49 Winchester - Leavin' This Holler

As country splinters into an ever-increasing number of sub-genres, 49 Winchester continue to be a reliable unifier on their new album, Leavin’ This Holler. Tighter and more confident than 2022’s Fortune Favors the Bold, the band skillfully straddle the line of alt-country, soul and Americana, resisting the urge to be tipped fully into a single one despite their surge in popularity, which usually tempts entertainers to throw their hammer down on one side. Not so for the Virginia six-piece, who hold their ground and do it well, making a record that’s simple yet not unintelligent, commercial but not superficial.

Their music, particularly their studio output, has always been direct and sincere, never straying into impenetrable complexity. “Drink it up and love your neighbour / Try and do someone a favor,” they sing on the title track ‘Favor.’ Though, that shouldn’t be taken as a mark of poor quality. In an age of country music which tribally polarises poets and TikTok friendly soundbites, it shouldn’t be underestimated how difficult it is to find the magic middleground between the two, and then to remain steadfast in it.

Frontman Isaac Gibson’s vocal is the lynchpin that holds it all together, proving a remarkably steady steer across toe-tapping romps like the hungry ‘Make It Count,’ the crowd-pleasing down-home familiarity of ‘Hillbilly Happy’ or the 70s rock of ‘Tulsa.’ It makes for a jolting and welcome surprise then as he swoons into a softer register on ‘Fast Asleep,’ allowing the vulnerability of lyrics like “The sun don’t shine like cigarette smoke, it leaves a shadow on the floor / And the sun don’t shine when you ain’t here, and I can’t make you smile no more” to slice through with precision.

Self-produced by the band and Stewart Myers, the entire operation is efficient. In its neatness, the album loses some of the laid back cool heard in the band’s live shows, but it’s a masterclass in placement. Instruments never spill into each other, Bus Shelton’s sharp and zippy guitar solos perfectly placed to rise and run throughout.

All of this is encompassed in the sun-soaked ‘Traveling Band,’ an ode to life on the road and the bittersweet sacrifices that come with musical success, whether it’s missing your woman or being able to use a proper bathroom rather than a gas station hole in the wall. It’s the mark of a solid band when they can take an experience which few will ever have claim to, and make it into a tune that relates. “Well this stop and go life ain’t easy, well it’s hard on your mind and your health / But playin’ country music’s how I make my living and the bills ain’t gonna pay their self” they sing in solidarity.

49 Winchester may be leaving the holler, but they’re gratefully grounded in the dirt for now.

8/10

49 Winchester’s 2024 project, Leavin’ This Holler, is available everywhere now via New West Records.

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