ROUTES & BRANCHES
featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music
November 8, 2024
Scott Foley, purveyor of dust
WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THiS WEEK?!!
Zach Bryan, "This World's a Giant" single (Belting Bronco, Nov 7)
The first of a pair of new songs released by Bryan might be our favorite yet, with its very loose arrangement of piano, acoustic guitar, and tired horns. Some have criticized the songwriter for releasing seemingly unpolished songs, but it's that untied quality that we find most appealing. Last minute backing vocals from Grumpy's Heaven Schmitt are an unkempt bow atop the whole thing: Be still be quiet/ This world's a giant / That I don't feel like facing tonight.
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Juanita Stein, "Carry Me" The Weightless Hour (Agricultural Audio, Nov 29)
A simple little music box of a song from the onetime frontperson for Australia's Howling Bells. Stein tells of her family's chance encounter of a Tuscan Airbnb during the pandemic, the idyllic locale where the song was written and her video recorded: We arrive here with nothing / We leave here with nothing but light / There's a rumor we keep coming back until we get it all right. The lo-fi nature of the recording, with its picked electric guitar and piano, seems handpicked from a hot summer day. The artist called it, One of the most fluid and magical songwriting experiences I've ever had.
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Brothers Comatose, "These Days (ft AJ Lee)" single (Swamp Jam, Nov 7)
We'll highlight our favorite cover songs of 2024 in just a couple weeks. This lovely collaboration on Jackson Browne's track from 1973's For Everyman showcases the Brothers' harmonies with guest AJ Lee, who adds an exquisite mandolin to the mix. We're featuring the quartet's live take of the song, released earlier this fall. Simple, and simply beautiful.
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Brent Cobb, "Snakebite" single (Ol' Buddy, Nov 8)
What?!! Nobody warned us about a new single from Brent Cobb, no doubt our inaugural glimpse into a forthcoming album. Cowritten with Channing Wilson and Jeremy Spillman, "Snakebite" arrives with a sense of foreboding: It ain't the snake you see / It's the one in the weeds. Ain't that the truth? The spare recording recalls stuff from Brent Cobb's 2018 Providence Canyon, which is quite a welcome sound.
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Wussy, "Inhaler" Cincinnati Ohio (Wussy, Nov 15)
We're going to adjust the name of our recurring Friday post to be What's So Great About This Week: Featuring Wussy. As next week's release date for two EPs and a full LP approaches, this third single grows and swells until it sweeps us off our feet. Lisa Walker takes lead, until she engages in dueling choruses with Chuck Cleaver. Which reminds us, please stick around for bonus footage of Chuck's guitar squall and ensuing cackle. Chuck cackles for all of us.
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