Another weekly roundup is here! You Gotta Hear This.
To get us started, Thomas Cassell reveals another track from his upcoming duo album. “Makin’ Some Noise” features his longtime friend and shredder Trey Hensley joining in on a Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers track with just enough of a Bill Monroe flair to excel with the bluegrass treatment. Plus, Colorado-based bluegrass band Jake Leg preview their new album with its title track, “No One Lives Here Anymore.” It’s an apt harbinger for the thoughtful, lonesome, and melancholic songs found on their upcoming collection – due to drop in June.
From elsewhere in bluegrass, the Lonesome River Band debut “Back When,” a song dripping with nostalgia that was co-written by LRB member Jesse Smathers with Nick Goad and Barry Hutchens. The track features a traditional instrument all too rare in bluegrass these days – the electric guitar! Nashville bluegrass outfit Greenwood Rye call on some mighty collaborators for their new song, too. “Ready to Burn” is indeed a barn burner, boasting features by Mason Via (who co-wrote the song with Greenwood’s Shawn Spencer), Vince Herman of Leftover Salmon, and IBMA Award winner Vickie Vaughn. It’s jammin’, energetic, and certainly fiery.
Don’t miss folk and Americana duo Great Willow included below as well. Their new song, “Age of Reason,” speaks to these highly divided times we’re living through – and everyone is talking about. “[We] don’t remember a time when the America we love has felt quite this disconnected and hostile against itself,” the duo tells us via email. “Americans can be so sweet and generous – you’d see it in every region as a traveling musician. How did we all fall so far so fast?” Their indie-folk track – lush with sounds and styles of the ’60s, ’70s, and Laurel Canyon – is charming in its consideration of such an existential question.
Singer-songwriter Kyle LaLone encourages all of us to “Slow Down” on his new Americana track. Inspired by quite literally running on fumes, LaLone speaks to the need we all face on the day-to-day to be present, to take deep breaths, and more. Sometimes all you need is to slow down. And make sure to hear the latest from singer-songwriter Mia Kelly, as well. “Big Time Roller Coaster Feeling” is about the highs and lows of having an all-encompassing crush, leaning into that free-falling feeling – of love and rollercoasters, both. It’s vibing and modern indie/acoustic folk that really enables the lyric and stories Kelly tells to shine.
There’s plenty to enjoy! You know what we think – You Gotta Hear This…
Thomas Cassell, “Makin’ Some Noise” (Featuring Trey Hensley)
Artist: Thomas Cassell
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee via Norton, Virginia
Song: “Makin’ Some Noise” (featuring Trey Hensley)
Album: Guitar Collection
Release Date: May 18, 2026 (single); August 21, 2026 (album)
Label: Common Loon Records
In Their Words: “Trey Hensley has been a longtime favorite of mine and more recently a great friend that I’ve been fortunate to make lots of music with. When I started to plan this collaborative album, Trey was one of the first calls I made. We are both huge Tom Petty fans, so it was natural to choose something from his catalog. This 1990s Heartbreakers track was on my mind as there was something about Mike Campbell’s guitar riff that was so Bill Monroe. It was a pleasure to work with Trey on this track – he’s truly one of the best singers and guitar players to ever do it and every time I stand next to him, I realize that in a whole new way. Hopefully this track is as fun to listen to as it was to make!” – Thomas Cassell
Track Credits:
Thomas Cassell – Mandolin, lead vocal
Trey Hensley – Guitar, lead vocal
Jeff Picker – Bass
Great Willow, “Age of Reason”
Artist: Great Willow
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Song: “Age of Reason”
Release Date: May 22, 2026
In Their Words: “Erin and I don’t remember a time when the America we love has felt quite this disconnected and hostile against itself. Americans can be so sweet and generous – you’d see it in every region as a traveling musician. How did we all fall so far so fast? Our song is a lament for that lost open-heartedness and a call to hopefully return to it. Maybe reconnecting with the beautiful natural world is a start.” – James Combs
“We recorded ‘Age of Reason’ in producer Susan James’ home studio out in California horse country – with avocado trees and exotic chickens on the hill out back and her hairless Sphynx cat crawling through our cases and being hilarious inside. Susan is a preternaturally gifted artist, arranger and producer. We loved working with her. And we love the amazing Dobro and slide Ben Peeler (Mavericks, Wallflowers) played on our song. It’s the special sauce the puts it over the edge.” – Erin Hawkins
Track Credits:
Erin Hawkins – Cello, vocal, songwriter
James Combs – Guitar, vocal, songwriter
Susan James – Organ, producer
Ben Peeler – Dobro, slide guitar
Greenwood Rye & Mason Via, “Ready to Burn”
Artist: Greenwood Rye, Mason Via, Vince Herman, Vickie Vaughn
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Ready to Burn”
Release Date: May 15, 2026
