A ROUTES & BRANCHES GUiDE to FEEDiNG YOUR MONSTER (September 10, 2026)

A ROUTES & BRANCHES GUiDE to FEEDiNG YOUR MONSTER

good news about good noise

September 10, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust 

A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster is our ardently updated new release calendar. This week's adds include a deluxe edition of Singin' To An Empty Chair (New West), < Ratboys' excellent February record. Set for a September 18 appearance, the reissue features covers of the original songs by band friends Free Range, Wild Pink, Ducks Ltd, and more. Boy Golden is also getting in on the deluxe edition deal, with an October 16 release of his own February Best Of Our Possible Lives (SIx Shooter). This one offers acoustic takes on certain tunes, as well as some new stuff. A bunch of announcements were made for November 6, including Twisted Teens' third (3rd) full length of the year, Holy Cross Tigers (Sub Pop). Free Dirt Records will observe twenty (20) years on your turntable with The Long Memory, a collection of unreleased stuff from artists like Willi Carlisle, Kaia Kater, Viv & Riley, and more. Finally, our early 2027 calendar is becoming populated, thanks to artists like Olivia Wolf, who has tagged January 22 for the release of Snake Of Diamonds (Birdsong Hollow). 

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^ More Ratboys love, this time from NPR's Tiny Desk. Turns out that half a year on the road does a band good, which is great given the fact that their road goes on at least til the end of 2026. 

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Fast on the heels of Wednesday's Lookback Machine feature on Townes Van Zandt covers, Lemonheads have announced a forthcoming project called Townesville. Fat Angel Sings has a little more info on the project, as well as a video of Evan Dando's take on "Rake", featuring Brazilian string-guy Almir Sater. 

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Curated by Zach Bryan himself, in-between rapidfire album releases, the Belting Bronco series features artists performing in his truck. This week's installation features Jason Isbell, who shares acoustic takes on a couple of his own songs. Nothing like the acoustics in the back of a pickup. 

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Are you someone who sees Taylor Swift's song for the Toy Story 9 soundtrack as one of the best things you've heard this year? If so, then this week's CMA Award nominations might be for you. Of course, it's not all dross, but Billboard has the full swoonworthy list. 

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No doubt inspired by our recent R&B review, Paste Magazine has decided that Lily Seabird Will Never Die. The ensuing interview reveals that Lightspheres was initially a double album, and that it drew direct inspiration from Elliott Smith, PJ Harvey and Cat Power. 

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Consider Kristin Hersh among the artists we admire more than we feature in our playlists. If nothing else, she wrote our favorite book about Vic Chesnutt, Don't Suck Don't Die. Bandcamp Daily visits with the Throwing Muses force-of-nature about her autobiographical Sugar On Blackstone project, due on digital shelves next week. 

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Saving Country Music celebrates the return of the Ameripolitan Music Awards following a two-year break. A true labor of love for longtime driving force Dale Watson, the show has partnered with something called the Lonestar Rod & Kustom Round Up. You can also check out ameripolitan.org to find out more and to place your nominations. 

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Gillian Welch & David Rawlings pay tribute to Dolly Parton with a magical take on "Coat Of Many Colors". The song is just one moment in a fifteen minute clip where the duo revisit RCA Victor Studio B where "Coat" was recorded, as well as Welch's classic, Time (the Revelator). It's all courtesy of Country Music Hall Of Fame and Museum. 

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LOOKBACK MACHiNE: Townes Van Zandt Covers

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country, and roots music

September 9, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

We actually began this Episode of the Lookback Machine considering our thirty (30) favorite songs from the rich catalog of Townes Van Zandt himself, before decided to do something a bit different. Several years ago, back in our Radio Daze, we presented a program featuring nothing but Townes covers. Of course, there are plenty of these to choose from - we're pretty confident that only Dylan covers outnumber TVZ takes in our kind of music. In most instances, we haven't highlighted some of the more obvious, front-of-mind choices (Willie Nelson's "Poncho & Lefty"), opting for a wider range and reach. 

We've arranged these in order of appearance, like we like. Songs are ordered based on their initial studio recording - Townes had a habit of recording certain tunes multiple times for different albums. Following the artist and song, we've noted the record which included the cover and the year of that release. Of course, there have been copious posthumous collections (of varying quality). With a couple exceptions, we focus on the man's legendary stuff, released during his lifetime. 

TOWNES VAN ZANDT COVERS: thirty favorites

For the Sake Of the Song  (1968)

   - Azure Ray, "For the Sake Of the Song" November EP  (2002)

   - Nanci Griffith, "Tecumseh Valley" Other Voices Other Rooms  (1993)

   - Shane McGowan, "Waitin' Around To Die" Riding the Range: Songs Of Townes Van Zandt  (2010)

   - Jason Molina, "I'll Be Here In the Morning" Townes Van Zandt Covers EP  (2016)

   - Lemonheads, "Sad Cinderella" single  (2025)

Our Mother the Mountain  (1969)

   - Erika Wennerstrom & Heartless Bastards, "Be Here To Love Me" Tribute To Townes Van Zandt EP  (2019)

   - Jonell Mosser, "St John the Gambler" Around Townes  (1996)

Townes Van Zandt  (1969)

   - Jay Farrar & Shannon McNally, "Don't Take It Too Bad" Don't Ya Take It Too Bad  (2025)

   - Shelby Lynne & Allison Moorer, "Lungs" Not Dark Yet  (2017)

   - Bright Eyes, "Fare Thee Well Miss Carousel" I'm Wide Awake It's Morning: Companion EP  (2005)

High Low and In Between  (1971)

   - Jolie Holland & Samantha Parton, "You Are Not Needed Now" Wildflower Blues  (2017)

   - Scott H Biram, "Highway Kind" Fever Dreams  (2020)

   - Guy Clark, "To Live Is To Fly" Old Friends  (2006)

   - Pete Bernhard, "Mr Mudd and Mr Gold" Straight Line  (2009)

   - Bart Budwig, "High Low and In Between" The Moon and Other Things  (2016)

Delta Momma Blues  (1971)

   - Hurray For the Riff Raff, "Delta Momma Blues" My Dearest Darkest Neighbor  (2013)

   - Steve Earle, "Brand New Companion" Townes  (2009)

   - Alela Diane, "Rake" Alela & Alina  (2009)

   - Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, "Nothin'" Raising Sand  (2007)

The Late Great  (1972)

   - Jason Isbell & Elizabeth Cook, "Poncho & Lefty" single  (2013)

   - Holmes Brothers, "If I Needed You" Simple Truths  (2004)

Flyin' Shoes  (1978)

   - Sallie Ford, "Loretta" Days Full Of Rain  (2016)

   - Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan, "No Place To Fall" Hawk  (2010)

   - Lyle Lovett, "Flyin' Shoes" Step Inside This House  (1998)

