ROUTES & BRANCHES 
featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music
March 15, 2020
Scott Foley, purveyor of Purell

Hey:  Look at the calendar.  It's Wednesday already!  I'm going to take the unprecedented approach of publishing this week's Episode sans review.  Just the playlist and the ever-lovin' ROUTES-cast.  I'm efforting a piece in appreciation of this guy >, Gabe Lee.  And I'll likely share it in the next day or two.  But I don't want to wait much longer to float the rest of this content in your direction.

As I've mentioned previously, I'm a public librarian.  A dangerous profession in any time, let alone during a pandemic.  While my library is closed to the public, and I'm officially one-half of the staff remaining in the building, you'd be surprised how much work there is to do, how much distraction exists to clutter the space between me and a published review.

So we'll see what happens.  My expectation is to keep this thing afloat with little additional interruption going forward.  After all.  How hard can it be to just say Hey, listen to this!?  Nevertheless, times are odd and life is different.  So please enjoy what there is to enjoy in today's post.  And we'll try again this coming week.  Stay well.


- Country Westerns, "Anytime" Country Westerns  (Fat Possum, May 1)
- Jessi Alexander, "Decatur County Red" Decatur Country Red  (Lost Creek, Mar 27)
- Tender Things, "You'll Be Gone" How You Make a Fool  (Ebaugh, Mar 27)
- Will Sexton, "Fell In Straight View" Don't Walk the Darkness  (Big Legal Mess, 20)
- Waco Brothers, "Plenty Tough Union Made" Resist!  (Bloodshot, 20)
- Margo Price, "Twinkle Twinkle" That's How Rumors Get Started  (Loma Vista, May 8)  D
- M Ward, "Torch" Migration Stories  (Anti, Apr 3)
- Esme Patterson, "Fools Gold" There Will Come Soft Rains  (BMG, 20)
- Romantica, "National Side" America  (La Traviata, 07)
- Teddy Thompson, "At a Light" Heartbreaker Please  (Chalky Sounds, May 8)
- Mastersons, "Silver Line" No Time For Love Songs  (Red House, 20)
- Mapache, "Read Between the Lines" From Liberty Street  (Yep Roc, Mar 20)
- Blasters, "She's Gone Away" American Music  (Concord, 80)
^ Gabe Lee, "Great Big River" Honky Tonk Hell  (Torrez, 20)
- Maria McKee, "I Should Have Looked Away" La Vita Nuova  (Fire, 20)
- Hellbound Glory, "Damned Angel" Pure Scum  (Black Country Rock, Jun 5)  D
- Hailey Whitters, "All the Cool Girls" The Dream  (Pigasus, 20)
- Brown Bird, "Down To the River" Devil Dancing  (Brown Bird, 09)
- Sadler Vaden, "Peace + Harmony" Anybody Out There  (Dirty Mag, 20)
- Dave Simonett, "It Comes and Goes" Red Tail  (Dancing Eagle, 20)
- Sam Doores, "Other Side of Town (feat.Alynda Segarra)" Sam Doores  (New West, 20)
- Doug Sahm, "At the Crossroads" He's About a Groover: An Essential Collection Vol 2  (Fuel, 04)
- Ron Pope, "Dodge Aries Wagon" Bone Structure  (Brooklyn Basement, 20)
- Damien Jurado, "Birds Tricked Into the Trees" What's New Tomboy  (Mama Bird, May 1)
- Chatham County Line, "Strange Fascination" Strange Fascination  (Yep Roc, May 15)
- Panhandlers, "Lonesome Heart" Panhandlers  (Next Waltz, 20)
- Jesse Daniel, "If You Ain't Happy Now" Rollin' On  (Die True, Mar 27)
- Jason Isbell, "Hello In There" Music Moments  (Alzheimers Association, 20)  D
- Night Beds, "TENN" Country Sleep  (Dead Oceans, 13)


With all this week's distraction, we still managed to sneak a wealth of new release announcements onto A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster.  So far, even as concerts and festivals and social congregations are being postponed, it seems albums are still being made and music continues to be shared.  God bless America.  Larkin Poe have walked an unlikely path from their early days as 2/3 of the Lovell Sisters.  The duo share more of their blues-injected rock 'n pop on Self Made Man, expected to populate empty store shelves on May 1.  One of the certain highlights of 2020 will land May 8 via Loma Vista Records.  That's How Rumors Get Started marks Margo Price's third CD, this one produced by Sturgill Simpson.  At a far different profile is one of my favorite under-the-radar acts, Oregon's Harmed Brothers.  Set your expectations for Good Things as Fluff & Gravy unleashes Across the Waves come June 5.  That same date we should save our allowance for Pure Scum, celebrating the return of Hellbound Glory, as well as for the next project by Mark Olson & Ingunn Ringvold.  They'll bring us Magdalen Accepts the Invitation courtesy of Fiesta Red.  With a rough week behind us, and who-knows-what up ahead, you deserve this weekly ROUTES-cast:

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