In Their Words: “‘Ready to Burn’ is a jammy bluegrass party song! When Mason Via and I got together to write it, we were both in a place where we had put a ton of effort into our respective albums and everything we were doing was very serious. So we wanted to shift gears a little bit and make something purely for fun. We wrote a song about getting together with our friends and preparing to have an epic barn burner. The recording of the song started as us wanting to get together to make some social media content. We ended up doing it at Parlor Studio where our friend Ethan Greek was working as an engineer. It snowballed into a full studio recording and then we thought, ‘Why stop there? Let’s get some features.’ So we called two of our favorite Nashville bluegrassers, who we love to jam with, Vince Herman (Leftover Salmon) and Vickie Vaughn (Della Mae), and asked them to join the party!” – Shawn Spencer
Track Credits:
Shawn Spencer – Guitar, vocals, songwriter, producer
Mason Via – Guitar, vocals, songwriter
Taylor Shuck – Banjo
Cat McDonald – Fiddle
David Freeman – Mandolin, BGVs
Larry Cook – Bass
Vince Herman – Vocals
Vickie Vaughn – Vocals
Sasha Ostrovsky – Dobro
Mia Kelly, “Big Time Roller Coaster Feeling”
Artist: Mia Kelly
Hometown: Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
Song: “Big Time Roller Coaster Feeling”
Album: Big Time Roller Coaster Feeling
Release Date: May 22, 2026 (album)
In Their Words: “‘Big Time Roller Coaster Feeling’ is a song that details all the instances in which I have fallen for someone. As playful as it is personal, each verse describes a crush. When it came the time to make the video we decided to depict each of these crushes as a classic date, with the date’s face obscured by something ludicrous. The chorus draws from that joyful free-fall, that tummy-flipping feeling you get when you’re in love.” – Mia Kelly
Track Credits:
Mia Kelly – Lead vocals, acoustic guitar
Connor Seidel – Bass, piano, organ, slide guitar, percussion
Olivier Fairfield – Drums, percussion
Ben Plotnick – Fiddle
Aaron Collis – Mandolin, accordion
Adam Brisbin – Electric Guitar, slide
Video Credits: Randy Kelly – Videographer, director, editor
Kyle LaLone, “Slow Down”
Artist: Kyle LaLone
Hometown: Diamond Bar, California
Song: “Slow Down”
Album: Make My Own Way
Release Date: May 15, 2026 (single); June 12, 2026 (album)
In Their Words: “Another song that started with the title and whose lyrics were sparked by a specific event. One morning I had to drive to catch a flight to an out-of-town gig after having played a gig the night before. Once I got in my car I realized I was really low on gas and wouldn’t have enough time to stop to fill up on my way there. Luckily I made it to the parking garage near the airport but knew I would be running on fumes to find a gas station before the drive home. That situation inspired the first verse and got me thinking about my tendency to just keep going until I’m out of gas figuratively and literally when what I really need to do sometimes is slow down.” – Kyle LaLone
Jake Leg, “No One Lives Here Anymore”
Artist: Jake Leg
Hometown: Lyons, Colorado
Song: “No One Lives Here Anymore”
Album: No One Lives Here Anymore
Release Date: May 15, 2026 (single); June 13, 2026 (album)
In Their Words: “‘No One Lives Here Anymore’ is the first single and title track from our sophomore album coming out on June 13. It was probably one of the first songs written for this album and touches on the themes of sadness and isolation that show up throughout this collection of songs. I’ve always really loved and connected with sad songs so that tends to show in my writing fairly often. ‘No One Lives Here Anymore’ is sort of an ‘anti-story’ of someone who has lost connection with the aspects of life that make it fulfilling and has fallen into the pattern of observing life as it goes by rather than participating in it. Musically, the chord progression kind of folds around on itself and I think is representative of the cyclical nature of some of these feelings that we experience throughout life.” – Dylan McCarthy
Track Credits:
Eric Wiggs – Guitar, vocals
Dylan McCarthy – Mandolin, vocals, songwriter
Justin Hoffenberg – Fiddle
Aaron Hoffenberg – Bass
Lonesome River Band, “Back When”
Artist: Lonesome River Band
Hometown: Floyd, Virginia
Song: “Back When”
Release Date: May 15, 2026
Label: Mountain Home Music Company
In Their Words: “I’m so proud to have had a hand in writing ‘Back When’ with my pals Nick Goad and Barry Hutchens. As we had a conversation on Barry’s back porch we reminisced about our youth, the mischief we got into, and of course being musicians, our first chords, and songs we learned. Looking back, those moments are so sentimental and they made me into who I am today. It’s important to be aware of those subtle reminders that take us to our formative years way ‘back when.'” – Jesse Smathers, songwriter, guitarist
“The essence of ‘Back When’ is how the least little thing – a conversation with an old friend, a song, etc. – can cause memories to come flooding back. It was a real privilege for me to have the opportunity to write it with Jesse and Nick. They are both such talented writers and musicians. It’s one of those songs that came about simply by the three of us sitting around and reminiscing about when we were kids and growing up playing music.” – Barry Hutchens, songwriter
Track Credits:
Adam Miller – Mandolin, lead vocal
Sammy Shelor – Banjo, harmony vocal
Jesse Smathers – Acoustic guitar, harmony vocal
Mike Hartgrove – Fiddle
Kameron Keller – Upright bass
Rod Riley – Electric guitar
Photo Credit: Thomas Cassell by Scott Simontacchi; Greenwood Rye courtesy of the artist.
