ROUTES & BRANCHES
featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music
June 14, 2020
Scott Foley, purveyor of dust
WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THE FIRST 1/2 OF 2020?!!
Are we halfway through the year yet? Can we see the finish line from here? No. No we cannot. Matter of fact, the official halfway day of 2020 will happen on July 2, so we're just getting a jump start on our favorites list for the past six months. Were we to call it a year at this point (not a terrible idea), these would be the records that have risen to the top, in order of appearance:
- Bonny Light Horseman, Bonny Light Horseman (37d03d, Jan 24)
- Drive-by Truckers, The Unraveling (ATO, Jan 31)
- John Moreland, LP5 (Old Omens, Feb 7)
- Nathaniel Rateliff, And It's Still Alright (Stax, Feb 14)
- Gabe Lee, Honky Tonk Hell (Torrez, Mar 13)
- Lilly Hiatt, Walking Proof (New West, Mar 27)
- Waxahatchee, Saint Cloud (Merge, Mar 27)
- Tender Things, How You Make a Fool (Ebaugh, Mar 27)
- Caleb Caudle, Better Hurry Up (Baldwin County Public Records, Apr 3)
- Whitney Rose, We Still Go To Rodeos (MCG, Apr 24)
- Lucinda Williams, Good Souls Better Angels (Hwy 20, Apr 24)
- American Aquarium, Lamentations (New West, May 1)
- Andrew Bryant, Sentimental Noises (Magnolia State, May 1)
- Jason Isbell & 400 Unit, Reunions (Southeastern, May 15)
- Reckless Kelly, American Girl / American Jackpot (No Big Deal, May 22)
- Tessy Lou Williams, Tessy Lou Williams (TLW, May 22)
- Roadside Graves, That's Why We're Running Away (Don Giovanni, May 22)
- Jaime Wyatt, Neon Cross (New West, May 29)
- Harmed Brothers, Across the Waves (Fluff & Gravy, Jun 5)
- Country Westerns, Country Westerns (Fat Possum, Jun 26)
ROUTES-cast playlist
- Shovels & Rope, "Carry Me Home (acoustic)" By Blood (Deluxe Edition) (Dualtone, Aug 28) D
- Backsliders, "Abe Lincoln" Southern Lines (Mammoth, 99)
- John Craigie, "Don't Ask" Asterisk the Universe (Zabriskie Pt, 20)
- Waylon Payne, "Sins of the Father" Blue Eyes, the Harlot, the Queer, the Pusher & Me (Carnival, Sep 11) D
- Esther Rose, "My Favorite Mistake" My Favorite Mistakes EP (Father/Daughter, 20)
- Kyle Nix, "Shelby '65" Lightning On the Mountain and Other Short Stories (Bossier, Jun 26)
- Dougie Poole, "Vaping On the Job" Freelancer's Blues (Wharf Cat, 20)
- Blitzen Trapper, "Mason Temple Microdose #1" Holy Smokes Future Jokes (Yep Roc, Sep 11)
- Exene Cervenka, "Tavern Love" Sev7en (Nitro, 06)
- Mavericks, "Poder Vivir" En Espanol (Mono Mundo, Aug 21) D
- Kenny Roby, "History Lesson" The Reservoir (Royal Potato Family, Aug 7) D
- Larkin Poe, "God Moves On the Water" Self Made Man (Tricki-Woo, 20)
- Tommy Alexander, "End Of the World" Waves (Alexander, 20)
- Pert Near Sandstone, "Border Waltz" Rising Tide (PNS, 20)
- Robyn Ludwick, "Texas Jesus" This Tall To Ride (Ludwick, 17)
- Rev Greg Spradlin & Band of Imperials, "Gospel of the Saints" Hi-Watter (Out of the Past, Jul 17) D
- Ruston Kelly, "Rubber" Shape & Destroy (Rounder, Aug 28) D
- Kathleen Edwards, "Birds On a Feeder" Total Freedom (Dualtone, Aug 14)
- Golden Shoals, "Love From Across the Border" Golden Shoals (Free Dirt, Aug 7) D
- Mary Chapin Carpenter, "Between the Dirt & the Stars" Dirt and the Stars (Lambent Light, Aug 7) D
- Arlo McKinley, "Walking Shoes" Die Midwestern (Oh Boy, Aug 14) D
- Hacienda Brothers, "Cowboys to Girls" What's Wrong With Right (Last Music, 06)
- Margo Price, "Letting Me Down" That's How Rumors Get Started (Loma Vista, Jul 10)
- Band of Heathens, "Today Is Our Last Tomorrow" Stranger (BoH, Sep 25) D
- John Prine, "I Remember Everything" single (Oh Boy, 20) D
- Thad Cockrell, "Susie From the West Coast" If In Case You Feel the Same (ATO, Jun 26)
- Lori McKenna, "Good Fight" Balladeer (CN, Jul 24)
- Emmylou Harris, "Price You Pay" Cimarron (Warner, 81)
- Harmed Brothers, "Ride It Out" Across the Waves (Fluff & Gravy, 20)
- Paula Frazer, "It's Not Ordinary" Leave the Sad Things Behind (Birdman, 05)
Now that we've shared our favorites for the first half of 2020, we need to continue populating A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster with stuff to vie for our year-end favorites list over this next six months. The last decade has seen Waylon Payne conquer addition and place some of his songs with artists like Lee Ann Womack and Miranda Lambert. He's ready to release Blue Eyes, the Harlot, the Queer, the Pusher & Me via Carnival Records on September 11. One of our very favorite bands, the Dexateens will be releasing Live From Athens, GA - Heathens Homecoming 2020 on July 3. The set features some of the band's original members, playing a fiery set at Drive-by Truckers' annual to-do. Kenny Roby, frontman for 6 String Drag, has planned August 7 as the release date for The Reservoir, produced by Neal Casal (Royal Potato Family). Ruston Kelly will be sharing the follow-up to his 2018 Dying Star. Shape & Destroy will land on shelves August 28, courtesy of Rounder. Finally, Band of Heathens are looking at September 25 as the street date for Strangers. Give us two hours and we'll give you a playlist of thirty songs that matter. It's your weekly Spotify ROUTES-cast:
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