Where did the month go? It seems like yesterday we were bowled over by the massive release day at the end of September. Now, here we are a stone’s throw from Halloween with a Mount Everest-sized stack of new albums.
I know I say this often, but there’s something for everybody here. We’ve got some good radio-ready country music, a little country-rock, an instrumental bluegrass album, and even a little Tejano-infused punk rock.
New Albums for October 28, 2022
- Providence – The Great Divide (Independent)
- Alpenglow – Trampled by Turtles (Banjodad Records)
- Bell Bottom Country – Lainey Wilson (Broken Bow Records)
- Old Kind of Magic – Native Harrow (Loose Music)
- The Hometown Kid – Gabe Lee (Torrez Music Group)
- Poor Pretender – Long Mama (Frozen Desert Records)
- Honey Harper & The Infinite Sky – Honey Harper (ATO Records)
- 40 Years in the Desert – Lisa Bodnar & Whistlegrass (Deko Music)
- Witness – Angela Easterling (Independent)
- Songs to Keep You Warm (EP) – Flatland Cavalry (Independent)
- Built on Bones – Emily Scott Robinson (Oh Boy Records)
- Wimberley – Memphis Kee (Independent)
- Feelings – Tommy Alexander (Fluff and Gravy Records)
- Fugue State – Luke LeBlanc (Independent)
- Free, For a While – Joseph Shipp (Independent)
- The Wishful Thinker’s Hall of Fame – The Matchsellers (Independent)
- Longcut – Mike Ryan (Rock & Soul)
- Last Golden Rays – Comanche Moon (Shallowater Records)
- Ain’t in No Hurry – Julie Roberts (Independent)
- Love and War – Teague Brothers Band (Independent)
- Tejano Punk Boyz – Giovannie & The Hired Guns (Tejano Punk Boyz/Crush South/Warner Music Nashville)
- The American Fiddler – Andy Leftwich (Mountain Home Music Company)
For most people, the new albums from Gabe Lee and Lainey Wilson are the big news today. However, there’s plenty more to dig into. For instance, Red Dirt originators The Great Divide are back with a new album after 20 years. If you’re a fan of bands like Turnpike Troubadours, Cross Canadian Ragweed, and Jason Boland & The Stragglers, and you haven’t heard TGD before, you should change that today. Then, there’s the new Flatland Cavalry EP. Ol’ Cleto Cordero rarely misses. There’s so much more to dig into here, though.
Poor Pretender
This is not a happy album nor will it get you up and moving. However, Poor Pretender is a beautiful album. Singer-songwriter Kat Wodtke’s voice walks a blurred line between wistful and haunting. The songs on Poor Pretender delve into romantic heartbreak, general sorrow, and self-improvement. There are also a couple of modern murder ballads here. Wodtke’s storytelling is top-notch.
If you need some moody folk songs in your life, this is the new album for you.
The American Fiddler
This new album from Grammy-winning instrumentalist Andy Leftwich will get you up and moving. The American Fiddler is an instrumental album that never presents a dull moment. Throughout the album, Leftwich switches seamlessly between mandolin and fiddle on a collection of mostly new original material.
While this is mostly modern material, it is steeped in musical traditions. It sounds like it was pulled straight from the Appalachian Mountains. Strains of bluegrass and flourishes of Celtic traditional music color Leftwich’s playing and make this new album damn near impossible to put down.
Love and War
I could say a lot about the new album from the Teague Brothers Band. They deliver expertly-written songs packed with stories of blue-collar love and life. Sonically, the Teague Brothers Band offers airtight Red Dirt arrangements to back the next-level lyricism.
So, I’ll introduce this album to you like I will everyone I know: Do you like Turnpike Troubadours? Well, you need to listen to the new Teague Brothers album.
