#cass mccombs

[mon-nid]

[bandcampsnoop]

3/28/26.

It's a March twofer. I was perusing the new releases and these two popped up just a few releases apart from one another. This first post is a no-brainer. "Steel Reserve b/w Ignis fatuus, Hinkypunk, Sharkfins and Ambergris" is a collaboration between musician friends Chris Cohen (Richmond, California) and Cass McCombs. The voice and music are Cohen's and the lyrics belong to McCombs. The 7" is a joint release from Hardly Art and Domino Recording Company.

The second release is from Provo, Utah musician JP Haynie - on this release appearing as Meadow System. "Migrating Bird" was the first song I heard after listening to Cohen/McCombs and it was a nice transition. Clearly, Haynie is influenced by Phil Elverum (The Microphones) - one of his earlier releases features artwork from Elverum. But Meadow System also recalls Jonathan Richman and Royal City. Haynie is one of those musicians who has been making great music for years to little fanfare. Doesn't matter. He just keeps churning out great record after great record.

This is TGR-002. His album "Pale Blue Horse", released as JP Haynie, is TGR-001.

[musicollage]

Cass McCombs — Interior Live Oak. 2025 : Domino.

[bandcampout]

Cass McCombs - County Line - Wit's End (2011)

[dustedmagazine]

Cass McCombs — Interior Live Oak (Domino)

Photo by Rachel Pony Cassells

Can Cass McCombs be trusted? On “I Never Dream About Trains,” one of the many highlights from his new album, Interior Live Oak, he sings, “I never lie in my songs.” I, for one, don’t believe him. As a songwriter, McCombs has long walked the line between earnest, heartfelt songcraft and playful, throwaway nonsense. At 16 songs over 74 minutes, Interior Live Oak is surprisingly low on filler for an artist who seems to take mischievous glee in tripping up listeners.

Let’s get the negative stuff out of the way first. I never want to hear the silly, organ-driven stomper “Juveniles” again (“Everything sucks!”), and will gladly skip it on every listen. “Miss Mabee” sounds like a dirtied-up reworking of the far-superior “Peace.” “A Girl Named Dogie” has a ridiculous yodeling section at the end. On the otherwise decent “Ven Wyck Expressway,” the drums are inexplicably flanged. And the closing title track is a throwaway lo-fi blues rocker in the vein of “Ballroom Blitz.” But that’s a small proportion of the album’s run-time.

As far as the rest of the album is concerned, there are some absolutely wonderful songs here. “Priestess” is a smooth, groovy opener with an addictive strut. “Peace” has an indelible lead guitar melody, plus a rhythm track that masterfully builds and releases tension through swells of crash cymbal over its tight, shuffling beat. ”Missionary Bell” is the first of several winning slower songs, which has a lovely, gentle lilt, plus McCombs’ characteristically nuanced guitar playing. “Home At Last” has a similarly wistful feel, and “I’m Not Ashamed” and “Strawberry Moon” are gorgeous, blue-eyed soul. Though it doesn’t quite justify its six-minute run-time, the curiously named “Who Removed the Cellar Door?” is brooding and organ-driven, akin to The Doors. And at the album’s heart is “Asphodel,” one of the few upbeat tracks that really hits home.

All this amounts to Interior Live Oak qualifying as McCombs’ strongest album since 2013’s double, Big Wheel and Others. It goes to show that given free rein, McCombs can come up with a batch of truly memorable songs. He just needs to get better at self-editing his low points.

Tim Clarke

[one-apathy-2]

[qberrypie]

[flying-golden-vee]

Loving the new Cass....