#son volt

12/25/25.

It's a Christmas miracle three-fer:

When I think of indie Americana, I always think primarily of Uncle Tupelo, Son Volt, Wilco and Beachwood Sparks. Arbor Labor Union (Atlanta, Georgia) seem to be lifting the mantle of those forebears and continuing in the great tradition of the sound. The Bandcamp page doesn't really reference any particular sound, except there is a reference to Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. The great Sophomore Lounge (and its leader Ryan Davis) are releasing this on January 2nd.

As long as we're talking indie Americana, let's clear the slate. In 2024, New West Records released Color Green "Fool's Parade" on LP, and even released a live digital album. The only written buyer "review" is from...wait for it...Curation Records.

Brown Horse has a massive, meaty, guitar-heavy Americana sound that immediately recalls Crazy Horse in its full-throated abandon. Yet its music is also shot through with vulnerability, thanks to the flute-y, warbly vocal delivery of Patrick Turner, a dead ringer for Centromatic’s Will Johnson. A pedal steel, played by Emma Tovell at top volume, thickens the mix, softening the certainty of electric six-strings. In the single, “Twisters,” its ache and wail folds into a monumental onslaught; on more acoustic “Comeback Loading” it takes a plaintive lead, turning country rock into country.

Son Volt - Bluebird Theater, Denver, Colorado, December 16, 1995

We listened to some 30-year-old Wilco a couple weeks back — how about some 30-year-old Son Volt? Jay Farrar's post-Uncle Tupelo band also released their debut album in 1995. Trace remains a very sweet record, though I remember at the time being surprised at how professional (dare I say slick?) it was. Having become a Tupelo head a few years prior, I expected Jay to emerge with a supremely ragged Tonight's the Night-style opus. Trace wasn't really that at all. But it was packed with great songs and playing. This late '95 audience recording of a gig at the Bluebird on Colfax Ave. is also packed with those things, in addition to some welcome dips back in to the Tupelo catalog. And stick around for the encore, highlighted by a killer rendition of Dylan's "Going Going Gone," the whole band going to a place where the willow don't bend.

Tear Stained Eye · Son Volt

(For those who don't know, Uncle Tupelo basically split into two bands, Son Volt and Wilco, after the two main guys, Jay Farrar and Jeff Tweedy, had a falling out. Wilco is somewhat better known, but I'm a lot more familiar with the other two.)