Jeremy Garrett, fiddle player & vocalist of The Infamous Stringdusters continues the rollout of Storm Mountain, the seventh solo release of his career and first album release off of the band’s imprint Americana Vibes. With the release set for June 27th, Garrett gives listeners his third offering off of the new album today with the release new single “Slow Train.” Fans can get an early listen with the track streaming exclusively on YouTube HERE, incentivizing his audience to subscribe for exclusive content and videos surrounding the release.
"Slow Train" will be available on all digital streaming platforms on May 30. Pre-save & listen HERE.
Storm Mountain follows Garrett’s well-received 2022 release River Wild and is an ode to his current life living “off the grid” in a cabin on 12 acres with his wife and eight-year-old daughter in a remote section of Theodore Roosevelt National Forest outside of Drake, Colorado. The collection of songs was inspired by the mountains he lives in and the idea that holds—whether it be living in joyous nature or the more pointed feeling one can have being surrounded by such intensity. Living in the mountains can be free and easy, yet an unforgiving place for those that aren’t prepared for the elements (and even if you are, it’s never completely easy). It was a metaphor he couldn’t resist when making the record.
“Slow Train” is a fiery tribute to one of Garrett’s personal bluegrass heroes, Larry Sparks. “This is pretty much a total tribute to one of my favorite bluegrass stars,” says Garrett. “Chris Luquette along with everyone plays the heck out of this track and sets it on fire! The bluegrass way!”
The song opens with classic heartbreak with lyrics declaring, “I'm heartbroken and I'm feelin' low-down / I'm sick and tired of the life I live around this old town." It quickly shifts into a foot-stomping anthem about leaving the past behind and forging a new path. Featuring Garrett’s searing fiddle work alongside Ray Cardwell’s powerful tenor vocals and Josh Shilling’s robust baritone timbre, “Slow Train” is the antithesis of slow and is a buoyant ride through the a vulnerable terrain of lost love and new beginnings.
While bluegrass is often associated with light-hearted festival sets and late night picking sessions, Garrett aims to dig deeper with more serious, introspective subject matters and musical stylings that veer back into his more traditional lineage in gospel, country, and roots, “This is not a light-hearted record,” he explains, “Bluegrass is a lonesome music. I wanted this album to be more sophisticated than songs about trains and biscuits, to bring out the deeper content.”
Storm Mountain deals with such serious topics as a fall from grace (“Son of Perdition”), the bitterness of fate (“The Cold Hard Truth”), lost love (“Fly Away”), the meaning of life (“Anchor in the Deep”) and hopes for his daughter (“You’re Gonna Fly”). In addition, there are playful stabs at modern phenomena from social conventions (“Don’t Ask’) to UFOs (“Rosewell”).
“I love weird stuff like that,” he laughed. “I study quantum physics, too.”
Other highlights include surprising, idiosyncratic covers of songs by Mr. Mister’s Richard Page (“The Border”) and U.K. classic rock band Free (“Fire and Water”).
“I wanted to draw on something a little different than what I do with the ‘Dusters. These are songs that don’t quite fit in with the crowds we usually play for. When I go back to the band, I’m way better and more fulfilled for having done these solo records.”
Garrettt’s collaborators on the record include banjo player Ryan Cavanagh (“a picker’s picker”), guitarist Chris Luquette, singer Lindsay Lou (“The Border,” “You’re Gonna Fly,” “Son of Perdition”), songwriting partner Josh Shilling, fiddle players Luke Bulla and Casey Driessen (“Rosewell”), bassist Travis Anderson, tenor vocalist Ray Cardwell (“Slow Train”) and Stringdusters colleague Andy Hall on Resophonic guitar/dobro (“You’re Gonna Fly”). He recorded the album in a one-room studio outside of Fort Collins, CO, at the foothills of the mountains, before he added his parts at his own Storm Mountain home studio.
With groups like Yonder Mountain String Band, Leftover Salmon, String Cheese Incident and current phenom Billy Strings updating bluegrass for a new generation of listeners as “jamgrass,” the genre has exploded. Jeremy Garrett, known to the Infamous Stringdusters’ loyal fan base as either G-Grass or Freedom Cobra for his dynamic stage presence, has been at the forefront of the revival.
“Bluegrass is a durable music,” he said.” It’s been around for a long time. It’s down home and hardy and you can play it anywhere. You don’t even need electricity. The Dusters are a traditional bluegrass band that brought in the elements of extended soloing into the mix.”
At 48 years old, Garrett is relatively young for a bluegrass veteran and looks forward to performing his music live for audiences. “When I write songs now, it’s from the standpoint of someone who’s been through some life experiences over the past 20 years. My goal is for this record to be uplifting at the same time as it’s more reflective in terms of healing.
“You need to have the music serve the song first and foremost, but I still throw down the fiddle because that’s what people expect.”
With the Dusters about to celebrate their 20th anniversary next year with a new album, Garrett looks forward to finding time for the occasional solo performance along with his “day job.”
His ultimate inspiration are guys like Larry Sparks (as portrayed in "Slow Train"), Del McCoury and the late Ralph Stanley, who have performed into their 70s, 80s and 90s.
“I want to play this music forever,” said Jeremy. With Storm Mountain, he continues on that path.
