Texas-born Americana artist Dallas Burrow is set to release his third album ‘Blood Brothers’, produced by Jonathan Tyler, on June 16th via Soundly Music.
SWOMP’s Dana Haggith caught up with Burrow to discuss the forthcoming album and the accompanying tour.
Both of Burrow’s last two albums found the deep baritone-voiced songwriter chasing a raw, in-the-moment kind of sound; Southern Wind recorded in East Nashville with A-list Nashville pickers and Dallas Burrow, tracked in Texas with a Texan producer and a Texan band. But with his upcoming LP Blood Brothers, Burrow wanted to chase something a little more refined, a little more polished.
With the creative vision and technical talent of producer Jonathan Tyler, Burrow took everything he’d learned from the last two album cycles, plus a lot more experience on tour, and brought a new outlook—not to mention what he calls “some of the best songs I’ve ever written”—into the recording studio, crafting his best work to date.
Existing fans of Burrow’s will find his instantly recognizable songs sung in his signature gravely tone, but there are hints of something deeper afoot.
Musically, the pair of Burrow and Tyler chased down new tones influenced by everything from Stax to Muscle Shoals to New Orleans, but lyrically, Burrow’s journey through his own history and influences steals the show.
“The songs on Blood Brothers tell about where I’m from, where I’ve been, what I’ve done, and what I’ve seen,” says Burrow.
“They tell of life, death, love, faith, youthful rebellion, finding acceptance, the state of the world, as well as the story of my father and his connection to Townes Van Zandt, and how that has helped shape my own musical journey, my dedication to family, and approach to life in general.”
Speaking of Burrow’s approach to life, his first single “Out My Window” is a funky, halftime blues backed up by Taylor Rae’s signature vocals that speaks to today’s turbulent world.
“It’s a look at the world in general, our divided politics, the corrupted soul of capitalists and modern man, our polluted environment, and peoples’ seeming inability at times to show one another common decency,” says Burrow, who employs his best Dr. John voice, as he sings, “Look out my window and what do I see?/ Things are even stranger than they look on TV/ I’ve got to believe things are gonna be alright/ When my children lay their heads down at night.”
“On the whole, this song is a bit of a tongue-in-cheek, if not slightly embittered gospel song, but ultimately it’s also a sincere prayer for humanity, and the future of our children and the Earth itself, beckoning to God above, ‘Lord, send your angels down, tell ‘em to pick up the pace.’”
Yesterday, Holler. premiered the “Out My Window” music video, writing, “With a Wurlitzer wheezing away over the crisp country funk rhythm section, ‘Out My Window’ sounds like it could have come crawling out of 3614 Jackson Highway in Muscle Shoals in the early hours of any morning during the mid-70s.” Fans can watch the video here, stream or purchase “Out My Window” here, and pre-order or pre-save Blood Brothers ahead of its June 16th release via Soundly Music at this link.
Blood Brothers Tracklist:
River Town
Starry Eyes
Devil’s Tongue
Out My Window
Motel 6
A Lot of it Was
Only Game in Town
Blood Brothers
Mr. Mudd and Mr. Gold
X Old Flames
Wild Bill
You Go On Ahead
True Believer
Dallas’s dad Mike Burrow, Townes Van Zandt, and story of the title of Blood Brothers: Every time he steps on stage, Dallas Burrow dedicates a portion of his set to telling a story about his dad.
The New Braunfels native has music in his blood, and he likes to share some of that history. One of his favorite stories to tell is about a night in Nashville in the early 70s, when Burrow’s father, Mike Burrow, was hosting Richard Dobson, John Lomax III, and Townes Van Zandt at a pub he ran with his siblings on Elliston Place near the old Exit/In.
After a late night shutting down the bar, the foursome hit an after party, where Van Zandt insisted they all become blood brothers to ensure they’d be forever cosmically linked.
Everyone agreed, and perhaps through some mystical, intangible power that often propels so much music, Van Zandt’s style has been transfused into Burrow more than any other artist.
After telling the story around that night in Nashville, Burrow can’t help but play at least one Townes song during his sets. As he began writing his stellar new LP, Blood Brothers, Burrow’s friend and producer, Jonathan Tyler, encouraged him to finally turn that touching tribute to his dad into a song.
That stirring track became the guiding light and philosophy of his 2023 album of the same name, which is to pay homage to his musical roots, while honoring his familial duties as a husband and father.
Burrow has been on the road throuhgour March, April and May and has a number of shows lined up throuhgout June, July and August as well.
Upcoming tour dates:
Jun 9 – Galveston, TX – Old Quarter Acoustic Cafe
Jun 10 – Boerne, TX – Salvador Dobb’s
Jun 16 – Austin, TX – The Saxon Pub
Jun 17 – Hunter, TX – Riley’s Tavern
Jun 18 – New Braunfels, TX – Redbird Listening Room
Jun 23 – San Antonio, TX – The Lonesome Rose
June 24 – San Marcos, TX – Cheatham Street Warehouse
Jun 30 – Houston, TX – The Mucky Duck
July 7 & 8 – Red River, NM – Motherlode Saloon
July 21 – New Braunfels, TX – Freiheit Country Store
Jul 22 – Luckenbach, TX – Luckenbach Dancehall
July 29 – Hunter, TX – Riley’s Tavern
Aug 4 – Sisters, OR – The Belfry
Aug 5 – Carson City, NV – Nashville Social Club
Aug 6 – Arbuckle, CA – Burgie’s
Aug 7 – Bakersfield, CA – Pyrenees Cafe
Aug 9 – Santa Cruz, CA – Moe’s Alley
Aug 10 – Los Angeles, CA – Zebulon
Aug 11 & 12 – Lake Havasu, AZ – Jermey’s Juke Joint
Aug 13 – Mesa, AZ – Roosters Country
A Texas-born Americana artist rooted in the tradition of his home state’s songwriting heroes, Dallas Burrow built a career on both sides of the Atlantic with his 2019 debut, Southern Wind. Recorded in Nashville, the album reached Number 25 on the UK Americana Chart and Number 4 on the US Alt-Country chart, paving the way for a string of cross-country shows alongside fellow road warriors like Charley Crockett.
For Burrow—a lifelong explorer who’d spent his 20s on the move, chasing his muse across most of America and Europe while rubbing shoulders with luminaries like Bob Dylan and Dr. John—being so far away from home felt natural.
Even so, he began missing the stability of his new life back in Texas, where he’d built a family and gotten sober.
His second album, 2021’s Dallas Burrow, marked both a symbolic and literal homecoming for the songwriter, who recorded the material with modern-day legend Bruce Robison in the rural Texas countryside.
His upcoming album Blood Brothers finds Burrow telling the story of his musical roots, his father’s influence on his craft, and his own personal journey as a songwriter; all in his signature, gravely baritone.
Blood Brothers will be released on June 16th, 2023, by Soundly Music.
More details can be found at dallasburrow.com.