessamine" A Legacy of Rentals  (Positive Jams, 22)

- Jo Schornikow, "Wrong About You" Altar  (Keeled Scales, 22)

- Drive-by Truckers, "The Driver" Welcome 2 Club XIII  (ATO, Jun 3)

- John Doe, "Travelin' So Hard" Fables in a Foreign Land  (Yep Roc, 22)

- IV & the Strange Band, "Deep Down" Southern Circus  (Black Country Rock, Jul 17)

- Laney Jones, "Can't Stop the Rain" Storeys Up High  (Tone Tree, 22)

- Zach Bryan, "Tishomingo" American Heartbreak  (Belting Bronco, 22)

- Kenny Roby, "Leave it Behind" Kenny Roby  (Royal Potato Family, Aug 5)  D

- She & Him, "Darlin'" Melt Away: Tribute to Brian Wilson  (Fantasy, Jul 22)  D

- Kevin Morby, "Rock Bottom" This is a Photograph  (Dead Oceans, 22)

^ Thomas Dollbaum, "Gold Teeth" Wellswood  (Big Legal Mess, 22)

- Banditos, "Time Wasted" Right On  (Egghunt, 22)

- Joe Pug, "Nation of Heat (Revisited)" Nation of Heat Revisited  (Soundly, Jul 22)  D

- Damien Jurado, "Day of the Robot" Reggae Film Star  (Maraqopa, Jun 22)

- Angel Olsen, "Through the Fires" Big Time  (Jagjaguwar, Jun 3)

- Caamp, "Lavender Girl" Lavender Days  (Mom + Pop, Jun 24)

- Watson Twins, "Two Timin' (feat. Butch Walker)" single  (Watson, 22)  D

- Phosphorescent, "To Love Somebody" single  (Calldown, 22)  D

- Marcus King, "Rescue Me" Young Blood  (American, Aug 26)

- Deslondes, "Dunes" Ways & Means  (New West, Jul 8)

- Drew Kennedy, "Peace and Quiet" Marathon  (Atlas Aurora, Jun 17)

- Laura Veirs, "Seaside Haiku" Found Light  (Raven Marching Band, Jul 8)

- John Moreland, "Claim Your Prize" Birds in the Ceiling  (Old Omens, Jul 22)

- Kristina Murray, "That Just About Does it (feat. Logan Ledger)" single  (Loud Magnolia, 22)  D

 

Earlier ROUTES-casts have been removed; subscribe to our Spotify page to keep up with all our new playlists!

LEFT ARM TAN - UNDEFEATED

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

May 21, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of exceptions

Listen to Left Arm Tan, then tell me what you hear. Over the years, I've repeatedly compared the Texas outfit to Reckless Kelly, Sons of Bill and Will Hoge. While I continue to stand behind those opinions, I don't think I've written nearly as much about those more established artists as I've written about Left Arm Tan. Beginning with 2013's Alticana, followed by Lorene, El Camino and 2020's self-titled collection, their gritty alt.country was steadily polished into a pearl of tuneful working class rock. 

Undefeated speaks to Left Arm Tan's commitment to expanding the borders of their sound without losing track of their melodic roots calling card. Working for the first time with onetime Wilco drummer Ken Coomer as producer, there are new shades and accents teased out of their songs. The resulting collection is lean and efficient, beholden more to songcraft than to genre or to what's come before. 

By comparison, 2016's Lorene boasted a sprawling sixteen cuts. Left Arm Tan reportedly sent more than twice as many song ideas to Coomer, a ball of sound which the producer untangled to reveal the eight tunes we have on Undefeated (it's apparently his rule that no LP exceed that number). As a result, the collection is direct. Every music gesture sounds purposeful. 

The title track balances a road-warrior spirit with a recognition of the toll taken by the tigers in the trees. "Undefeated" isn't so much a rallying cry as it is a statement of faith in our readiness for one more swing. Nothing on the record repeats the go-for-broke message of earlier Left Arm Tan. Instead the diverse lineup of songs cruise on a more deliberate tempo, reflecting a wiser approach to life in general. "Undefeated" drops Petty references both musical and lyrical: I can taste blood in the corner of my mouth / But like old Tom I won't back down. "76 Trans Am" is fueled by a memorable chorus and bridge, the narrator meandering the streets of his hometown and the thoughts in his head: The more she changed, the more I stayed the same. These new sessions recall the early-evening, late summer vibe of 70s and 80s rock. "Angels Anyway" is a beautifully melancholy example, a lone trumpet suggests a wistful mood, complimented by cries from a guitar: Baby all we are / Is all we'll ever be. 

