"Clear Blocks Ahead" - Tim Barry

From the official press release:

When Tim Barry sat down to create his latest album, Clear Blocks Ahead, the veteran singer-songwriter saw two potential paths: he could create something stripped to the bone, just vocals and acoustic guitar. Or he could go bigger, and build the record around a full band.

Sifting through nearly 40 songs, some of them dating back to the 1990s, Barry chose Door 2.

He partnered with the Spacebomb House Band, a tight unit of studio players based in his hometown of Richmond, Virginia, and set to recording 13 tracks. The end product is a departure from his last record, 2022’s Spring Hill — and the rest of his two-decade career. Most of the Americana trappings are gone. In their place are ringing electric guitars and big rock n roll hooks. We’re not talking Marshall stacks cranked to 11, but Clear Blocks Ahead marks a major change of the sonic palette.

Even the quieter tunes, like Iron City Break (a deliciously bitter anti-ballad) and W.W. Pool (a chronicle of hard living), bristle with fresh musical ideas and an enhanced sense of collaboration. One new co-conspirator is Barry’s daughter, Lela Jane Barry, who lends her voice to four tracks.

Lyrically, the Clear Blocks Ahead is pure Barry. The songs feature lots of pathos-laden figures, the kinds of margin-dwelling characters who could star in a Sam Shepard play or a Denis Johnson novel. But he also brings a distinct sense of hope to the record, a useful feeling in the year 2026. Steady Locomotion is a gorgeous ode to simply surviving in a harsh world. And on the anthemic Still Lit, he sings: “Get up and out the door/Run like you never run before.”