Folkadelphia Session: Andrew Combs

At the intersection of country, soul, and Americana, you’ll find Andrew Combs. I’m not talking about the country you hear on commercial radio, I’m not talking about the bombastic soul you hear channeled on countless current pop songs, and I’m certainly not talking about the millennial whooping of contemporary Americana. Andrew Combs is conjuring up music more classic and less trendy in approach. After a respectable showing on his debut Worried Man, Combs upped the ante and returned with All These Dreams, which I consider one of the finest offerings of 2015. The bedrock of the production is Combs’ adept songwriting, wholly accessible, smart, and catchy, upon which layers of twangy lap steel guitar, bowed orchestration, and a rock-and-roll rhythm section live and work together. The listener is treated to an album that will remain fresh and shiny after today’s gaudy music trends die away.

For his Folkadelphia in-studio session, Combs presented us with stripped down acoustic versions of his catalog, showcasing the strong structure that makes up each song.