Daniel Hines, Brian Lee and co. have grown into terrific songwriters over the years, creating genuine moods with quotable lyrics and perfect turns of musical phrase. The acoustic, understated "Old Man and the Sea" joins a father and sun sharing a boat, but separated by the gulf between us. A steady heartbeat of processed percussion sets the pace for "Cannonball", the recollection of a young reckless life. While the individual pieces of Undefeated are familiar, Coomer and Left Arm Tan have assembled them into a road-ready composite that sounds current, regularly checking retro boxes but never yielding to the flat, functional production that plagues roots records. Singer Brian Lee merits special mention as one of the better vocalists in our kind of music. 

Undefeated is a thoughtful album, even as it delivers some of its most indelible messages with a kickdrum and a roundhouse punch. With Tim Manders' clamoring percussion and Marc Belding's blaring horns, "Pamplona" suggests Old 97s sharing a stage with Calexico: Beating heart like a drum. "Born to Break Your Heart" shares some of that same spirit, adding a spaghetti Western vibe to the mix: I'm not the answer / I am the gun and a good slow dancer. Cowbell introduces the dirtier "Cocaine Skinny", a tune whose animated video amplifies the tongue-in-cheek nature of the character sketch: Leopard skin boots and a trucker hat. 

Left Arm Tan have approached each project as an opportunity and a challenge to amplify new elements of their sound. Undefeated overflows boundaries and definitions, a roots record that recognizes the importance of production and mix in ways we've previously heard from bands like Delta Spirit and Sons of Bill (who have also worked with Ken Coomer). The album's title derives from a Hemingway story of the same name, a presence that carries throughout the collection. The writer offers: But man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated. Left Arm Tan step into every corrida, every LP ready to face the bull. I ain't heard no bell ...

ROUTES-cast MAY 15, 2022

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

May 15, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

So many strong songs have graced our ROUTES-casts lately. Most of these come from forthcoming records, as announced on A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster. This week we added a promising new Nathan Kalish project. Great Big Motel Bed in the Sky (JTM) is available for occupancy beginning July 22. Murder by Death have recovered from their 2020 Christmas album, and are ready for their next project. Spell/Bound is set for a July 29 appearance. Immediately campaigning for Best Tribute Album Ever is Something Borrowed Something New, a celebration of John Anderson courtesy of Easy Eye Sound. In addition to the wonderful Gillian Welch & David Rawlings cover we shared last Episode, the August 5 collection will feature tributes from Nathaniel Rateliff, Sturgill Simpson, Sierra Ferrell and more. That same day, you can expect the full-length follow-up to Will Stewart's excellent 2018 County Seat. Cornelius Chapel will share Slow Life on August 5.  Kelsey Waldon returns to the studio for her next sessions for the Oh Boy label. Expect No Regular Dog wherever music matters on August 12. 

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- 49 Winchester, "Second Chance" Fortune Favors the Bold  (New West, 22)

- Greyhounds, "West Texas" Adobe EP  (Nine Mile, 22)  D

- Mama's Broke, "Wreckage Done" Narrow Lines  (Free Dirt, 22)

- Bob Sumner, "Broken Record" single  (Sumner, 22)  D

- Damn Quails, "Peace in the Valley (King of the Hill)" Clouding Up Your City  (Honky Tonk Lab, Jun 17)

- Black Keys, "For the Love of Money" Dropout Boogie  (Nonesuch, 22)

- Night Moves, "Feel Another Day" single  (Domino, 22)  D

- Banditos, "Right On" Right On  (Egghunt, May 20)

- Wilco, "Tired of Taking It Out On You" Cruel Country  (dBpm, May 29)

- Nathan Kalish, "Past the Everglades" Great Big Motel Bed in the Sky  (JTM, Jul 22)

- Joy Oladokun, "Purple Haze" single  (Amigo, 22)  D

- Revelators Sound System, "George the Revelator" Revelators  (37d03d, Jun 17)  D

- Seth Walker, "Why Do I Cry Anymore" I Hope I Know  (Royal Potato Family, May 20)

