featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music
May 3, 2026
Scott Foley, purveyor of dust
Commendable listening options for this week include a debut full-length from Nashville folk 'n blues artist Maisy Owen and a fine return to form from Kacey Musgraves. The Woodsist label has also signed artist Ruby Of Thanks, and reissued their 2020 project, In Another World. Or ...
IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK
Maybe we're taking Hiss Golden Messenger for granted. We've been sharing stuff from MC Taylor and his cast of collaborators since his early Court & Spark days. As Hiss Golden Messenger, his output has gradually abandoned the old weird and settled into a comfortable folk expression. Especially since 2016's Heart Like a Levee, we could make a case for Taylor serving as the epitome of an americana artist, batching folk, soul, and gospel in service of his heartfilled songcraft.
By way of intro, North Carolinian MC Taylor explains that he felt fried and adrift following 2023's Jump For Joy, eventually casting about for reconnection through writing retreats in California and New Mexico before meeting producer and instrumentalist Josh Kaufman at Woodstock Studios in New York. As heard on I'm People (Chrysalis), the results are more a reinvestment than a change of course. Working with percussionist JT Bates and bassplayer Cameron Ralston, the new songs bear a live, immediate spirit, sessions that reveal the fingerprints of the participants (which here include guests such as Sam Beam, Sara Watkins, and Eric D Johnson).
Working with Cook for the first time since 2019's Terms Of Surrender, these songs serve as a reminder of his golden ear as a player and producer. "In the Middle Of It" and "Shaky Eyes" are soulful jams with lovely hooks. "Alright and Then Some" whittles the arrangement back to fiddle, mandolin, and acoustic strum. Hiss Golden Messenger has never indulged in extended rave-ups, but even restrained songs like "Seneca" (featuring Sara Watkins' fiddle) kindle a satisfying groove.
Taylor has always been a thoughtful writer, wading into streams of spirituality or the natural world for inspiration. On his notes for I'm People, he states These songs first and foremost are me singing to me. Hiss Golden Messenger doesn't preach or proselytize, but isn't beyond calling out our present storm, especially in light of halcyon days: Those pearly days / When all was revolution and light. Liner notes speak to a hard-won hope, a spirit that elevates the record. On "Heavy World", Taylor sings, Heavy world keep on suffering / We're suffering now / It ain't over then advises, Don't numb yourself to the ache / And don't try to understand it.
With horns and hallelujah backing vocals, I'm People simmers to an uplift, though a more careful reading of Taylor's lyrics might reveal a thread of melancholy. On "Shaky Eyes" he sings, You got nothing to match my nothing. "Last Orders" suggests, Let's just never get older. Perhaps it's all a product of wandering in the wilderness since the last HGM LP. Taylor has emerged older and wiser, definitely ready to add to his already excellent catalog. On "Who You Gonna Run To", he reflects, Hard as it's been for everyone / I've never felt so perfect.
ROUTES-cast May 3, 2026
^ Hiss Golden Messenger, "Seneca" I'm People (Chrysalis, 26)
- Houndmouth, "Lordy" Lordy (Dualtone, Jul 10)
- Hanging Stars, "All Your Yesterdays" Just a Day (Loose, Jun 19)
- Gun Outfit, "Whiplash" Process and Reality (Upset the Rhythm, May 8)
- Jesus Christ Taxi Driver, "Record Machine" Taxi the Rich (Midtopia, 26)
- Widemouth, "Hotel Pool" No Gasoline (Urban Scandal, May 29)
- Jeffrey Silverstein, "Coming Back Around" single (Full Time Hobby, 26) D
- Bobby Dove, "Dreamt I Met John Prine" Fortune Teller (New Motor, 26)
- Joshua Ray Walker, "Shoot Me Straight" Ain't Dead Yet (Easy Dallas, May 29)
- Emily Nenni, "Yes It Hurt" Movin' Shoes (New West, 26)
- Keyland, "Stick" Knuckle Sandwich (One Riot, May 29)
- Margo Price, "Rita Ballou" Old No 1 Revisited (Truly Handmade, 26)
- Charley Crockett, "Waylon Rides Again" Clovis ($10 Cowboy, 26) D
- Erin Enderlin, "I Wrote This Song For You" single (Black Crow, 26) D
- Eric Silverman, "Light Me Up" Bitter Honey (Royal Oakie, May 29)
- Kacey Musgraves, "Mexico Honey" Middle Of Nowhere (Lost Highway, 26)
- Southall, "Pocketknife and Pliers" Kinfolk (Smoklahoma, 26) D
- Charlie Franklin, "Patchwork Of Colours" single (Franklin, 26) D
- Maisy Owen, "My Youth Is All For You" Dark On a Sunny Day (Tompkins Square, 26)
- Bobby Bare Jr, "Ridin' On the Soul Road" Let's Go Dancing: Stopped a Freight Train With a Grain Of Sand (Tasty Goody, 26)
- Ducks Ltd, "Easy Come Easy Go (ft Martin Courtney)" Easy Come Easy Go EP (Carpark, 26) D
- Greg Mendez, "No Evil" Beauty Land (Dead Oceans, May 29)
- Black Keys, "Stop Arguing Over Me" Peaches! (Easy Eye, 26)
- Jesper Lindell, "Sweeter Tomorrow" Royal (Yep Roc, Jun 26)
- Teddy Thompson, "The Game" Never Be the Same (Royal Potato, May 15)
- Mildred, "UPS Brown" Fenceline (Dog Day, 26)
- Pinkerton Raid, "All the Protest Songs Are About You" All the Protest Songs Are About You EP (DeConto, 26) D
- Magic Tuber Stringband, "Blooms In the Rapids" Heavy Water (Thrill Jockey, May 22)
- Hannah Cohen, "Golden Chain" single (Congrats, 26) D
- Alex Izenberg, "Old Gold" single (Mexican Summer, 26) D
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To enjoy any Spotify ROUTES-cast, just open Spotify and search for "routesandbranches" to access this most recent playlist, as well as many others from past months. Or click here for a preview:
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