   - Malcolm Holcombe, "Dollar Bill Blues" When the Wind Blows: Songs Of Townes Van Zandt  (2018)

   - Son Volt & Kelly Willis, "Rex's Blues" A Retrospective 1995-2000  (1995)

At My Window  (1987)

   - Gretchen Peters & Tom Russell, "Snowin' On Raton" One To the Heart One To the Head  (2009)

   - Peter Case, "Ain't Leavin' Your Love" Beeline  (2002)

Abnormal  (1998)

   - Gourds, "Two Girls" Shinebox  (2001)

No Deeper Blue  (1995)

   - Cowboy Junkies, "Cowboy Junkies Lament" Black Eyed Man  (1992)

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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:

IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK (September 8, 2026)

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

September 8, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

For this week's WSGATW?!! we gave some thought to reviews of records from Hollow Hand and the two-disc set from Futurebirds. We puzzled over the possibility of shedding light on the rebirth of the Yawpers. And we flirted with rewinding the clock for an appreciation of a couple earlier projects that we discovered through some of our fellow blogging pals - Convinced Friend and Will Hasell. In the end, we settled on this. 

IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK

Listening to Lily Seabird is a thrill, akin to witnessing a wirewalker about whose fate you're genuinely concerned and uncertain. Most met the Vermont songwriter (nee Lily Seward) on 2025's rootsy Trash Mountain, a project that served as an exception from her first pair of albums, 2021's Beside Myself and '24's superb Alas, both of which dwelt in more noise. While Lightspheres On Their Way (Lame-O, presently in physical release, streaming on October 2) strikes a balance, it is more a return to the noise and sprawl than an extension of last year's work. 

Coproduced with Garret Linck, Lightspheres speaks to instability and change, but is ultimately victorious in its confidence of expression. Seabird invests more in her singing voice on these songs, an often unsteady instrument that can't help but betray a touch of twang. This is most evident on "Bindlestiff", a piece that owes its imagery to the itinerant wanderers of Steinbeck's East Of Eden: Jumbled up and wandering men, drifters with associations only for a day or two. Rick Soszynski's polished lap steel carries across a strummed acoustic guitar and Seabird's wordy delivery. Seabird's lyrics are uncommonly poetic, bending the visionary and personal to meet familiar detail: I saw the road going on forever long after you had departed / And there will always be that lonesome dog barking / And the low and tumbling hum of the forever young. "Slipswitch" portrays the songwriter recklessly balancing her lyrics atop a rickety acoustic guitar for a stunning effect. 

"Election Day" and "Portal To the Past" trade acoustic for a savage and growling electric guitar, sometimes resembling Magnolia Electric Co. at their most unleashed. Lily Seabird launches her vocals aloft during these moments, contributing to the air of abandonment and intensity. On several tracks, Eliza Niemi's cello stirs the tempest, contributing an ominous note to the arrangements. Lyrics seldom reach for the rhyme, and songs eschew a verse-chorus-verse structure in favor of a stream-of-consciousness sprawl. An impact often triggers with just one phrase or tangle of words. The album's opener, "The Pulley" pulls us along with a steady harmonium and acoustic strings, the singer asking, Am I still allowed to pray even if I don't believe anymore. 

On the LP's closing title cut, Lily Seabird sketches the figure of her mother: Underneath those Bucks Country stars, with her cigarettes in the snow / Bleary-eyed and too far gone, crying out to her daily dose of the Dead. Following eight-and-a-half songs of doubt and soul-searching, "Lightspheres On Their Way" resolves with the emotional major chord release. The songs of Lightspheres identify where we've been severed from one-another, but also hint at what might gather us back together and pull us forward. From the voice of Lily Seabird, it's an intensely personal message, relayed via music and lyrics that are stirringly original. 

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ROUTES-cast September 6, 2026

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

September 6, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

ROUTES-cast September 6, 2026

^ Hollow Hand, "Love Again" Wish Road South  (Loose, 26)

- Rubber Band Gun, "Carlo" Bloodwork  (Historic New Jersey, 26)  D

- Little Grandad, "Tiny Feet" Speak Softly Son  (Communion, Jan 22)  D

- GracieHorse, "5 Card Stud" Breaking and Entering  (Wharf Cat, Jan 29)  D

- Convinced Friend, "On Fire" Nowhere Songs  (Suddenly, 26)

- James Eichman, "4am" St Catherine Street  (Eichman, 26)

- Lou Turner, "Ants Underfoot" Strangels  (Turner, Nov 6)  D

- Angus & Julia Stone, "Take Me Back To Japan" Karaoke Bar  (Stone, 26)

- Bill Baird, "Horse Moon" Life Creates Itself  (Royal Oakie, Sep 25)

- Israel Nash, "Pretty Boy Floyd" Sweetheart Of the Rodeo  (Desert Folklore, Sep 25)

- Lily Seabird, "Lightspheres On Their Way" Lightspheres On Their Way  (Lame-O, Oct 2)

- Yawpers, "Starting Over" Teething  (DTTW, 26)

- Aaron Frazer, "Paint the Picture" Corners EP  (Dead Oceans, Oct 30)  D

- Liam Kazar, "Brain Dry" single  (Congrats, 26)  D

- Muireann Bradley, "Dancing On My Grave" Blackwood Pew EP  (Fontana, Oct 23)

- Sam Burton, "Fairweather Friend" Fairweather Friend  (Captured Tracks, Oct 30)

- Maisy Owen, "Fair Thee Well Miss Carousel (ft BJ Cole)" single  (Tompkins Square, 26)  D

- Anna Graves, "Damn In Love" America's Favorite Burnout  (Rounder, 26)

- AJ Fullerton, "All the Wrong Choices" Baretone EP  (Gitcha, 26)  D

- Cory Branan, "Price and the Cost" You'll Live  (Blue Elan, Oct 9)

- Johnny Delaware, "Less Fear More Soul" On God's Time  (Normaltown, Nov 6)

- Big Trouble, "Pipeno" On Elephant Hill  (Royal Oakie, Sep 18)

- Kacy Lee Anderson, "Outdated Songs" Hello I'm Irrelevant  (Earth Libraries, Oct 23)

- Bures Band, "Ozonia" Ozonia  (Love Police, 26)

- Futurebirds, "All I Want" Far Out Country I & II  (Dualtone, 26)

- Flatland Cavalry, "Strangers & Angels" Work Of Heart - Heartstrings  (Lost Highway, Oct 2)

- Benjamin Tod, "Some Broken Hearts Never Mend" Country Is Dead  (Tod, 26)

- case/lang/veirs, "Best Kept Secret (live)" case/lang/veirs (10th Anniversary Edition)  (Anti, 26)

- Allison de Groot & Rich Ruth, "Distance From Then" Allison de Groot & Rich Ruth  (Western Vinyl, Oct 2)

- Alabama Shakes, "Tea Time" I Must Be Dreaming  (ATO, 26)

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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:

WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THiS WEEK?!! (September 4, 2026)

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

September 4, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

Almost any week prior to a holiday weekend provides a real challenge to practitioners of new music discovery. I suppose the folks who decide these things assume we're all too busy grilling things to fit it into our crowded schedule. Fortunately, our barbecue is currently full of bees, so that's not an option for us. 