- Band of Heathens, "Not Mine to Begin With" single  (BoH, 22)  D

- Chris Bathgate, "Sweet Fern" Significance of Peaches  (Quite Scientific, 22)

- Murder by Death, "Never Be" Spell/Bound  (MbD, Jul 29)  D

^ Joseph Huber, "Spirit of Tennessee" Downtowner  (Huber, 22)  D

- Lera Lynn, "Something More Than Love" Something More Than Love  (Lera Lynn, Jul 15)

- Kevin Morby, "Bittersweet, TN (feat. Erin Rae)" This is a Photograph  (Dead Oceans, 22)

- Lyle Lovett, "12th of June" 12th of June  (Verve, 22)

- American Aquarium, "Wildfire" Chicamacomico  (Losing Side, Jun 10)

- Arlo McKinley, "To Die For" This Mess We're In  (Oh Boy, Jul 15)

- Valerie June, "Fade Into You" single  (Fantasy, 22)  D

- Will Stewart, "Bad Memory" Slow Life  (Cornelius Chapel, Aug 5)  D

- M Lockwood Porter, "While We're Here" single  (MLP, 22)  D

- Alex Dupree, "Fake Diamonds False Powers" Thieves  (Keeled Scales, Jul 15)  D

- Amythyst Kiah, "Sugar" single  (Rounder, 22)  D

- Daniel Young, "Water Table Line (feat. Lillie Mae)" single  (Young, 22)  D

- Anais Mitchell, "Morning Glory" Anais Mitchell (Deluxe) (BMG, 22)

- Jose Medeles, "Richness of Peace (feat. M Ward)" Railroad Cadences & Melancholic Anthems  (Jealous Butcher, May 20)  D

Earlier ROUTES-casts have been removed; subscribe to our Spotify page to keep up with all our new playlists!

the AMERiCANS - STAND TRUE

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

May 14, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

If I'm doing this thing right, I've made a case over the past many years for the great diversity possible in roots music. We do cast a vast net here at R&B HQ, hauling in mutations and hybrids of the familiar, stuff that at some point probably traces its heritage back to folk, country, soul or blues, even if you have to squint to hear it. Los Angeles' Americans began by feeding their fascination with rockabilly and country-blues, before gradually extending those influences outwards on a debut EP and on 2017's I'll Be Yours (see standout cuts "Right Stuff" and "Hooky"). Fronted by singer-guitarist Patrick Ferris, the Americans have flirted with the fringes of pop, rock and soul, investing their originals with a live urgency that makes them better than you might have expected. 

The Americans' second full-length collection demonstrates tighter songcraft while also exercising less restraint. Stand True gives rein to Tim Carr's unrestrained drumming, tumbling, chugging or pounding fiercely. "Sore Bones" is an unmannered wallop, not unlike Tom Waits fronting Shovels & Rope: I'm a low-brow, chin-down / Fist-slugging, scuffling kind. Songs like "Orion" set up shop at the far reaches of what was once rockabilly, where Ferris' singing falls to the unhinged, spirit-filled edge.  The song also typifies the dirty, garage guitar that permeates Stand True, shared between Ferris and Zac Sokolow, with Jake Faulkner abusing his bass. 

It's a beautiful noise, a racket that reads like the most primitive moments of Devil Makes Three or Low Cut Connie. But like Connie's Adam Weiner, Patrick Ferris wields a fiercely soulful vocal, shot through with spirit and fervor. That bottled lightning is on display on "Born With a Broken Heart", ranging from a high croon to a gritty growl, inviting us to Let your reckless body lead you astray. The singer's most impressive moments happen with more soulful cuts like "What Would I Do" or "Here With You". "Day I Let You Down" drags listeners through a heavier blues rock: That's how a small town stays small / Folks make up their minds and cross their arms. 

Stand True finds The Americans experimenting confidently with their songwriting and arrangements, introducing the title track with acoustic picking and slide guitar, before switching gears for a bluesy break: I don't speak your name, but I have not forgotten how. The song's latter half unleashes a shimmering guitar solo (absolutely underappreciated in roots music), the rocking instrumental unspooling into a satisfying outro. "Give Way" and "Farewell" play similarly with evolving dynamics and sudden sonic eruptions. Patrick Ferris' delivery on the latter is a sung/spoken funeral pastiche, a Dylan-esque drawl: A world is gone, but people keep moving / Like nothing was wrong. 

