Cosmic Country by The Bopper Brothers
During the week of January 6th, Paul Loveless and McCray Martin embarked on a small project of recording 8 country songs for a future release. This was inspired by their recent fascination with the Cosmic American Music of Gram Parsons, particularly on the Byrds’ Sweetheart of the Rodeo LP. Gram’s unique blend of country and rock music served as a valuable inspiration to revisit some of their favorite country songs, and write new material influenced by Gram. This all culminates into this album: Cosmic Country.
Cosmic Country features 6 covers and 2 originals, with both vocalists getting 4 songs each. The covers span from many sources: from traditional folk material (Wabash Cannonball), to Countrypolitan (Is Anybody Goin’ to San Antone), to Rockabilly (Big River, Movie Magg), and Gram Parsons himself (One Hundred Years from Now). These covers frequently feature a mix of classic rock instrumentation with traditional country elements. This is most clearly heard in Martin’s use of an osmose synthesizer to replicate the sounds of a pedal steel guitar, and Loveless’ use of banjo. The two original songs are placed as the 4th and 8th tracks of the album. Loveless’ Better to Be Alone is the most rock-adjacent song on the LP, featuring usage of fuzz guitars, tashiōgoto harp, and sneering harmonica. Martin’s I Hope the World Treats You Well is a gentle ballad, with a soaring osmose solo and a warm vocal performance, that serves as the perfect close to the album.
If you love classic country music, want a short and chill album to put on during a car ride, or want more of the Bopper Brothers’ instrumental and vocal sound, then Cosmic Country is an essential listen.
*while this is our first publicly released album, we do not consider it to be our ‘canon’ first album, as this is a side project created by two of our members, and not a representation of our intended future output.
This album is available on Spotify and all major streaming services:
https://push.fm/fl/mqgwddgf
Check out the visualizer for the album on our Youtube channel:
https://youtu.be/aogJSBVTV78
TRACKLIST
1. Big River (Johnny Cash) [2:39]
2. Wabash Cannonball (Traditional arr. Loveless) [2:25]
3. Is Anybody Goin to San Antone? (Glenn Martin, Dave Kirby) [3:16]
4. Better to Be Alone (Paul Loveless) [2:34]
5. Movie Magg (Carl Perkins) [2:17]
6. One Hundred Years From Now (Gram Parsons) [3:00]
7. I’ll Sail My Ship Alone (Moon Mullican, Henry Bernard, Lois Mann, Henry Thurston) [4:04]
8. I Hope the World Treats You Well (McCray Martin) [4:34]
Tracklist
| 1. | Big River | 2:39 |
| 2. | Wabash Cannonball | 2:25 |
| 3. | Is Anybody Goin' to San Antone? | 3:17 |
| 4. | Better to Be Alone | 2:34 |
| 5. | Movie Magg | 2:18 |
| 6. | One Hundred Years from Now | 3:01 |
| 7. | I'll Sail My Ship Alone | 4:04 |
| 8. | I Hope the World Treats You Well | 4:35 |
Credits
McCray Martin - lead vocals (1, 3, 6, 8); piano, Hammond B3, osmose, acoustic & electric mandolins, taishōgoto, harmonica, acoustic guitar (1, 5, 8) drums, vibraslap, woodblocks, tambourine (6); producer, cover art design
mccraymartinmusic.bandcamp.com
Paul Loveless - lead vocals (2, 4, 5, 7); 6 and 12 string acoustic guitars, electric guitars, bass guitar, banjo, ukulele, handclaps, fingersnaps, shaker, tambourine (2, 5, 7); co-producer, project coordinator
paulloveless.bandcamp.com
License
All rights reserved.Tags
The Bopper Brothers, formed in 2022, is a three-piece rock and roll project, that combines 60's and 70's rock sensibilities with modern recording techniques.