It all makes us even more grateful for the artists who don't know any better than to share their new stuff  before Labor Day weekend. Here we'll also express our thankfulness for the tireless bloggers who do the same - you can browse some of our favorites right there beneath the A Good Place To Start heading. 

Following are five (5) new singles that we've especially enjoyed over the past week. We call it

WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THiS WEEK?!!

^Lou Turner, "Ants Underfoot" Strangels  (Turner, Nov 6)

One of our very favorite records from this year is Styrofoam Winos. One of our very favorite records from last year is Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band. Those two projects share Lou Turner in common, who has just announced her next solo collection (and she's bought her flute!). Also, Lou's gorgeous take on Bruce Cockburn's "Pacing the Cage" was our favorite cover of 2024. 

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Little Grandad, "Tiny Feet"  Speak Softly Son  (Communion, Jan 22)

We're proud to present our first werewolf video here on WSGATW?!! At least that's what we think is going on here. What begins as a sweet acoustic ode crashes into a full-band buzz at the halfway point, sounding like classic Deer Tick. Perhaps the dog is just having a dream. 

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Lily Seabird, "Lightspheres On Their Way" Lightspheres On Their Way  (Lame-O, Oct 2)

Stop us if you've heard this one before: Glowy balls turn into bandmates who proceed to get stupid on the beach. No? Us neither. But it's a very good song from a potentially year-defining record that seems to maybe be released in physical format today, though streamers continue with the initial October 2 date. Surely we'll figure it out (though this video remains a mystery). 

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Muireann Bradley, "Dancing On My Grave" Blackwood Pew EP  (Fontana, Oct 23)

From Ireland, Bradley is a nineteen year-old folk 'n blues guitarist. Their 2023 debut was a raw, acoustic affair eavesdropping on the phenom as she performed a set of standards. Last Fall's Rose Dogs EP featured covers of more contemporary songs, as well as Bradley's debut original. This original hails from her October EP, and suggests somewhat of a more forward-thinking arrangement. 

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Kacy Lee Anderson, "Outdated Songs" Hello I'm Irrelevant  (Earth Libraries, Oct 23)

We've featured every single to date from Kacy Lee Anderson's debut full-length (she previously performed as half of Kacy & Clayton). This one speaks to the class and culture inherent in a public bowling alley. But also, good god what a voice. 

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A ROUTES & BRANCHES GUiDE to FEEDiNG YOUR MONSTER (September 3, 2026)

A ROUTES & BRANCHES GUiDE to FEEDiNG YOUR MONSTER

good news about good noise

September 3, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

^If it seems Futurebirds have been releasing singles from their Far Out Country I & II project since dinosaurs and Sleestak roamed the earth, you're not wrong. We'll get the entire package tomorrow (Friday). Until then, Twangville checks in with the band about the value of something called Bandago, gas station chicken tenders, and working behind the counter at a Nashville candy store. 

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I Must Be Dreaming is the name of Alabama Shakes' just-released CD, as well as our response when we were told the trio would be reconvening after a lengthy hibernation. Paste magazine fleshes out the story of their reunion, how one or two songs became maybe an EP, then grew into a real live album. Oh, and hey, here is a full concert video, recorded a few days ago in Minneapolis. 

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As you're well aware, R&B is all about saving the world. The Guardian has leapt aboard the bandwagon (not really much room left), and has published a good piece about alt.country's newfound appeal to the British youngsters. Among other drops of knowledge: Florry's next album will have a Broadway show tune and a Caribbean rock song ... Huh. 

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Next week. Next Friday, Angela Autumn will release her long-awaited (by us) Believer album. Good Noise (we were here first) shares a video of Autumn sittin' in somebody's backyard playing a handful of her new tunes. 

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Is our kind of music funny? No. Not really. Not at all. Nevertheless, Lambchop celebrates the release of their excellent Punching the Clown with an amusing short about a radio interview gone awry. Incidentally, the part of Kurt Wagner will be played by a struggling actor. 

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As we eagerly await Twisted Teens' third LP of the year (and their debut for Sub Pop), the Another Thought Substack takes a deep dive into their feelings about the duo. If that doesn't grab you, there's also several videos and a couple cartoons. 

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Raven Sings the Blues comes through with a playlist curated by Jeffrey Silverstein, in advance of October 23's Doggone. In the guitarist's own words, This collection of songs is for truckin' on or truckin' home, songs for long hauls, road trips, and eeking out that last bit of summer. Get ready to learn yourself some new artists. 

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A couple weeks ago, Lindsay Lou released Bluegrass Women, a record rich with collaborations. She also prepared a four-part mini-doc of the same name, providing a glimpse behind the scenes into the album's creation. This week we've got the second Episode, which features ... well, just about every woman in the genre. 

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Here. You deserve this. Marcus King has gifted us with a lovely acoustic run through Wilco's "Either Way" from Sky Blue Sky. And if you're looking for some sideburn inspiration, go no further. King also offers some first-hand perspective on mental health. 

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We call it A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster, at least until somebody steals that name. It's our exhaustingly updated release calendar. This week, we've added news of forthcoming music from Manor Close, whose Nobody Knows You're Here should be here on or around October 9. Aaron Frazer continues working on behalf of the Dead Oceans label, and has announced an EP, Corners, due October 30. Jake Bugg presents Alamo on November 13 (Lovebugg). And finally, Little Grandad (mentioned in that Guardian piece above) plans a January 22 release date for Speak Softly Son (Communion). Listen, not every week can be a blockbuster ...

LOOKBACK MACHiNE: David Berman

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

September 2, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

Some of the artists we hold dearest can be acquired tastes. We're careful recommending them, knowing that they could do damage in the wrong ears.  Here we're thinking of names like Bill Callahan (and Smog), Bonnie Prince Billy (and Palace Brothers), Joe Pernice (and Scud Mountain Boys). We began this week considering assembling an entire playlist of these lovely train wrecks. Then we got to listening to David Berman (Silver Jews, Purple Mountains). 

Berman could also be part of our Gone Too Soon playlist, one of those tragic figures whose foreshortened lives can't help but add to their legend. Berman's own story speaks to a lifelong struggle with depression and addiction, brought to an end with his 2019 death. 

We begin our Lookback with a song from Early Times, an almost unlistenably lo-fi LP that brought together two very early Silver Jews EPs. At that time, both Stephen Malkmus and Bob Nastanovich played along with Berman, albeit under pseudonyms in hopes of shaking the accusation that Silver Jews was just a Pavement side project. On their own, those early recordings can sound awfully raw and unfinished, amateurish at best. The value of a playlist like ours is to suggest Berman's remarkable growth and evolution as a songwriter, catching glimpses of this brilliance at its inception. 

