Town Mountain has signed with New West Records and will release their anticipated album Lines in the Levee on October 7th, 2022, featuring the first single and title track, out today – listen/watch here. The 11-song collection was produced, engineered, and mixed by the multiple GRAMMY Award-nominated Justin Francis (Kacey Musgraves, Orville Peck, Anti-Flag) at Ronnie’s Place in Nashville, TN.
Hailing from Asheville, North Carolina, Town Mountain is the sum of all of its vast and intricate influences — this bastion of alt-country rebellion and honky-tonk attitude pushed through the hardscrabble Southern Appalachian lens of its origin. Lines in the Levee follows 2018’s acclaimed New Freedom Blues and is the first to feature the addition of drummer Miles Miller (of Sturgill Simpson musical lore).
The hearty base of Town Mountain’s music is classic country, old school rock and roll, and traditional string bands. Both on stage and on record, the group’s wide-ranging influences like The Band, Grateful Dead, Bill Monroe, Townes Van Zandt, Chuck Berry, John Hartford, and more can be heard. Lines in the Levee is a bona fide workshop in the seamless blend of Americana, country, bluegrass, and folk roots — this crossroads of deep influences and cultivated visions each band member brings to the table. Guitarist Robert Greer says “This is the sound we’ve been working towards since the inception of the band. It isn’t a departure, it’s an evolution — the gate is wide open right now.”
Taste of Country premiered the video for the album’s title track, directed by Joshua Britt and Neilson Hubbard for Neighborhoods Apart. Town Mountain’s primary lyricist Phil Barker says the song “was written amid the social upheaval of 2020. Lyrically, I wanted the song to communicate that a change is coming for those who don’t have a voice or feel disenfranchised. Musically, I wanted the rhythm to have a similar intensity and make you feel like something is about to happen.” Taste of Country says, “The song provides hope and confidence in the face of uncertainty and fear from the last two years.”
WATCH TOWN MOUNTAIN’S ‘LINES IN THE LEVEE’ VIDEO
After more than a decade together, the fiercely independent band has proven they have staying power by regularly cranking out authentic hit albums, collaborating with like-minded artists such as Tyler Childers, Billy Strings, and Jerry Douglas and consistently selling out shows nationwide. The members of Town Mountain felt an immediate kinship with New West Records and a genuine bond of creative fulfillment and sustained artistic growth.
Banjoist Jess Langlais said of the partnership, “New West came to some of our shows and the ball started rolling. They knew they wanted to work with us, and we knew we wanted to work with them. New West lets the artist steer the ship and that’s what we were looking for — to have the autonomy to do what we want, but to also have a great label behind us.”
Well established coast-to-coast for their incendiary live performances, Town Mountain has also announced their initial U.S. tour dates in support of Lines in the Levee. Launching this Saturday night at the Hootenanny at the Caverns in Pelham, TN, the tour also features a special album release party at the historic Station Inn in Nashville – full tour dates here.
Lines in the Levee is a moment in time for Town Mountain to take pause and glance over its shoulder at the road to the here and now. Right from the beginning, it’s always been about camaraderie and the creation of something unique.
Town Mountain are Phil Barker, Bobby Britt, Robert Greer, Jesse Langlais, Miles Miller, and Zach Smith.
Lines in the Levee will be available across digital platforms, on compact disc, and standard black vinyl. An extremely limited to 100 Coke Bottle Clear vinyl edition will be available at Independent Retailers in North Carolina while a Translucent Orange vinyl edition (limited to 1,000) will be available at Independent Retailers worldwide. A limited to 500 Translucent Yellow vinyl edition is available for pre-order now via New West Records. All limited color vinyl editions will be autographed by the members of Town Mountain.
