“I’m always trying to do something different because I feel like if we’re not searching, we’re not learning”, says ultimate folk troubadour, punk pioneer, and fly-fisherman extraordinaire Chuck Ragan about his new studio album “Love and Lore”, which is set for release on October 25th, 2024, via Rise Records. “My writing approach seems to be whatever the song needs or wherever the song takes you, just let it breathe”.
That sums up his fiery first solo collection in a decade as well as his career as co-frontman of perennial punk band Hot Water Music and a legendary solo artist. Always pushing boundaries and defying genres, Chuck’s music constantly strives for and, more importantly, achieves the rare distinction of being both groundbreaking yet feeling quite distinctly Chuck.
His new single, the fiery rocker “Wild in Our Ways” (released today, August 16th) is a perfect example. The chiming guitar attack that launches the track sounds harder than most of Chuck’s solo material, but the second his instantly recognizable and road-worn vocals enter the picture, it drapes you with that comforting Chuck Ragan warmth, like a flannel blanket around a campfire.
A song of survival and struggle, “Wild in Our Ways” is a defiant anthem that pulls for the underdog and lifts him up high. “We could say anything and / Love the dirt on an endless road / We’re not meant to be alone / Stop dead in tracks we sing / We’re not meant to surrender, not meant to bow out”, he sings with fist-up, blue collar conviction. The one theme throughout all of this is the way that Chuck approaches everything with a level of honesty and integrity that can’t be faked — and that sentiment is undeniable on “Love and Lore”, his first solo collection in ten years. The new single is available to stream at this link.
First conceptualized in 2016 with studio work beginning in 2019, progress was halted due to that ol’ dreaded COVID, “Love and Lore” was posited on the shelf while he focused on his fly fishing operation in Grass Valley, CA to provide for his family. “We got serious about making this album again in 2022, but I didn’t have a ton of time to devote to it between being physically exhausted and having a toddler”, he admits. “It was just chaos”. (This also includes a tree falling on guitarist / pedal steel / multi-instrumentalist Todd Beene’s house.) Eventually “Love and Lore” was recorded in early 2023 and the result is an album that showcases Chuck’s further transcending the “folk” label to create a collection of songs that see him stretching out as a songwriter to fearlessly explore new sonic territory.
A formidable presence on stage for the last three decades, Chuck Ragan played his first solo show over 30 years ago and has been writing heartfelt campfire anthems ever since he picked up an acoustic guitar at the age of 12. Growing up in the Southeast and raised by his Louisiana and Florida-bred Southern family, he has toured the world with seminal punk band Hot Water Music and as a solo performer. Chuck conceptualized The Revival Tour in 2005, which has been one of the most anticipated tours throughout North America, Europe, and Australia since its inception in 2008. Featuring such punk rock royalty as Frank Turner, Dave Hause (The Loved Ones), Jenny Owens Young, Brian Fallon (The Gaslight Anthem), Laura Jane Grace (Against Me!), Dan Andriano (Alkaline Trio) among many others, The Revival Tour was a festival of sorts that brought together artists of varying genres to collaborate and jam on stage as a musical collective. Ragan has toured the globe extensively for the past two decades and has become a household name in both the folk and punk communities.
Aside from his constantly evolving musical career, Chuck is a true multi-hyphenate as he is an established fishing guide who leads fly fishing trips throughout the Sacramento Valley Rivers in and around the Western region of the Lower Sierra Nevada Mountains. He has also written a book, “The Road Most Traveled” (2012), which compiles anecdotes about life on the road. In addition, an award-winning documentary Landsick based on his balance between music, his fishing, and his family, had a theatrical release in 2018, and was followed by a wide release on YouTube the following year.
“Love and Lore” was produced by Todd Beene and Chuck Ragan, engineered by Ryan Williams at Black Bear Studios in Gainesville, FL and features Spencer Duncan on bass, George Rebelo (Hot Water Music) on drums, Todd Beene on guitar, and Chris Cresswell (Hot Water Music, The Flatliners) on backing vocals.
Pre-order & pre-save “Love and Lore” here.
Tracklist:
1. All In
2. Wild in Our Ways
3. Northern World
4. Echo the Halls
5. Winter
6. Aching Hour
7. Waiting Out the Storm
8. One More Shot
9. Reel My Heart
10. Hanging On