Now under their proper names, Makmus and Nastanovich continued to contribute to Silver Jews records going forward. But the focus of projects like American Water and Bright Flight was rightly on David Berman's lyrical gift. Set to a shambling, countrified expression of indie rock, he was a poet who fronted a band, an accomplished writer whose output usually rhymed. 

Following 2008's Lookout Mountain, he dissolved Silver Jews and retreated from the spotlight. 2019's Purple Mountains featured Berman with the support of members of Woods and Dan Auerbach, for a terrifically promising result. Lamentably, David Berman ended his life just weeks after its release.

We never apologize for the music we love. In fact, one of the purposes of R&B is to bring attention to artists like David Berman, ideally telling readers why you should care. Even as the project of a troubled soul, Silver Jews and Purple Mountains have added light and color to our lives. We're gonna live in Nashville / And I'll make a career / Out of writing sad songs / And getting paid by the tear ...

DAViD BERMAN: thirty favorites

- "Secret Knowledge Of Back Roads" Early Times  (2012)

- "Trains Across the Sea" Starlite Walker  (1994)

- "New Orleans" 

- "Rebel Jew" 

- "How To Rent a Room" Natural Bridge  (1996)

- "Black and Brown Blues" 

- "Dallas" 

- "Pretty Eyes" 

- "Random Rules" American Water  (1998)

- "Smith & Jones Forever"

- "Honk If You're Lonely"

- "Wild Kindness" 

- "Tennessee"  Tennessee EP  (2001)

- "I'm Gonna Love the Hell Out Of You" 

- "Slow Education"  Bright Flight  (2001)

- "Room Games and Diamond Rain"

- "Horseleg Swastikas" 

- "Friday Night Fever"

- "Punks In the Beerlight" Tanglewood Numbers  (2005)

- "Sometimes a Pony Gets Depressed" 

- "I'm Getting Back Into Getting Back Into You"

- "How Can I Love You If You Won't Lie Down"

- "Suffering Jukebox" Lookout Mountain Lookout Sea  (2008)

- "San Francisco BC"

- "Candy Jail" 

- "We Could Be Looking For the Same Thing"

- "That's Just the Way That I Feel"  Purple Mountains  (2019)

- "All My Happiness Is Gone"

- "Darkness and Cold"

- "Snow Is Falling In Manhattan" 

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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:

IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK (September 1, 2026)

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

September 1, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

There was a time in the 80s when just about every week brought a new batch of music that sounded like variations on REM. 10,000 Maniacs, Lloyd Cole, Let's Active, Pylon, etc etc. And that's just the handful of acts that momentarily rose above the pack. Eventually, the whole jangle thing died down, leaving just a few surviving acts (and a couple Prefab Sprout devotees wondering whatever happened to Paddy McAloon). 

Point is, today's torrent of slacker country feels sort of similar, with a weekly slate of bands produced by Alex Farrar and six degrees from MJ Lenderman. This too shall pass a'la jangle pop, and in the meantime our challenge is to identify the artists with the staying power to outshine the flash in the pan. This isn't to say that there's little or no value in the trend. It's often how musical evolution happens, and change is essential to the abiding relevance of our kind of music. 

IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK

Among our favorite purveyors of slacker country is Dogwood Tales. From rural Virginia, the quartet's January collaboration with Euphoria Again has held a spot on our running year-end favorites list. Though their new Every Star In Rockingham County is their fourth full-length project, it's their most widely publicized. Most earlier Dogwood Tales records featured elements of the indie country that populates their new collection, but Every Star unpacks their sound a bit, leaning more deliberately in that roots direction. 

Fronted by singer-guitarists Kyle Grim and Ben Ryan, and featuring drummer Jake Golibart and Danny Gibney on bass, these songs are ingrained in the anxiety and longing that typifies small town days. "McMemories" notes, Stadium lights / Always felt like / The only way this little town could see / A good thing. The music of Dogwood Tales has always included more dense guitars, though they are increasingly sludgy here, frequently paired with more melodic pedal steel. The project's most decidedly country moment, "Angel Dreams" is rooted in Jason Summer's playing, lyrics addressing that pervasive uncertainty: We drove to Southern Kitchen / You wouldn't even play my favorite song. 

Produced by Erik Romero, Every Star balances midtempo cuts with slower, hungover numbers. Lyrics are occasionally opaque, but convey real overall emotion, peppered with passages that are eloquent in their yearning. One of the LP's only acoustic arrangements, "Try 2" begins, I'm thinking about getting stuck in Ohio / I don't miss you, I just try to. And later, I still feel the weight of the world / On your back through my fingertips. Where some indie country outfits emphasize volume over finesse, Dogwood Tales achieves an admirable balance. "Ralph Samson" projects that melodicism through a wall of electric guitar: When I drive to your place / I always take the long way / There. 

Every Star In Rockingham County can be both romantic and defeatist, not infrequently in the same track. The title song begins, Purple mountains, empty highways / Moon in crescent, brake lights guiding / You're so high but you feel like driving. The chorus continues, I have wished on / Every star in this county / But it's so hard to focus / When everything feels / Broken. Slacker country, indie country, alt.country. Whatever you call it, the trend is building new branches for our kind of music. Artists like Dogwood Tales are expanding the boundaries, increasing the volume, flying in the face of tradition and familiarity for all the right reasons. 

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ROUTES-cast August 30, 2026

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

August 30, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

As we're sorting through our options for Tuesday's One Record review, we're grateful for the great assortment of LPs. What's been declared to be Fruition's final project stands as a worthy testament to their accomplishments. Alabama Shakes present some of the year's most satisfying indie soul, and Mama's Broke represents a wealth of 'grass and old timey stuff released this week. It's also heartening that both Son Volt and Jayhawks continue to produce really good stuff so deep into their respective runs. See also: Riley Downing and Dogwood Tales. We're strongly considering renaming our weekly review Are You Sure You Only Want To Listen To One Record This Week?!!  