Please understand that, aside from The The, The Americans might be one of the more difficult acts to track down online, with searches bringing up a myriad of tastefully jingoistic sites with inspiring pics of majestic eagles in mid-flight (none of which have anything to do with our LA outfit). But once you land at your destination your hard work will be rewarded, the boundaries of your roots music world will be widened. Stand True ends by accepting an invitation to drive into the promise of a night that's still young: The cafes are closing / The sky is black and blue / The streets are wide open / The world is brand new. 

ROUTES-cast MAY 8, 2022

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

May 8, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

^ Joan Shelley, "Amberlit Morning (feat. Bill Callahan)" The Spur  (No Quarter, Jun 24)

- Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, "I Just Came Home To Count the Memories" Something Borrowed Something New: Tribute to John Anderson  (Easy Eye, Aug 5)  D

- Steve Earle, "Mr Bojangles" Jerry Jeff  (New West, May 27)

- Mapache, "Tend Your Garden" Roscoe's Dream  (Innovative Leisure, Jan 10)

- Mama's Broke, "How It Ends" Narrow Line  (Free Dirt, May 13)  D

- Caleb Caudle, "Little Reminders" single  (Soundly, 22)  D

- Hackensaw Boys, "My Turn" Hackensaw Boys  (Suns Work, Jun 24)

- Drive-by Truckers, "Every Single Storied Flameout" Welcome 2 Club XIII  (ATO, Jun 3)

- Left Arm Tan, "Cocaine Skinny" Undefeated  (LAT, May 20)

- SG Goodman, "Heart Swell" Teeth Marks  (Verve, Jun 3)

- Field Guides, "Margaret" Ginkgo  (Whatever's Clever, Jun 24)

- Americans, "Farewell" Stand True  (Loose, 22)

- Marlon Williams, "My Boy" single  (Dead Oceans, 22)  D

- Laney Jones, "Secret Weapon" Stories Up High  (Tone Tree, May 20)

- Nathan Kalish, "My Love" Great Big Motel Bed in the Sky  (JTM, Jul 22)  D

- David Newbould, "Power Up!" Power Up!  (Blackbird, Jun 10)

- Fantastic Negrito, "They Go Low" White Jesus Black Problems  (Storefront, Jun 3)

- Luke Winslow-King, "Don't Tell Me I Don't Love You" If These Walls Could Talk  (Ghost River, 22)

- Neal Casal, "No Hard Feelings (feat. Johnny Irion, Jonthan Wilson)" single  (Casal Fndtn, 22)  D

- Kelsey Waldon, "Sweet Little Girl" No Regular Dog  (Oh Boy, Aug 12)  D

- Aaron Raitiere, "Everybody Else" Single Wide Dreamer  (Dinner Time, 22)

- Flatland Cavalry, "Gettin' By" Far Out West Sessions  (Flatland, 22)

- Zach Bryan, "Open the Gate" American Heartbreak  (Belting Bronco, May 20)

- Brennen Leigh, "Riding Off Onto Sunset Boulevard" Obsessed With the West  (Signature Sounds, 22)

- Terry Allen, "Texas Tears" Smokin' the Dummy (Reissue)  (Paradise of Bachelors, 22)

- Blue Dogs, "Good Ones" Big Dreamers  (Kennel Mgmt, Jun 3)

- Jonah Tolchin, "Never Giving Up" Lava Lamp  (Yep Roc, Jul 15)

- Anais Mitchell, "Any Way You Come" Anais Mitchell (Deluxe)  (BMG, 22)

- Delta Spirit, "Villains" One is One  (New West, May 20)

- Mary Gauthier, "Dark Enough to See" Dark Enough to See the Stars  (In the Black, Jun 3)

Earlier ROUTES-casts have been removed; subscribe to our Spotify page to keep up with all our new playlists!

CAROLiNE SPENCE - TRUE NORTH

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

May 2, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

I'll never get to know Maren Morris or Chris Stapleton. There's very little chance I'll ever see Taylor Swift browsing cereal boxes at a grocer near me. While my earlier years as a concert promoter introduced me to saints and to jerks, I've never needed to like the artists I presented, to get to know them as people. That said, I do appreciate when performers grant us at least a glimpse of who they are. Amanda Anne Platt. Lori McKenna. Erin Enderlin. 

