Lately, Nashville’s native sons Teddy and The Rough Riders have been surfing a nice big wave.
Not due to some stroke of luck, but due to being innovators on a modern cosmic country sound with an Americana backbone. Having secured a producer for their July 1st record in none other than Margo Price, and having finished a recent tour-opening stint with masked troubadour Orville Peck, it seems their unique take on country music has found a welcoming home in this day and age.
Growing up together in musically inclined families and building their chemistry playing music in high school, the trio has been present in the local scene working their way through the numerous dives and honky-tonks like any other band. They made their way through the Nashville rite-of-passage, to which the band held an advantage as natives.
Their toils have resulted in a spectacular achievement that is on the bucket list of any dedicated artist today- playing The Ryman. The band took to the royal stage earlier this spring, opening for the aforementioned Orville Peck on his Bronco tour.
One of the great qualities of Teddy and The Rough Riders is the apparent depth of influences that makeup their sound. “We have a special way of how this group of us grew up together appreciating very certain things about these bands,” Jack Quiggins of the band said in an episode of MINIDocs.
Recently releasing two singles, “Livin In The Woods” and “Hey Richard”, the band is teasing their upcoming self-titled record, showcasing beautiful music that sits in the Americana canon like a puzzle piece.
In a charming ode to legendary musician Little Richard, “Hey Richard” is a touching song utilizing the classic southern ballad duo of acoustic guitar and piano in the first half to build up to a full blast barn-burner sing-along chorus, complete with wailing harmonica. “… to be able to know his story is one of the great pleasures of my life. Wish I could have met him and worshiped with him. I just wanna thank him for creating rock and roll,” vocalist and bassist Ryan Jennings told Brooklyn Vegan. He went on to say, “And equally a legend/hero, Hank Williams used to live in an old house across my street and personally I feel the ghosts like that in Nashville all the time.”
As if it was recorded in Big Pink, “Livin In The Woods” is a tried-and-true roots jam that is reminiscent of a deep cut from The Band’s prime. Not to mention, Jennings vocals are reminiscent of Rick Danko’s. It is a continuation of the Americana ideals forged by The Band and shoved into a blender with all the nice little idiosyncratic touches that make Teddy and The Rough Riders some of the best in the genre today.
Via Appalachia Record Co, Teddy and The Rough Riders self-titled album will see the light of day July 1st, and is available for pre-order now.