ROUTES-cast August 30, 2026

^ Fruition, "Compass" Something More  (Bloodshot, 26)

- Mama's Broke, "Failing" Reunion  (Free Dirt, 26)

- Mountain Grass Unit, "Homebound Troubadour" Appalachian Smoke  (Dualtone, 26)

- Two Runner, "Punk Rock Bar" Porchlight  (Gar Hole, 26)

- Riley Downing, "Night Shift" Landfill Poetry  (Oh Boy, 26)

- True Mountain Laurel, "East Of Anything" Angel So Bad  (Birthday Cake, 26)

- Ian Noe, "Leeann" Canyon Falls Trailer Band  (Lock13, Sep 24)

- Willi Carlisle, "Marlboro Vinyasa" Universal Bubba  (Signature Sounds, Nov 8)

- Angela Autumn, "I Don't Think About You At All" Believer  (Gar Hole, Sep 11)

- Jeffrey Silverstein, "Patchouli" Doggone  (Full Time Hobby, Oct 23)

- Jude Brothers, "Handsome Little Fountains & Little Ancient Mountains" Dogwood Maiden Voyage  (Gar Hole, Sep 25)

- Sera Cahoone, "I'm No Fool" I've Missed You All These Years  (Sub Pop, 26)

- Kyle Kimbrell, "Paperbacks" Lonesome In the Sky  (Cornelius Chapel, Oct 16)  

- Rayland Baxter, "Better Man" True Violet  (ATO, Oct 23)

- Jayhawks, "Leap Of Faith" Sanctuary Park  (SHAM, 26)

- Son Volt, "Don Quixote's Dream" Sound Signal Serenades  (Transmit Sound, 26)

- Dogwood Tales, "I Could Never Be Without You" Every Star In Rockingham County  (Born Losers, 26)

- Greg Freeman, "Cahokia" All Set the Bone  (Transgressive, Oct 2)

- Manor Close, "Naked" Nobody Know's You're Here  (Manor Close, Oct 9)  D

- Lamplight, "Clover" Lick the Spoon Let It Soften  (Western Vinyl, Oct 23)  D

- Julia Jacklin, "Hardest Thing" The Gem  (4AD, Sep 25)

- Dead Gowns, "Vegas Dream" Vegas  (Mtn Laurel, Oct 23)  D

- Michael Nau, "Popfly" Popfly  (Suicide Squeeze, Oct 23)  D

- Le Ren, "Going Through the Motions" Don't Be Funny Without Me  (Royal Mountain, 26)

- Iron & Wine, "California Sober" Hen's Teeth (Deluxe Edition)  (Sub Pop, Sep 22)  D

- Sunken Man, "Virginia Fog" Sunken Man  (Single Lock, Sep 25)

- Alabama Shakes, "Waist Deep" I Must Be Dreaming  (Island, 26)

- Angus & Julia Stone, "Cherry Farm" Karaoke Bar  (Stone, Sep 4)

- Luke Winslow-King, "In the Evening" single  (Bloodshot, 26)  D

- Will Hasell, "Roadkill Heart" Roadkill Heart  (Suddenly, 26)

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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:

WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THiS WEEK?!! (August 28, 2026)

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

August 28, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

Just about every Friday we convene here to suggest our five (5) favorite singles for the week. Consider it an advance peek or a promissory note for our Sunday Spotify ROUTES-cast. We also include video content where available, even as we admit that folks who trade in our kind of music aren't always great at the visual arts. 

As the most generous day for new music, Friday is our favorite day of the week. We spend much of it exuberantly scouring our sources for what's new. It's in this breathless spirit of music discovery that we offer this, what we call

WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THiS WEEK?!!

^Greg Freeman, "Cahokia" All Set the Bone  (Transgressive, Oct 2)

Hearing this second single from Freeman's October full-length assures us that it will take some pretty weak stuff to bump All Set the Bone from among our year-end favorites. After embracing anonymity, the video for "Cahokia" places Freeman front and center, both on stage and walking through New York City wearing bright red socks. 

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Ian Noe, "LeeAnn" Canyon Falls Trailer Band  (Lock13, Sep 24)

A terrific new single from Noe's eagerly-awaited third LP. The 70s country throwback features a Live Rust callout, along with some just-right piano and pedal steel. The young man has come a long way since winning Kentucky's Appalachian Star Search in 2007. 

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Angela Autumn, "I Didn't Think About You At All" Believer  (Gar Hole, Sep 11)

We've been anticipating Angela Autumn's first widely-released collection for several months. This homemade video features the songwriter posing upon moss while wearing a bright red cowboy hat that she might or might not have bedazzled. It's a decidedly quirk-forward presentation. 

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Willi Carlisle, "Marlboro Vinyasa" Universal Bubba  (Signature Sounds, Nov 6)

Carlisle's forthcoming double album is produced by Tyler Childers, and features members of his band. The preliminary results seem to expand upon Carlisle's sound, exchanging folk for country. Per the songwriter, the inspiration for his new single came while visiting a bar associated with Davenport's Raccoon Motel, where yoga classes were offered on the sticky floor. 

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Michael Nau, "Popfly" Popfly  (Suicide Squeeze, Oct 23)

The former purveyor of Cotton Jones has released a stream of impressively eclectic music this year, stuff that he'd written and recorded but is just getting around to sharing. Popfly seems more an official project, rumored to feature supporting vocals from Nau's elusive partner Whitney McGraw. Per the record's advance: Radiant folk melodies, tape-warped textures, and flashes of everyday wonder coexist in perfect balance. 

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A ROUTES & BRANCHES GUiDE to FEEDiNG YOUR MONSTER (August 27, 2026)

A ROUTES & BRANCHES GUiDE to FEEDiNG YOUR MONSTER

good news about good noise

August 27, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

Tomorrow (Friday, August 28) may be the busiest release date of the year. Visit A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster for a full account of what'll be landing on our digital shelves. As for the coming weeks, we've recently added new stuff from the prolific Benjamin Tod. His September 4 project, provocatively titled Country Is Dead, will feature a collection of covers. The long lost Sam Baker returns on September 18 with Survivor, produced with Rodney Crowell. Make a calendar note on October 9 for a posthumous Todd Snider collection. Aimless Records presents My Second Rodeo, featuring unheard recordings from the treasured songwriter. Following a pair of singles, Rayland Baxter has set October 23 as the date for his next LP. ATO will present True Violet, the songwriter's first full album since 2022. That same day will serve as the release for the next Dead Gowns record. Expect Vegas courtesy of the Mtn Laurel label. 

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^ If you're looking for a reason for a good day, perhaps it will help to know that Big Thief has a new album on the horizon. A triple album?!! We'll direct you to Pitchfork, who made the announcement, then added additional details about the Ryman concert where Adrianne Lenker and co. played Horsepower in its entirety, joined at times by Gillian Welch, Iris Dement, Lucinda Williams and others. A triple album ...

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For the price of your email address, you can check out Vulture's new interview with Charley Crockett regarding the whole tiresome beef with Jack White. What with all the interviews and answering to accusations, it's been weeks since Crockett's last LP. 

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Of course, Willi Carlisle will be touring behind the release of November 6's Universal Bubba double LP. A man with his heart in a good place, Carlisle will also be making room at his shows for mutual aid groups, nonprofits, and unions from stop to stop. See more about this call for Bubbas In the Community at Broadway World. 

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Forget about Geese (just for a sec). Westside Cowboy is this week's big new thing! Declaring the band's It Goes On as among the year's best albums, Consequence Of Sound invites the British quartet for a CoSigns Interview. Westside Cowboy has branded their very slightly twangy indie rock Britainicana ...

