Preview - Jamestown Revival - The California EP

Nashville – Here’s a story you rarely hear: An increasingly successful musician walks away from his Atlantic Records deal and the attention of MTV and ABC’s music supervisors to form a bluegrass-inspired band with his childhood buddy. Whether or not you think that’s a smart decision, it is, in fact, how Jamestown Revival came into being. After listening to the band’s latest release, “The California EP”, we’d argue that it was an excellent decision to give up glitzy pop music to create the simple, soulful melodies of Jamestown Revival. Actually, we’re so adamant that we can’t wait for the release date to review the EP.

Rewind back to the time before they’d even dreamed of EP releases or Atlantic Records. And, Jonathan Clay (the aforementioned protagonist) and Zach Chance were a couple of fourteen-year-olds kicking around The Clay Family’s ranch in Magnolia, Texas, a town outside Houston boasting about 1,500 residents. The boys shared a love of music and even wrote a few tunes together. Those songs of their bygone teenage days are not included on the EP, but three more recent, harmony-driven originals as well as a cover of John Prine’s “Paradise” are included.

Their small-town Texas upbringing and their love/hate relationship with L.A provide a theme for the EP. A banjo and skillful vocal harmonies give a nod to their country/western roots and also give buoyancy to their songwriting that might otherwise be lost under the weight of the EP’s undeniable pop overtones.

“The California EP” was recorded live-to-tape in a log cabin, making the songs intimate and warm. Chance and Clay seemed to recognize that throwing too many instruments and studio-gloss on the tracks would only muddle their songs’ innate simplicity. While “California (Cast Iron Soul)” flirts with this muddling effect, the rest of the EP sounds paired down and pure.

The warmth created by the tape is particularly apparent on the EP’s first single, “Fur Coat Blues.” The song builds to a hand-clapping energy level with drums in the back and a banjo and acoustic guitar front and center. Of the select instruments on the track, the most compelling sound is Clay and Chance’s harmonies.

Harmonies are a traditional part of bluegrass music, and they usually lend an air of nostalgia to songs. In Jamestown Revival’s case, that bluegrass nostalgia complements the EP’s idealization of their quiet hometown. Affectionate references to “old Magnolia” (“California (Cast Iron Soul)”) and longing for “that old time music” (“Golden Age”) make the inclusion of John Prine’s “Paradise” seem like an obvious choice. Similar to how Clay and Chance fear their souls will turn hard as cast iron upon leaving little Magnolia for California, Prine aches for Mulenberg County, a Kentucky town lost to progress and Peabody’s coal train.

Jamestown Revival did “Paradise” right, which is saying something about these songwriters’ folky aspirations. “The California EP” feels intrinsically more honest than Clay’s previous featured songs on The Hills and The Real World. We’re looking forward to their full-length album, which is recorded and set to be released later this year. Until then, enjoy a sample of Jamestown Revival with “The California EP”.

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Caroline McDonald

My first memory is of singing Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” quietly to myself during preschool naptime. Perhaps it’s because I’m from Nashville where an instrument lives in every home, but music has gripped me for as long as I can remember.

After dabbling in many parts of the music industry—recording studios, PR, management, labels, publishing—I’m expanding into music journalism because I’m yet to find anything more rewarding that finding and sharing new music.

A longtime sucker for girls with guitars, my musical taste unabashedly follows the songwriting lineage of Dolly Parton and includes Patty Griffin, Gillian Welch, and Neko Case. But not to pigeonhole myself, my music love is big love that stretches from R.L. Burnside to Animal Collective to Lord Huron.

I’ve recently moved home to Nashville after living in Boston and Big Sur for several years. I’d forgotten how music pours onto the streets ten hours a day, seven days a week. I’m honored to share the creative explosion happening here. If your band is in the area or of the area, please reach out!