Caroline Spence. Spence puts forth her mission statement as a songwriter at the outset of her fourth album, True North (Rounder): I sit down here to work through my fears, she sings. And that's what I end up singing out loud. Beginning with her 2015 debut, through her excellent one-two punch of Spades & Roses and 2019's Mint Condition, she has embraced the role of a heart-on-a-sleeve songwriter, delivering some of the decade's strongest songs including "Southern Accident", "What You Don't Know" and the devastating "Sit Here and Love Me": I'm still someone you know / Please recognize my shadow / This is the same place from where I love you deeply. 

While Spence operates near the crossroads of folk, country and pop, she identifies influences much further afield: In 2020 I did a nostalgic deep dive and listened to a lot of Nada Surf, Aimee Mann, Oasis - all the teenage mix tape all-stars ... For her new collection, she partnered with producer/instrumentalist Jordan Lehning, who has helmed projects for like-minded artists such as Andrew Combs, Joshua Hedley and Caitlin Rose. The songwriter also acknowledges her allegiance to literary figures on True North. That opening confessional is simply called "Mary Oliver", arriving with the bang of drums and with chiming keys, a larger and more radio-ready sound that permeates the sessions. Spence jabs at her reputation as a confessional writer: Turn off the record if you think I'm getting better / I don't want to let you down. 

"Clean Getaway" begins with an electric pulse and more big drums, atmospherics that identify True North as not just another contemporary singer-songwriter standing at a mic. Rubbery reverb guitars and bright piano accents propel the song forward as Spence, rushing headlong into her thirtieth year, sings of her Saturn Return. Most days it's hard just to be yourself / But it's impossible to be anybody else, she sings, coming to terms with those elements of our younger selves that serve as an inheritance as we concede to adulthood. With its low-slung guitars and boom-crash percussion, "Walk the Walk" also delivers on Spence's sonic promise for a more rewarding listen.

Beneath the robust drums, the more insistent guitar and the studio touches, Caroline Spence's lyrical gift leaves no doubt about her perennial commitment to songcraft.  Songs like "True North" and "The Gift" shine with acceptance and encouragement, and her cowrite with Lori McKenna, "Next Good Time" could be stitched and hung on a quiet kitchen wall: Grit your teeth / Get through it / And wait for the next good time. Inspired by Mary Oliver and Pema Chodron, "There's Always Room" bursts with these blooms of wisdom: Pain is just love with nowhere to go. These are hardwon perspectives as opposed to flowery Hallmark sentiments, aphorisms that the songwriter shares unabashedly. 

In February, Spence released "I Know You Know Me", a duet with the National's Matt Berninger that raised questions about a possible musical redirection. Any changes simply serve to sharpen the focus on her growing confidence and directness as a writer, not to overlook Spence's increasingly distinct vocal delivery. Look no further than "Scale These Walls", a typically gratifying slice of melodic perfection that finds the singer issuing an invitation to breach her defenses: Come on over here and scale these walls / I built them just for you. True North is Caroline Spence in her element, at her most vulnerable. It's a step towards production and arrangement that bring her closer to the sound of her songwriting hero Taylor Swift, while sacrificing none of her humanity or her accessibility. 

--------------------------

Some good stuff added this week to A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster, our perpetually updated calendar of new and forthcoming roots music releases. Wilco (finally) returns to the days of olde on their new alt.country-leaning collection. We look forward to Cruel Country on May 27 (dBpm). Patty Griffin dug through boxes of demo tapes for her new project. The lo-fi Tape in due on June 10 (PGM). Rod Picott is one of our most consistently reliable singer-songwriters. His 14th record, Paper Hearts & Broken Arrows lands on shelves on June 10, courtesy of his Welding Rod label. The always interesting Damien Jurado has set June 24 as a release date for Reggae Film Star (Maraqopa). Finally, in the wake of the passing of Dallas Good, the Sadies will release his final album. Produced by Arcade Fire's Richard Redd Parry, expect Colder Streams on July 22 (Yep Roc). 

ROUTES-cast MAY 1, 2022

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

May 1, 2022

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

Writing this week from Southern Virginia, where Spring has placed a stranglehold on everything in sight (as opposed to Colorado where last I checked Spring was little more than a suggestion). As we sneak out of April, and maybe give May a chance, we select just ten standout songs from the past thirty days. 

WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT APRiL?!!

1. Deau Eyes, "Another One Comes Around" Legacies  (Tone Tree, Jun 10)

2. Caroline Spence, "Scale These Walls" True North  (Rounder, Apr 29)

3. SG Goodman, "All My Love is Coming Back To Me" Teeth Marks  (Verve, Jun 3)

4. Thomas Dollbaum, "All is Well" Wellswood  (Big Legal Mess, May 20)

5. Laney Jones, "One Fine Morning" Stories Up High  (Tone Tree, May 20)

6. Wilco, "Falling Apart (Right Now)" Cruel Country  (dBpm, May 27)

7. Angel Olsen, "Big Time" Big Time  (Jagjaguwar, Jun 3)

8. Hackensaw Boys, "Mary Shelley" Hackensaw Boys  (Suns Work, Jun 24)

9. Aaron Raitiere, "Single Wide Dreamer" Single Wide Dreamer  (Dinner Time, May 6)

10. Kevin Morby, "A Random Act of Kindness" This is a Photograph  (Dead Oceans, May 13)

--------------------------

- Glenn Jones, "Ruthie's Farewell" Vade Mecum  (Thrill Jockey, Jun 24)

^ Caroline Spence, "Mary Oliver" True North  (Rounder, 22)

- Thomas Dollbaum, "Work Hard" Wellswood  (Big Legal Mess, May 20)

- Kevin Morby, "A Random Act of Kindness" This is a Photograph  (Dead Oceans, May 13) 

- Angel Olsen, "Big Time"  Big Time  (Jagjaguwar, Jun 3)

- Cass McCombs, "Belong to Heaven" single (Anti, 22)  D

- Wilco, "Falling Apart (Right Now)" Cruel Country  (dBpm, May 27)  D

- Los Colognes, "Ballad of a Straw Man" New World  (Colognes, May 3)  D

- Mavis Staples & Levon Helm, "I Wish I Know How It Would Feel To Be Free" Carry Me Home  (Anti, May 20)

- Jonny Burke, "I Cut Off My Ankle Monitor to Be Here" Behind the Pine Curtain  (Burke, 22)  D

- Black Keys, "It Ain't Over" Dropout Boogie  (Nonesuch, May 13)

- MJ Lenderman, "Under Control" Boat Songs  (Dear Life, 22)

- Michaela Anne, "Does It Ever Break Your Heart" Oh To Be That Free  (Yep Roc, Jun 10)

- Damien Jurado, "Taped In Front of a Live Studio Audience" Reggae Film Star  (Maraqopa, Jun 24)  D

- Patty Griffin, "Get Lucky" Tape  (PGM, Jun 10)  D

- Sadies, "Cut Up High and Dry" Colder Streams  (Yep Roc, Jul 22)  D

- Joshua Hedley, "River in the Rain" Neon Blue  (New West, 22)

- Damn Quails, "Monsters" Clouding Up Your City  (Honky Tonk Lab, Jun 17)  D

- Margo Price, "Goin' to the Country" That's How Rumors Get Started (Deluxe Edition)  (Loma Vista, 22)

- Corb Lund, "Big American Headliner" Songs My Friends Wrote  (New West, 22)

- 49 Winchester, "All I Need" Fortune Favors the Bold  (New West, May 13)

- Miranda Lambert, "Music City Queen (feat. B-52s)" Palomina  (Vanner, 22)

- Drew Kennedy, "Marathon" Marathon  (Atlas Aurora, Jun 17)  D

- Izaak Opatz, "East of Barstow" Extra Medium  (Mama Bird, 22)

- JD McPherson, "Manta Ray" single  (New West, 22)  D

- Eli Paperboy Reed, "I'm Gonna Break Every Heart I Can" Down Every Road  (Yep Roc, 22)

- Seth Walker, "Remember Me" I Hope I Know  (Royal Potato Family, May 20)

- Nicki Bluhm, "Friends (How to Do It)" Avondale Drive  (Compass, Jun 3)

- Whiskey Myers, "Whole World Gone Crazy" Tornillo  (Wiggy Thump, Jun 29)  

- John Calvin Abney, "Sleepwalkers" Tourist  (Black Mesa, Aug 5)

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