49 Winchester has done it again, folks.
The band’s most highly anticipated album to date has hit streaming platforms everywhere, and with 10 tracks that tastefully push the boundaries of 49 Winchester’s signature Appalachian Soul sound, while simultaneously proving that frontman Isaac Gibson is becoming one of country music’s most impressive vocalists and lyricists, Leavin’ This Holler meets every lofty expectation set forth by the public and then some.
A diverse project, both sonically and thematically, Leavin’ This Holler follows the band’s biggest album yet in 2022’s Fortune Favors the Bold, which set the Castlewood, Virginia sextet on an unprecedented trajectory as one of country music’s most promising up and coming acts. One of the best albums of that year, the success of FFTB has earned the band plenty of high profile touring gigs across the US, Canada, and Europe, and contributed in many ways to their rapidly growing fan base.
Though there are plenty of songs in their catalog through which they express their love for the area they come from, including “Russell County Line,” the band’s most popular song to date, Leavin’ This Holler consider the dichotomous relationship that an artist who spends most their time on the road has with home. Furthermore, 49 Winchester’s latest album speaks to the band members’ collective resiliency thus far over their decade-long career, and both explicitly and allegorically explores a newfound sense of freedom and renewed spirit that is apparent both in sentiment and sound.
In the album’s first track “Favor,” the band urges the listener to persevere through the tribulations and be kind to others. From there they move on to a lighthearted and catchy vacation tune with “Hillbilly Happy,” before delving into the band’s more vulnerable side with love songs like “Yearnin’ For You,” “Fast Asleep,” and “Rest of My Days.” They reflect on making the most of the opportunites they’ve been given in “Make it Count,” explore life on the road in the fan-favorite single “Tulsa” as well the new track “Traveling Band,” and even contemplate mortality and morality in the final track “Anchor.”
But the album is all tied together by the title track in which they teamed up with fellow Virginian Maggie Antone. With Antone’s impressive vocal prowess on full display, the album’s title track situated squarely in the middle of the track list aptly captures both the essence of the magnitude of 49 Winchester’s most well-rounded and complete project to date. Overall Leavin’ This Holler oozes with perspective that can only be achieved through years of hardwork and resiliency.
With more ears on their music now more than ever, 49 Winchester has undoubtedly risen to the occasion, and released a monumental album that bolsters their growing catalog and reinforces the notion that they are one of the most promising acts in country music.
So, without further ado, checkout a few favorites from 49 Winchester’s fifth studio album Leavin’ This Holler.
“Make It Count”
“Time flies by, and I ain’t getting any younger
But I never let that hunger die down
Well I gotta go, I gotta strike where the iron’s hot
I might only get one shot
I better make it count”
“Leavin’ This Holler” ft. Maggie Antone
“I’m leaving this holler, leaving the heartache
And I’m leaving the way things used to be
I will not be returning, my spirit is still yearnin’
For a chance at being happy, Lord, and free”
“Rest of My Days”
“Been through the wringer, just a road dog country singer
With a few tattoos and a few cheap brews always close to my hand
Bet you took the gamble on a man that was born to ramble
You deserve the whole world, but would you settle for a little bitty ring on your finger?”
“Traveling Band”
“I could use a night’s rest in my own bed, but I’m a thousand miles away
And I miss my dog and I miss my woman, but we got shows to play
And I’m wishing I was fishing on Cherokee Lake, jigging spoons off the Church House Point
But we’re somewhere in the desert, doing 80 on the highway, headed for a honky tonk joint”
“Anchor”
“Mother is sunken, son he is drunken, but father still stands upon land
I see him clearly, standing there shoreside, and offering said son his hand
I see the callus and rope burn on his palm and it makes me want to be a man”
It just doesn’t get much better than that.
In tandem with the Leavin’ This Holler album release, 49 Winchester is hitting the road hard this summer and fall, and I highly suggest getting out their to see them live. In addition to frontman Isaac Gibson, who contributes his songwriting, guitar playing, and powerful vocal expertise, 49 Winchester consists of Gibson’s childhood friends Chase Chafin on bass, Bus Shelton slinging guitar, and Noah Patrick on pedal steel. Drummer Justin Louthian, and keyboardist Tim “Redneck Mozart” Hall joined the band a few years back to round out the sextet, and together, they make up one of the tightest bands in all of country music.
Accordingly, their live show is one of the best out there, so you’re not going to wan to miss it when they come through your town.