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Long as we're lounging about at Consequence, let's catch up on Geese (see, we told you just a sec). The site updates us on frontguy Cameron Winter's upcoming At Carnegie Hall release. As it turns out, renowned documentarian Paul Thomas Anderson was lurking in the wings, and will unleash a film of the same name to coincide with the LP. 

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In our Dollars For a Good Cause department, big praise to the Dear Life label and Little Mazarn, who have assembled Sing Across the Borderline, a 42-song collection to benefit the Big Bend Conservation Alliance. Visit Bandcamp to download the sprawling thing, to find out more about the Alliance, and to sign a petition. 

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Way back in May, Nora Kelly and her band released So Wrong For So Long. Americana UK offers a profile and an interview with the Canadian bandleader. 

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So much gossip these days in our kind of music. It apparently pays to stop by People Magazine online. They have the exclusive pics of the week's Royal Bluegrass Wedding between Molly Tuttle and Ketch Secor of Old Crow Medicine Show. We're thinking Happily Ever After, without a doubt (see, f'rinstance, Amanda Shires feat. Jason Isbell, or Steve Earle and _______________). 

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There's a pretty good chance that your local public library card permits you access to the New York Times (among so many other things). Or perhaps you already have a subscription to NYT online? Either way, you'll want to take a look at their new profile of Alabama Shakes, whose reunion record, I Must Be Dreaming, comes out Friday (tomorrow (Aug 28)). 

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Now if you'll excuse us, we have 82 new releases to preview ...

LOOKBACK MACHiNE: Gillian Welch & David Rawlings

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

August 26, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

We're continuing to dabble in the pantheon this week, assessing the songs of some of the more prominent and mainstream artists in our kind of music. For this Episode, we're celebrating the essential collaborative genius of Gillian Welch and David Rawlings. 

Upon its 1996 release, Revival hit like a hammer, Welch's ages-old voice and timeless songs creating such an immediate impression, like a record we'd known for years. Along with Hell Among the Yearlings and 2001's Time (the Revelator), Gillian Welch and David Rawlings were responsible for arguably one of the most impactful three-record runs in the history of our kind of music. The sheer quantity and quality of the duo's music during this time only became more evident with the 2020 unearthing of the Boots volumes, featuring a treasury of unreleased numbers. While these were termed outtakes and demos, much of the music in that box was as good as anything from the proper LPs. 

Nothing was included in our list from 2020's All the Good Times, a collection focusing on covers and trad cuts. We also chose not to include anything from Rawlings' own solo work, even as his contributions under the Gillian Welch name are essential. 

GiLLiAN WELCH & DAViD RAWLiNGS: thirty favorites

- "Orphan Girl" Revival  (1996)

- "Paper Wings" 

- "Tear My Stillhouse Down"

- "Acony Bell"

- "Caleb Meyer" Hell Among the Yearlings  (1998)

- "My Morphine"

- "I'm Not Afraid To Die"

- "Revelator" Time (The Revelator)  (2001)

- "My First Lover"

- "Dear Someone"

- "Elvis Presley Blues"

- "Everything Is Free"

- "Look At Miss Ohio" Soul Journey  (2003)

- "Wayside/Back In Time"

- "Wrecking Ball"

- "Way It Goes" Harrow & the Harvest  (2011)

- "Hard Times"

- "455 Rocket" Boots No 1: Official Revival Bootleg  (2016)

- "Wichita" 

- "DryTown"

- "Strange Isabella" Boots No 2: Lost Songs Vol 1  (2020)

- "Valley Of Tears"

- "Rambling Blade" Boots No 2: Lost Songs Vol 2  (2020)

- "Hundred Miles" 

- "I Just Want You To Know"

- "Sin City" Boots No 2: Lost Songs Vol 3  (2020)

- "City Girl" 

- "Peace In the Valley" 

- "Empty Trainload Of Sky" Woodland  (2024)

- "Hashtag" 

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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:

IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK (August 25, 2026)

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

August 25, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

The heck with this week. Has anyone taken a look at NEXT week's release calendar?! New full lengths on the way from (deep breath) Alabama Shakes, Dogwood Tales, Fruition, Jayhawks, Mama's Broke, Riley Downing, Son Volt and more! We'd be happy and justified in writing about any one of those. And that's just the stuff we know about, not to mention any unexpected surprises. 

Okay, so this week we gave some consideration to new projects from Brennan Wedl, Squirrel Flower, and Wild Pink, before deciding that our time would be best spent on Lambchop. 

IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK

A couple years ago we visited a nearby record store for the first time. Just for the sake of orientation, we asked if they had anything from Lambchop. The person at the counter responded, You mean the little puppet? No. No sir, we do not mean the little puppet. 

Lambchop deserves better. Kurt Wagner has spent more than thirty years challenging our expectations of qualities such as beauty, normalcy, roots, and outsider. Early projects found Lambchop lumped in with the mid-90s alt.country bin, at best an exceptionally loose assessment. Increasingly, Wagner was experimenting with folk, soul, and studio manipulation, cloaking his typically simple songs with beats and interesting digital backdrops. Even if albums weren't always entirely successful, nobody could accuse Lambchop of being dull. 

After so many years fiddling in the studio, Punching the Clown arrives as the most refreshingly normal project Kurt Wagner and company have undertaken in recent memory. Which might mean it's actually the most unexpected. The premise of Punching pairs acoustic songs with choral lined-out singing courtesy of the Eau Claire Vocal Sextet. Arranged by Blake Morgan, while these harmonies are rooted in worship, they largely serve a textural purpose here, like a subtle breeze of voices following Wagner's lead. 

From the man himself: In early 2024 I heard a song on the radio on my way to get some gas. Just a minimal single chord strummed banjo and a small group of voices. It seemed perfect in the moment as the moment became perfect in itself ... I wanted to make a record that emulated this kind of music.

Throughout Lambchop's oeuvre, Kurt Wagner's basic songs have remained consistent, wry and eliptical lyrics delivered in his unsteady, dry-as-leaves drawl. On the album's opener, "Just West Of Nicollet", he sings Let the windows stay open / In the wild Mid West / There's things in Minnesota / It's the wildest place that I've found yet. Accompanied by Justin Vernon's banjo and Andrew Broder's guitar, the choral waves rise and fall, wax and wane, cresting briefly only towards the song's close. "Weakened" adds minor studio burbles and manipulation, with Wagner possibly narrating the proceedings: Things had gotten peculiar / The grainy underwater / Singing sounds in his head. 

Punching the Clown doesn't plop us in the pews by any means. This isn't The Gospel According To Lambchop. On the title cut, the chorale answers Wagner's I'm trying not to sound like I'm punching the clown with their own Wait, what the fuck. Nevertheless, there is a curious juxtaposition between the formality of the vocal arrangements and the folky informality of Lambchop's acoustic songs. The pairing is most mutually complimentary on "New World Wave" or "Cigar", pieces that invest the choir with a more active role: I'll meet you at Benton Chapel / Let it all go down / To the holy town / And share a lot of singing. 

