Fresh off their triumphant return to the Boston music scene – where the Boston Globe praised their “unalloyed rock ‘n roll” and their 2022 EP Throw the House earned them Boston Music Award nominations – Autumn Hollow aren’t just picking up where they left off. They’re burning the map entirely with Say No More, an album that proves sometimes the longest road leads to the boldest destination.
In a music landscape often dominated by algorithmic precision and digital perfection, Autumn Hollow delivers something refreshingly human on their latest album. This isn’t the same band that emerged from Waltham’s music scene. The addition of bassist Chuck Vath and drummer Ian McMillan has transformed their sound from the “crashing guitars and groovy bass” that first caught critics’ attention into something more dangerous and alive. When they lock in with lead guitarist Mike Burke’s work (run through vintage Leslie speakers for maximum psychedelic effect) and frontman Brendan Murphy’s lived-in vocals, the result feels less like a band and more like a force of nature.
“We wanted to make a record that captured the energy of our live shows while pushing our sound in new directions,” says Murphy, whose weathered vocals and incisive songwriting anchor the album. The band has earned their reputation as veterans of the New England scene through years of captivating performances at venues like The Paradise Rock Club and Club Passim. Recorded at Medford’s Soul Shop with producer Elio DeLuca (Titus Andronicus), they’ve crafted ten tracks that feel both intimately familiar and daringly fresh—a roots rock record that’s not afraid to color outside the traditional Americana lines.
First single, “Wooden Wire,” opens with a seismic A chord before morphing into a protest anthem that manages to make straight pride parades sound as absurd as they actually are. “After All This Is Gone” finds Murphy, a teacher who returned to the classroom mid-pandemic, confronting the collective amnesia around COVID’s lasting impact. “Don’t wait too long to jump in the turnaround / Cause it may be some time before they figure it out,” he warns, while Burke’s solos pierce through the fog of forced normalcy. This range is perfectly captured in “All We Are,” a joyous celebration of Murphy’s jam band roots that features DeLuca’s organ work dancing around the groove. “After attending thousands of jam band concerts, there are times when all you want to do is dance,” Murphy explains. “This track is my tribute to the incredible bands that have given me endless joy over the years.”
The album’s journey began nearly two years ago, with financial constraints and life’s demands extending the creative process. But that time allowed the songs to breathe and evolve, with notable guests like pedal steel player Will Ellis Johnson, banjo virtuoso Gabe Hirshfeld, and vocalists Sarah Leveque and Peter Zarkadas adding their distinctive touches to the mix. The resulting sound draws from a deep well of influences – the storytelling of Bob Dylan and John Prine, the sonic adventurousness of Wilco, and the raw emotion of Frightened Rabbit.
Mastered by TW Walsh (Damien Jurado, Nathaniel Rateliff, Fruit Bats), Say No More manages to capture both the intimacy of a house show and the expansiveness of a festival stage. It’s a record that rewards repeated listens, revealing new layers with each spin while never losing sight of the human heart beating at its core.
RIYL: City and Colour, Gasoline Lollipops, Dead Man Winter, Parker McCollum
PAST PRESS
“Triangulated somewhere between Bruce Springsteen’s bedroom records and Fleet Foxes’ rootsy rock and roll..” -The Big Takeover
“Like a little cross between Whiskey Town and Uncle Tupelo as these guys caught me right away.” -Musikkbloggen
“The album’s momentum never wavers, and not once did a song grace my ears that I didn’t want to hear again. Or three times, or four. F**k it, just hit repeat and let this be the soundtrack of my day!” – Max Bowen of the Noise
“Autumn Hollow is a band that sounds like The Band. They have one foot in rock, one in folk and one in-country. They are a three-legged monster of Americana.” – Daykamp