Della Mae Release New Album ‘Magic Accident’ on Compass Records

Photo: Courtesy of Della Mae / Compass Records

Today, GRAMMY-nominated roots/bluegrass quartet Della Mae release their new album Magic Accident, a bold, mostly original set that showcases the band’s signature vocal power and high-wire instrumental chemistry. The record pulls from a wide range of roots textures—Americana-leaning songwriting, hard-driving bluegrass romps, and dreamy indie-folk-inspired moments—while staying firmly grounded in the spirit that has defined Della Mae’s work for years.

Longtime advocates for women in music, Della Mae collaborated with producer and banjoist Alison Brown on the project, their first release for Nashville-based Compass Records.

“We are incredibly proud to share this album, produced by our hero Alison Brown,” the band shares. “Magic Accident explores the complexity of being human and the drive to seize joy and possibility amid the sheer improbability of being here at all. Each of us contributed songs to this project — making it our most collaborative record to date — and it features co-writes with artists we’ve long admired.”

Magic Accident opens with its cosmic title track, written and sung by lead vocalist and guitarist Celia Woodsmith. The song reflects on time, self-discovery, and the strange beauty of becoming yourself—sparked by a letter Woodsmith wrote at 25 to her future self. “I’m just as holy as the great divide,” she writes. “I’m just a small piece of the great mystery. I don’t need to question any of my life.”

Band founder and fiddler Kimber Ludiker draws from the modal Appalachian fiddle tune tradition on “Family Tree,” co-written with guitarist Avril Smith and singer/songwriter Becky Warren. It’s one of the album’s most bluegrass-forward moments, with Ludiker’s fiddle propelled by Brown’s banjo, while the lyric meditates on generational trauma—how to see the cycle, survive it, and ultimately break free.

Smith also delivers the catchy, anthemic “Out Run ‘Em,” co-written with Caroline Spence and inspired by her teenage daughter’s growing love for long-distance running. The chorus lands like a mission statement: “If you go with the crowd, you can’t outrun ‘em / Go on ahead and show ‘em something.” It’s a message that mirrors Della Mae’s broader ethos—forge your own path, even when the room doesn’t expect you to.

That spirit echoes again on “My Own Highway,” which speaks to how women in roots music often travel deeply personal roads to become the artists they’re meant to be. Woodsmith says the song “celebrates the importance of knowing your power in deciding your own path, even if it’s different from the norm, no matter how many people look at you with questions in their eyes.”

Co-lead vocalist and award-winning bassist Vickie Vaughn shines on the album’s only cover, the Bruce Robison-penned “Lifeline.” With its message of hope amid “the deep dark grind,” it feels built for this moment, and Vaughn’s emotionally raw vocal delivery meets it head-on. Mary Bragg adds high harmonies, with Jen Gunderman (Sheryl Crow) on accordion and Bryan Brock on drums.

Listen: Magic Accident

Magic Accident Track List

DELLA MAE ON TOUR

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