ROUTES & BRANCHES
featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music
November 15, 2024
Scott Foley, purveyor of dust
WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THiS WEEK?!!
Sun June, "41 Dollars" single (Run For Cover, Nov 13)
About this time last year we were paging through Sun June's Bad Dream Jaguar, a collection of hazy roots pop that ended up on our top thirty albums for the year. As Laura Colwell, Stephen Salisbury and their band depart for a short tour, they've left behind this lovely single, along with a loose demo for "16 Riders". With its slack guitar and echo-licious backing vocals, "41 Dollars" is monumentally smooth without losing track of its alluring melody.
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Nadia Reid, "Hotel Santa Cruz" Enter Now Brightness (Chrysalis, Feb 7)
Three songs into the reveal for her fourth full-length, it's evident that the New Zealand singer-songwriter is venturing out from her familiar folk roots. You are everything I'd like to be, she sings on the breezy track, an ode to Reid's hometown of Port Chalmers. Electric guitars and a pop arrangement from producer Tom Healy create a lush pocket for the singer's sweet but sturdy vocals.
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Des Demonas, "Duke Ellington Bridge" Apocalyptic Boom Boom (In the Red, Nov 29)
Oh, this is fascinating. Des Demonas are a DC punk/soul act composed of veteran contributors to a handful of area bands such as Kid Congo. Though they are designated for other instruments for their current assignment, three of the bandmembers are drummers. "Duke Ellington Bridge" delivers an immediate garage appeal, with farfisa organ and baritone guitar, frontman Jacky Cougar Abok holding court from deep within the fuzz.
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White Denim, "Look Good (ft Tameca Jones, Jessie Payo)" 12 (Bella Union, Dec 6)
We know a lot more about wearing white denim pants as a result of scouring the web for information on the third single from the band's December 6 project, 12. Frontman James Petrali left Austin for LA during the pandemic, leaving him to piece together his twelfth record via email. The video we're sharing is a live studio take of "Look Good", featuring the vocals of Jessie Pavo, while Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes sits in on acoustic guitar. The studio cut, which we'll include on Sunday's Spotify ROUTES-cast, features a supercool flute, which we've always wanted more of on Routes & Branches.
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Sunny War, "Walking Contradiction" Armageddon In a Summer Dress (New West, Feb 21)
Few artists walk the line between roots and punk as blatantly as Sunny War. Announcing the sequel to 2023's Anarchist Gospel, the Tennessee artist shared her wish to create a larger-sounding collection. In addition to Steve Ignorant from the British punk legends Crass, Sunny War is joined on her new record by Valerie June, John Doe, Tre Burt and more. A bluesy number with a honed punk edge, "Walking Contradiction" wastes little time in pointing fingers: Like a junkie with a worn out Minor Threat cassette / You're a walking contradiction but I ain't upset / All your words I take with a grain of salt / Cos I know you're fake but it's not your fault.
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