Trailblazing singer/songwriter Langhorne Slim has announced his new album The Dreamin’ Kind will release on January 16th through Dualtone Records. Produced by Greta Van Fleet’s Sam F. Kiszka, the 12-song collection finds the Nashville-based artist strapping on an electric guitar and embracing his longtime love of larger-than-life rock & roll. Slim also unveiled a pair of new songs from the album: “Haunted Man,” a hard-rocking juggernaut with a dreamy, harmony-drenched B section, and “Rock N Roll,” a propulsive, electrifying track accompanied by a jovial official video.
Watch/Listen To “Rock N Roll”
Listen To “Haunted Man”
Pre-order/Pre-save The Dreamin’ Kind
A pioneer of raw, rule-breaking Americana for more than two decades, Langhorne Slim embarks on a new sonic chapter with his ninth studio album and reaches far beyond the genre he helped inspire. With its chugging power chords, 1970s-sized riffs, and richly layered arrangements, The Dreamin' Kind is fueled not only by sheer amplification, but by the soul-baring songwriting that has become Slim's calling card. Tucked between those anthems are acoustic-driven songs that skirt the outer orbits of folk music, building a bridge between his past and present. The result is the most explorative and expansive album of his career: a record made for rock clubs, campfires, and garages alike, anchored by a lifelong desire to break down new walls.
"It felt like I was blowing some old shit up so I could plant some new flowers," said Slim. "I love acoustic music. I love folk music. But those aren't my only loves. Rock & roll has always tickled the same place in my soul as great singer-songwriter music, and I wanted to explore those influences. Raw songs that make you feel something: that's the stuff I'm after."
Following the release of his 2021 critically-acclaimed Strawberry Mansion — his debut on the Billboard 200 chart, stacked with songs inspired by his life-changing decision to get sober from prescription pills, earning praise from Rolling Stone, The Wall Street Journal, and NPR’s All Things Considered — Slim found himself opening for Greta Van Fleet in Connecticut. The Grammy-winning rockers were fans of Slim's music long before he hit the stage as their opening act. "I remember hearing Lost at Last, Volume 1 for the first time, and it absolutely resonated with me," says Kiszka. "He has the conviction of 100 singers. He puts his entire body and soul into it. Rock & roll isn't a sound, necessarily. It's an energy, and he's got it."
Back in Nashville, Slim began visiting Kiszka's house for a series of loose songwriting sessions. Greta Van Fleet's drummer, Daniel Wagner, joined them, adding swagger and stomp to the guitar riffs that Slim brought to the table. From the very first note, things felt different. "When I'm at home, I'm usually playing acoustic guitar on the couch, and I don't have much opportunity to plug in and rock out," Slim explains. "Working with Sam and Danny gave me a chance to get loud." Songs began to take shape. This was new territory for Slim. For years, he'd been the ringleader of his own roots-music circus. Now, he was a collaborator, making a louder sound with different partners.
The Dreamin' Kind was recorded over the course of a year. Langhorne took his time, scheduling the tracking sessions between his commitments as a touring musician, a family man, and an advocate in his recovery community. He also embraced the overdubbing process, working with Kiszka to create towering, thickly-stacked rock & roll epics full of vintage keyboards, harmonies, grooves, and full-throttle guitar fretwork. "For a long time, I thought that production always meant over-production, and too much production was always a bad thing. There's an art to production that I've never truly danced with, though, and we did much more of that with this record. Normally, I’d book a studio for ten days and we’d try to knock out an entire album during that time, working as quickly as possible. This wasn’t like that. We didn’t have time constraints. We didn’t give ourselves any constraints, and I love the results.”
Track Listing:
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Rock N Roll
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Dream Come True
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Loyalty
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On Fire
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Stealin’ Time
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Rickety Ol’ Bridge
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Strange Companion
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Possessive
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Lord
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Haunted Man
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Dance On Thru
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Engine 99
Tour Dates:
10/10–10/11 – Fort Collins, CO @ Northern Flight – A Bluebird Music Festival Event
10/17 – Cedar Rapids, IA @ Paramount Theatre *
10/18 – Oklahoma City, OK @ The Criterion *
11/02 – Boston, MA @ The Wilbur *
11/13 – Nashville, TN @ Skinny Dennis
12/12 – Ann Arbor, MI @ Michigan Theater *
12/13 – Madison, WI @ Barrymore Theatre *
12/14 – Minneapolis, MN @ The Fillmore Minneapolis *
