Every Friday, BGS shines a light on some of our favorite new tracks in bluegrass, folk, Americana and beyond. Then we ask the artist about the inspiration behind the music and pass their wise words along to you.

This week, enjoy new music from singer and banjo picker JP Harris, acoustic songwriting duo Justin Hiltner & Jon Weisberger, and the Celtic roots music of Kalos, as well as the eclectic jazz-inspired group Mr. Sun, the inventive Wyoming duo The Two Tracks, longtime indie folk favorite Laura Veirs, and finally, Austin’s own rockabilly stars, Monte Warden and the Wagoneers.

Believe us when we say…. You Gotta Hear This!

JP Harris, “Roustabout”

Artist: JP Harris
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: Roustabout
Album: Shaving a Dead Man
Album Release Date: October 23, 2026
Label: Bloodshot Records

In Their Words: “I remember hearing ‘Roustabout’ for the first time from a warbly dubbed tape passed along by a friend, and was immediately struck by Fred Cockerham’s playing; not long after, I heard Dirk Powell’s rendition, ironically just as I’d become obsessed with the fretless banjo, under the alternate name ‘Hop High My Lulu Gal.’ It is melodically peculiar, and though not technically in a minor or modal key, has all the eerie dissonant notes from ‘between the piano keys’ that drew me into old time music some twenty five years ago.

“I found myself somewhat retreating from a difficult stretch of life the winter I recorded this, high up in Monroe County, West Virginia, and the opening verse felt like a letter back down the mountains to a world wondering where I’d gone: roustabout, oh roustabout / honey, where you been so long? / I’ve been in the pen with the forty-dollar men / and honey, I’m going back before long…” — JP Harris

Video by Tessa McCoy. Recorded at Cook’s Old Mill, Greenville, Monroe County, West Virginia

Justin Hiltner & Jon Weisberger, “I Could Cry”

Artist: Justin Hiltner & Jon Weisberger
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee and Brevard, North Carolina
Song: “I Could Cry”
Album: Sycamore
Single Release Date: August 14, 2026
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

In Their Words: “‘I Could Cry’ was the second song that Justin and I wrote for this collection, just a few months after we wrote the first, ‘I Couldn’t Cry.’ I like to think this characterizes our emotional range as songwriters! As usual, we built off an idea Justin had, but I recall that we wound up going in a slightly more optimistic direction, lyrically, than where the song was headed at the start. It’s still pretty gloomy, but ‘maybe I’ll just stay’ at the end of each chorus offers a balancing touch of resignation that’s still well short of actual hope, but puts it right in the middle of bluegrass tradition – and so does the virtuosity of the band. We truly had a dream ensemble in the studio!” — Jon Weisberger

“I think my favorite thing about my songwriting partnership with Jon over the years is that he’s always willing to follow my ideas that are truly based in personal expression. This song began as an examination of my journey with treatment-resistant depression and, with Jon’s help, it became something so much more – and that doesn’t feel wallowing or trite. Plus, what a relief that we can write bluegrass songs that actually say something together!” — Justin Hiltner

Track Credits:
Justin Hiltner – Banjo, lead vocal
Jon Weisberger – Upright bass, harmony vocal
Seth Taylor – Acoustic guitar
Libby Weitnauer – Fiddle
Jenni Lyn Gardner – Mandolin
Wendy Hickman – Harmony vocal

Kalos, “Pretty Good Friday/Ladybug”

Artist: Kalos
Hometown: Tacoma, Washington; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Sharon, Vermont
Song: “Pretty Good Friday/Ladybug”
Album: Tamarack
Album Release Date: October 9, 2026

In Their Words: “Ryan composed the first tune on a Friday afternoon and later realized it was Good Friday. Jeremiah named the second ‘foot stomper’ for the Asian or Harlequin beetle, an invasive species of ladybug where he lives. What we love to do as a band is arrange together. We live in the weeds sifting through and spending the time needed to come up with what feels right collectively. Sometimes we get carried away. This was our attempt at putting that aside and creating a set of feel-good, straight-ahead, high-energy reels. We did our best.” — Eric McDonald, Kalos

Track Credits:
Ryan McKasson – Fiddle
Jeremiah McLane – Accordion
Eric McDonald – Guitar
Yann Falquet – Producer

Video by Dylan Ladds, Dooster

Mr. Sun, “The Invisible Present”

Artist: Mr. Sun
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “The Invisible Present”
Album: The Idea Guys
Album Release Date: September 4, 2026
Label: Adhyâropa Records

In Their Words: “A notable thing about the timing of this record: though in our fourteenth or fifteenth year as a band together with a few albums and many, many gigs behind us, “The Idea Guys” record came at a moment of particular significance. Aidan, always ahead of the curve, has been a family man since 2019 and Darol, while not being a parent in the traditional sense, has nurtured probably thousands of musical progeny either directly or from afar through his musical and pedagogical reputation. But at the time of making the record, Joe and I were both very new fathers: his daughter Hartley is just six months younger than my son Elias.

