In 2022, Spotify Unwrapped listed “stomp and holler” as my 5th most listened to genre. I was confused, as I never heard that phrase. After looking into it, I was… mad? No, no, I was far too underground for suspenders and bespoke boots as a genre, right? I was in a mosh pit at Riot Fest just a few years ago (it was 2008, and I threw my back out in the pit for Cobra Skulls)! I just stopped having a job with any real kind of dress code (I now work for a government agency)! I’m too youthful for this (I had just turned 41)!!! No, no, I joined the cadre of aging ex-punks who had tattoos and day jobs that loved a good goddamned mandolin riff.
Fast forward a year, and seeing The Lumineers live was one of my top 10 concert experiences. As a former concert publicist and long-time Racketeer, I have seen over 500 artists, so a top 10 spot is serious business.
Anyway, as I listen to the new Lumineers album, Automatic, I have realized I have come to slough off the unnecessary shame of liking “stomp and holler” and embrace hooting and hollering along to whatever wool-vest clad, fiddle-playin’, call-and-response beardos and weirdos that come my way.
This damn well includes Automatic. The fifth studio release from the crew highlights a slight, but noticeable evolution. Their usual recipe is on display: blending their signature folk-rock sound with raw, unfiltered emotion. But it feels like with each album, they get more and more personal, more intimate. Wesley Schultz’ vocals meander from “I’m having a good time” to “I am singing about the worst moment of my fucking life” with ease.
From the opening track, “Same Old Song,” it’s evident that they have delved deeper into crafting a story, not just a song. The production uses crescendos and silence as tools, bringing you up and down throughout the tales they layout before you.
Schultz’s vocals present his soul laid bare, allowing the sincerity of his delivery to shine through, using emotional impurities to reel you in. The instrumentation continues to deliberately stripped-down, creating a soundscape that is both haunting and comforting. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go to bed, I have work in the morning. (Psh, just kidding, insomnia rules).