Track Dogs are Garrett Wall, Dave Mooney, Howard Brown & Robbie K. Jones – their artistic name derives from the dark subterranean world of New York’s subway system.
Well-established in Spain where they are based, Track Dogs have been barnstorming the UK with some major festival appearances and collaborations. 2019 has been a pivotal year for the band, including playing to a heaving, rocking Trafalgar Square and the surprise on-stage participation of Show of Hands‘ Steve Knightley and Seth Lakeman at Shrewsbury Folk Festival.
Comprised of two Irishmen, an Englishman and an American, Track Dogs formed in Madrid in 2011 to bring to fruition their unique brand of acoustic music; a veritable melange of instruments and influences.
Fire on the Rails is Track Dogs’ second LP to be recorded on the Studer A80 analog tape machine recovered from Abbey Road at Playground Studio in Madrid. Since previous album Kansas City Out Groove (2018) and their compilation of ukulele-based recordings, Uke Songs By Track Dogs (2019), producer Germán Gutiérrez has packed yet more punch and grandeur into their sound.
As with Kansas City Out Groove, Track Dogs again turned to Nashville talent to up the game, Eli Bishop (Grand Ole Opry, Wynton Marsalis) providing string arrangements for ‘Love And War’, ‘On The Last Night’ and ‘Abi’s Lullaby’. Furthering the Nashville connection, Americana star, Ashley Campbell lends her pristine banjo picking to ‘Don’t Delay’.
On Fire on the Rails, Track Dogs draw more deeply from world music influences, extended the reach of their established sound on ‘Love And War‘, which in addition to the strings of Eli Bishop, features a cracking doumbek, and pulls together folk legends Phil Beer of Show of Hands, Grammy-winning Lisa Gutkin of the Klezmatics and Fergal Scahill of We Banjo 3, to elevate the call for unity and tolerance. Elsewhere Danny Erker (Jones Street Station) adds stellar mandolin to the track ‘Dragonfly’s Castle’.
Track Dogs’ lead vocals, mostly by Garrett Wall, are also shared by trumpeter Howard Brown on ‘And The Piano Sings’ – a tribute to Freddy Mercury – and percussionist Robbie K. Jones on ‘I’ve Needed You’ and ‘Dragonfly’s Castle’.
MORE PRAISE FOR TRACK DOGS
“Kansas City Out Groove is an album brimming with confident and accomplished musicianship, first-rate vocal performances, and an abundant, utterly infectious, relish of the music itself.” Folk Radio UK
“…the quartet serve up a south of the border fiesta exuberance that defies you not to stomp the heels and play air castanets…the groove is most definitely on.” FATEA
“…genre-busting acoustic music built around folk, Americana and bluegrass…an album that will delight established fans and gain them plenty of new ones” RNR magazine
“…The playing is outstanding, the harmonies are superb and it’s joyful throughout; just give it a listen.” Music Riot
“…the adventurous fusion of Americana and folk gets something special with the ubiquitous trumpet of Howard Brown. These Track Dogs unmistakably have their own sound, lovers of the work of Manu Chao and Calexico will certainly appreciate Kansas City Out Groove.” Written In Music
Track Dogs · February 2020 UK Tour
Fri 14 Bath Chapel Arts Centre
Sat 15 Newbury ACE Space
Wed 19 Manchester Veterans Garage
Thu 20 Milton Keynes The Stables (Stage 2)
Fri 21 Uckfield Uckfield Civic Centre
Sat 22 Portsmouth The Square Tower
Sun 23 Kingskerswell, South Devon Kingskerswell Parish Church
Wed 26 East Farleigh, nr. Maidstone The Old School Hall
Thu 27 Swanton Novers, Norfolk Swanton Novers Village Hall
Fri 28 Spalding, Lincs. South Holland Centre
Sat 29 Hepworth, West Yorkshire Hepworth Village Hall