“Before Elias could talk or walk much, for a while he made a practice of sweetly handing my wife and me little “invisible presents” with his tiny fingers; my interpretation was that he was learning, in some nascent way, about generosity and how to think of and care for others, all while exerting some newfound fine motor control. “The Invisible Present” is an ode to the simple beauty of new life, and the poetic-sounding double meaning of the title made it that much more fitting.” — Grant Gordy, Mr. Sun

Track Credits:
Darol Anger – Fiddle
Joe K. Walsh – Mandolin
Grant Gordy – Guitar
Aidan O’Donnell – Bass

The Two Tracks, “Seasons Unknown”

Artist: The Two Tracks
Hometown: Sheridan, Wyoming
Song: “Seasons Unknown”
Album: Seasons Unknown
Release Date: August 14, 2026

In Their Words: “‘Seasons Unknown’ came from my time living in the Northern Plains of Wyoming after I moved there in my twenties. What I thought would be just another place to land ended up becoming home for more than two decades, where I still live and write today. You get hot summers, bitter cold winters, and the smell of sagebrush after it rains. You also might see a late spring snowstorm or an 80-degree day in November—you never really know what season you’re in! I took a job doing archaeological surveys, and hiked across red rock buttes to open rolling hills to deep, rocky arroyos. It all reminded me of the old Westerns I used to watch with my grandma when I was a kid. This song is my thank you to a place that welcomed me and also convinced me to stay.

“Making this film was a spontaneous decision one evening this past spring when we received several inches of snow in town. The moody light of the late afternoon, and the calm snowy scene around town was too pristine to miss, so we raced out to capture it before dark. By the middle of the next morning, all of the snow was gone.” — Dave Huebner

Track Credits:
Julie Huebner – Vocals, acoustic guitar
David Huebner – Electric guitar, harmony vocals
Taylor Phillips – Bass, harmonyvocals
Fernando Serna – Drums, harmony vocals
Will Kimbrough – Electric guitar, producer

Video by Dave Huebner/Back of Beyond Media

Laura Veirs, “Feeling Returns”

Artist: Laura Veirs
Hometown: Portland, Oregon
Song: “Feeling Returns”
Album: Temple Songs
Release Date: August 14, 2026
Label: Raven Marching Band Records

In Their Words: “This is a song about the dreaminess and also the fears that come with new love. There’s anger in this song but also transformation and a hope that newfound love becomes lasting love. I performed this song on stage in Minneapolis last October on the same day that I wrote it. That was a first. This song came out in one burst with no edits (they rarely come through like that and when they do it feels like a gift from another sphere). I like how the guitar parts interplay in a cool, polyrhythmic way. I also like the line about the Devil’s head. Saucy!” — Laura Veirs

Track Credits:
Written, produced, recorded, arranged and performed by Laura Veirs at the Temple of Bloom in Portland, Oregon, in the fall of 2025

Monte Warden and The Wagoneers, “Ballad of Paladin”

Artist: Monte Warden and the Wagoneers
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Song: “Ballad of Paladin”
Album: Doghouse Flowers EP
Release Date: August 10, 2026

In Their Words: “The reason for the whole-danged session right here. We were commissioned to give The Wags’ spin on this ol’ classic TV Western theme song. It’s crazy-fun, very us, and I will be FOREVER grateful for the way He presented this opportunity to us. There is a new book out called American Paladin by the bestselling author Larry Correia. His publishers are big Wags fans and they wanted us to cut the tune as part of the promo campaign for the book series. Fun fact: The coolest-thing-ever-six-string bass part Brent Wilson picks was on a Danelectro once owned by Harold Bradley – and, wait for it, also once played by Elvis at a June of ’58 session at RCA Studio B.” — Monte Warden

Track Credits:
Monte Warden – Lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Brent Wilson – Lead guitar, background vocals
Brad Fordham – Bass, background vocals
Mas Palermo – Drums, percussion, background vocals
Nick Litterski – Piano, Hammond B3
Brooks Warden – Background vocals
Brandi Warden – Background vocals

Photo Credits: Emilia Paré (JP Harris); Shelby Brakken (Laura Veirs)