Denver singer-songwriter is really hard to nail down. There are times, listening to his lilting voice and soothing pedal steal, when you want to lump him in with the origins of alt-country, like Uncle Tupelo. But then, on the next track, he transforms into something akin to the folk revival of the 1970s, as we discussed .
Now, he is set to release a new EP, “Through the Eyes of Time,” and he uses that pedal steel to conjures a Hawaiian sound, as on “Old Ojai,” available for you to steal below.
Some artists who transform like a genre chameleon as Dillard does suffer from a lack of identity. It’s as if they have yet to find their true voice. This is certainly not the case with Josh Dillard. His musical voice, his identity, his sound all ring absolute with a truly classic foundation. But he is entirely unrestrained by genre barriers. Instead, he is free to follow where the song takes him, expectations be damned. In this way, his music recalls M. Ward.
So, yeah, on this EP, which only has four songs, the music lead him to a somewhat Hawaiian sound. This too could easily be a pitfall, cascading into novelty like the house band at a Hawaiian themed restaurant in Disneyland. But Dillard avoids this. Instead, these songs make the sound secondary to the emotional thrust. Really, these are classic songs, reminiscent of Elvis, even. It sort of makes obvious how much the ballads of the 1950s actually drew from an island sound. Truly, it’s refreshing to hear such an un-tethered artist explore wherever the music leads him, without concern for expectations.
Below, download “Old Ojai,” which is a town in California, not Hawaii. Then, join Josh Dillard at on November 14 for an EP release show, where he will take you on his personal music journey through the sounds that inspire him.
Please note that downloads offered via Steal This Track are intended to whet your appetite, and are NOT CD-quality recordings. If you want those, please support the artists by buying their music and/or seeing them live.
If you’re a Colorado band or musician ready to expose your fresh sounds to the readers of Reverb, email your tracks — along with any interesting facts about them, as well as a photo or album art — to Steal This Track for consideration. We only feature tracks not available for free elsewhere.