While the addition of the Vocal Sextet sets the plot for the project, the theme lies more with Kurt Wagner's voice and Vernon's banjo. For those of us who have followed Lambchop for years across new settings and experiments, Punching the Clown is actually a breath of fresh air, allowing us access once again to Wagner straight, no (or little) chaser. Once again, we're left with the recurring questions of beauty and normalcy. The line-singing is beautiful at times, and we wouldn't be listening if there wasn't a base attraction to Lambchop's outsider folk. Time will no doubt see the collaborators following a new distraction (and we'll be there for it). For today, we're willing to brand Punching the Clown among Lambchop's more successful dalliances, a quietly engaging push-and-pull between minimalism and something more. Like a Kool-Aid smile in a scallop shell / We're cracking up in the kitchen / I'm overweight, you're overwhelmed / But it's good ...

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ROUTES-cast August 23, 2026

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

August 23, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

ROUTES-cast August 23, 2026

^ Brennan Wedl, "High Priestess" Brennan Wedl  (Anti, 26)

- Pieta Brown, "Nothin' But Trouble" Dreamin' Of  (Righteous Babe, 26)

- Ken Pomeroy, "Sentimental Lady" Tonight's News EP  (Rounder, 26)

- Brothers Comatose, "High Hoping" single  (Swamp Jam, 26)  D

- Billy Strings, "10,000 Miles From a Friend" So Much For Goodbyes  (Reprise, Aug 28)

- Buddy Miller, "As Long As I Have You" Buddy Miller  (New West, Sep 11)

- Katie Pruitt, "Aftermath" Fools For the Fleeting  (Rounder, Sep 18)

- Lawrence Rothman, "Stable" Here Lies Love/Sawdust To Stardust  (KRO, Sep 25)

- Pony Bradshaw, "Jukebox Oblivion" Ode To Humidity  (Dogs Of the South, 26)

- Ray Wylie Hubbard, "Cassette Mix Tape" Reel 2 Reel 4 Real  (WylieWorld, 26)

- Benjamin Tod, "Waiting For a Train" Country Is Dead  (Tod, Sep 4)  D

- Hollis Brown, "Garage Days" single  (Hollis Brown, 26)  D

- Yawpers, "Company Man" Teething  (DTTW, Sep 4)

- Jared Hart, "Law Of Subtraction" Midnight Motel  (Mt Crushmore, Oct 28)  D

- Small Pond, "Silver Coin" Soft Burn  (Small Pond, Oct 21)  D

- Squirrel Flower, "Cleveland" Say a Prayer To the Gods Of Getting Going  (Polyvinyl, 26)

- OK Cowgirl, "God Made a Farmer" Rhinestone Cowgirl  (Easy Does It, 26)

- Wild Pink, "Still Coming Down" Still Coming Down  (Fire Talk, 26)

- Nicole Atkins, "Trippin' On Teardrops" Drama  (Sun, Sep 17)

- Leon Bridges, "Take It Over" Happiness Anytime  (Columbia, Sep 25)

- Lambchop, "Just West Of Nicollet" Punching the Clown  (Merge, 26)

- Hudson Freeman, "I-40" single  (Mom+Pop, 26)  D

- Big Trouble, "Mel" On Elephant Hill  (Royal Oakie, Sep 18)  D

- Attention Bird Utopia, "Mitzrayim" Mitzrayim EP  (ABU, 26)  D

- Jake Xerxes Fussell, "Boney" The Old Beloved Path  (Fat Possum, Sep 18)

- Ruby Of Thanks, "Shadow" Before You Turn Into a Dog  (Woodsist, Sep 18)

- James Eichman, "If I Talk Loud Enough" St Catherine Street  (Eichman, 26)

- Jude Brothers, "Desire & Devotion" Dogwood Maiden Voyage  (Gar Hole, Sep 25)  D

- Will Hasell, "Spindrift" Roadkill Heart  (Suddenly, 26)  D

- John Prine, "All For the Love Of a Girl" Found Dogs  (Oh Boy, Oct 8)

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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:

WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THiS WEEK?!! (August 21, 2026)

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

August 21, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

Some weeks there are more interesting singles than there are full album releases. This week flips that equation, with a handful of very good LPs landing on our digital shelves, but not a bunch of tempting singles. Neverthless, we persist, and we've tracked down five (5) neat songs for your Friday festivity, many of them replete with distracting videos. On account of a busy day, we're going to just plop these down here without comment for the moment. We'll add clever notes as/if time permits. We're assuming here you enjoy our pithy asides. Much like Jude Brothers (above) assumes you enjoy harp playing and puppets. 

WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT THiS WEEK?!!

^ Jude Brothers, "Desire & Devotion"  Dogwood Maiden Voyage  (Gar Hole, Sep 25)

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Jake Xerxes Fussell, "Boney" The Old Beloved Path  (Fat Possum, Sep 18)

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Nicole Atkins, "Trippin' On Teardrops" Drama  (Sun, Sep 17)

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Small Pond, "Silver Coin"  Soft Burn  (Small Pond, Oct 21)

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Squirrel Flower, "Cleveland" Say a Prayer To the Gods Of Getting Going  (Polyvinyl, 26)

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A ROUTES & BRANCHES GUiDE to FEEDiNG YOUR MONSTER (August 20, 2026)

A ROUTES & BRANCHES GUiDE to FEEDiNG YOUR MONSTER

good news about good noise

August 20, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

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^ John Ross is Wild Pink. Line Of Best Fit is talking to John Ross on the occasion of the release of Still Coming Down. The sixth Wild Pink record arrives in the wake of a cancer scare, a relocation from Florida to New York, and time on stage with MJ Lenderman. How did you spend your Summer? 

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Here at R&B HQ, we like to extend our musical reach as far as it makes sense (to us). We prefer to draw as few lines as possible in the process, letting music be music. We don't believe in a genre called queer country, even as we acknowledge the importance of diverse voices in each and every genre. That said, Bandcamp Daily has assembled a quick review of artists who represent the queer perspective in our kind of music. Some of these we've included in our weekly Spotify ROUTES-casts, and others not so much. Folks like River Shook and Andrew Sa should be on your radar no matter where you draw your lines. 

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If you're a fan of contemporary country music (or music in general), you owe it to yourself to spend some time with Elizabeth Cook's Great Television. CBS Saturday Sessions took our advise, and uploaded a terrific video of Cook and her band running through "Sunset Promenade". If you're a fan of contemporary country music (or music in general), you owe it to yourself to spend some time with it. 

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Welcome to Westside Cowboy Week. DIY Magazine touches base with the UK act about university freshers week, staying true to the dinky small and rough sound of their early days, and making the choice to record in Leeds instead of NYC. 

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Next week is Mama's Broke Week, celebrating the release of the duo's Reunion LP. KLOF Magazine tracks down Amy Lou Keeler and Lisa Maria in Nova Scotia to explore the origins and inspirations for their original folk music. 

