The Turnpike Troubadours are back, and they have returned with a message of resilience and gratitude in their latest album, A Cat in the Rain. After taking a hiatus to deal with personal challenges, the band has emerged stronger and more determined than ever before. Their new material is a testament to their unwavering spirit and their ability to overcome adversity.
The band’s signature blend of country and rock is present in every track, along with the plaintive singing and vulnerable lyrics of frontman Evan Felker, which offer a unique and refreshing perspective on life’s challenges.
For a comeback album like this one, there’s comfort in familiarity, as the band’s members churn out slick, twangy fare that appeals to modern country listeners while transcending formula. Guitarist Ryan Engleman’s chugging power chords underpin the more standard fiddle-and-pedal-steel accompaniment, creating a sound that is both familiar and innovative.
“I’ve come back to the mountains, and they’re all still standing there,” Felker sings on “The Rut,” offering a simple yet achingly resonant allegory for returning to a stable family life after years in the proverbial wilderness. His lyrics are often poetic, even esoteric, but they exist within the strictures of a country-boy vernacular: “No ring of brass run through my nose,” he crows on “Mean Old Sun.” Felker is a lot like the rest of the band’s members, who can churn out slick, twangy fare that appeals to the modern country listener but with enough wrinkles to transcend formula. Their recent single “Brought Me,” is an expression of gratitude to their loyal fans who stuck with them through thick and thin.
The Troubadours have been touring to sold-out shows, warmly bonding with concert halls full of people who know every word to every song and sing them right back at the band. It’s a tribute to a red-dirt sound that was always too smart, maybe even too heartfelt to fit in neatly with some of the metrics-tested country emerging from Nashville.
More than anything, the Troubadours’ return with A Cat in the Rain is a sign that they haven’t lost a step in their time away. They’re back with more of the sound that won over all those people in the first place — resilient, weathered by life’s difficulties, and, ultimately, still on the rise. The album is a reminder that no matter what challenges we may face, we can always find a way to persevere and come out stronger on the other side.
Stream and buy A Cat in the Rain today!
Cover photo credit: David McClister