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Against their best efforts, it looks like our beloved Twisted Teens are on the verge of superstardom. Pitchfork reports that the garage punk-blues duo have signed with Sub Pop. Dear Sub Pop, don't change a thing. Love, Routes & Branches. 

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We let last week's release date pass without acknowledging the release of Nina Winder-Lind's Wild Love. A contributor to the New Eves, Winder-Lind's new collection has enchanted and challenged us this week (which is all we ask of music). Under the Radar shared a brief profile of the artist, who dwells in the brambles and thorns of folk music's fringes like we like. 

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Do we need more Kevin Morby content? Let's ponder that as we connect with World Cafe and their live interview and performance. Morby admits his recent Little Wide Open is a love letter to the Midwest. There's somebody for everybody, isn't there. 

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Wanna see a sprawling list of 2026 releases? Spend some time with A Routes & Branches Guide To Feeding Your Monster. Since we last checked, we've added new stuff from artists like Jude Brothers, whose Dogwood Maiden Voyage has received a September 25 release date via the increasingly excellent Gar Hole label. Cameron Winter is the frontguy for Geese, the saviors of all things rock. Live At Carnegie Hall documents a live solo show (at Carnegie Hall), and is expected on October 9 (Partisan). Ask for October 23 off from work to observe the release of a handful of good things. Foot Ox will offer Topanga Canyon, courtesy of Lauren Records. That very day, we're also looking forward to Popfly, a full-length from the impressively productive Michael Nau. Finally, upon the occasion of the surprise release of this week's Ode To Humidity, Pony Bradshaw also shared that he's planning a November 13 appointment for a companion record, Through a Glass Darkly (Dogs Of the South). 

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LOOKBACK MACHiNE: Jason Isbell

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

August 19, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

After fooling around in the beloved weeds of our kind of music for the past few weeks, we're going to drag this thing back into the mainstream with our favorite songs from Jason Isbell. 

If we wanted a real challenge we might include the writer's songs during his Drive-By Truckers days. As a solo artist, or as frontman for his 400 Unit, Isbell has penned some of the best work of his generation. It's not hard to argue that both Southeastern and Something More Than Free could be considered among the highlights of the first quarter of the Twenty-First Century. 

Our Thirty Favorites list doesn't include anything from the handful of live collections Isbell has released over the years. Nor do we add anything from 2021's Georgia Blue, a terrific project of covers celebrating the music of the Peach State. And even with those exclusions we're left with surfeit of gems from which to choose. 

Last year's solo acoustic Foxes In the Snow seems to have served as a reset of sorts for Jason Isbell, stepping back from a very successful run of records and tireless touring. But there is no need for reinvention or new directions for a writer of his caliber. 

JASON ISBELL: thirty favorites

- "Brand New Kind Of Actress" Sirens Of the Ditch  (2007)

- "Chicago Promenade" 

- "Dress Blues" 

- "Seven-Mile Island" Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit  (2009)

- "Cigarettes and Wine" 

- "Streetlights" 

- "Alabama Pines" Here We Rest  (2011)

- "Codeine" 

- "Tour Of Duty" 

- "Cover Me Up" Southeastern  (2013)

- "Traveling Alone" 

- "Elephant" 

- "Super 8"

- "If It Takes a Lifetime" Something More Than Free  (2015)

- "24 Frames" 

- "How To Forget" 

- "Children Of Children"

- "The Life You Chose"

- "Something More Than Free"

- "Last Of My Kind" The Nashville Sound  (2017)

- "If We Were Vampires"

- "Hope the High Road"

- "What've I Done To Help" Reunions  (2020)

- "Dreamsicle"

- "Only Children"

- "King Of Oklahoma" Weathervanes  (2023)

- "Cast Iron Skillet" 

- "Bury Me" Foxes In the Snow  (2025)

- "Foxes In the Snow"

- "Wind Behind the Rain"

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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:

IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK (August 18, 2026)

ROUTES & BRANCHES

featuring the very best of americana, alt.country and roots music

August 16, 2026

Scott Foley, purveyor of dust

We're presented with a couple options for this week's breakout review, including an unexpected gem from Pony Bradshaw and an EP marking a big step forward for Hank Heaven. As we've noted, we'll probably loop back around to Bradshaw this Fall. This week's showcase spot belongs to a career-defining collection from a performer who is ready for her roses. 

IF YOU ONLY LiSTEN to ONE RECORD THiS WEEK

After years of dancing around her potential, Elizabeth Cook has landed with Great Television (Agent Love). Never short on talent or songwriting chops, and collaborating with respected producers like Butch Walker and Don Was, the East Nashville artist has earned her reputation on very good projects like 2007's Balls and 2016's fiery Exodus Of Venus. Turns out it was a smart decision to await her turn with Shooter Jennings, who embraces Cook's solid songs with full, contemporary arrangements for the best-sounding record of her career. 

On Great Television, Elizabeth Cook is smartly supported by her touring band, featuring the valuable Andrew Leahey on guitar, as well as bassist Phil Anthony and John Venezia on drums. Past albums have proven her proficiency with all shades of country, from honky-tonk to gospel. Most songs here lean into a country-rock pocket, allowing room for shades of blues and soul. Cook's collaboration with Turnpike Troubadours' Evan Felker, "Razorwire Wall", charges into a Petty-inspired guitar hook as it tells the story of a woman dropping her moonshining husband off for his prison appointment. "Caledonia and the Love Convoy" is another good-natured roadsong, detouring into familiar blues territory. Cook and her outfit even find an original angle covering the Stones' "19th Nervous Breakdown", flipping its perspective and bending it a'la Nancy Sinatra. 

Elizabeth Cook's facecard is her songwriting, particularly her penchant for championing unsung voices from the margins. "Girls Of Atomic City" and "Thiokol Tripwire" build on accounts of women exploited in the workplace, teasing a rousing chorus from the ashes of history. A duet with Wynonna, "Easy Kind" names names like Britney, Courtney, and Whitney to call out outsized expectations and a lack of support for young women in music. Jennings stirs the drama with a choral backing. Where past efforts have found Cook likened to everyone from John Prine to her friend Todd Snider, she defines her own territory on Great Television, clever but never silly, strongly opinionated without being a sassy stereotype. 

The story of Elizabeth Cook (as fictionalized in the new Easy Kind series) tells of a phenomenally talented artist who has become a fixture on the Opry stage but who has yet to achieve her potential. Fact is, Great Television is too good for mainstream success. We've gushed aplenty here about "Sunset Promenade", the LP's opener that sets female friendship to one of the year's best melodies. While "Easy Kind" merits breakout attention in its own right, "Sunset Promenade" deserves to be in the conversation for the song of the year. It's the crowning achievement of a collection that leaves no doubt about the artist's uncommon, even generational talent. 

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