This event is General Admission Standing Room Only on the Floor, and Reserved Seated in the Balcony.

49 WINCHESTER

Last October, while standing onstage in front of 20,000 people at London’s 02 Arena, it dawned on 49 Winchester lead singer/guitarist Isaac Gibson that on the same day, exactly 10 years ago, he formed the rapidly rising alt-country band.

“There’s been nothing in my life that’s ever lasted a decade,” Gibson says. “We had just gotten out of high school when we played our first show — 10 years later we’re opening for Luke Combs at the O2 Arena.”

On the heels of Combs’ European tour, 49 Winchester has been selling out storied venues across America, including a wildly successful Canadian run alongside Corb Lund. And, in celebration of these recent milestones, comes the release of 49 Winchester’s latest album, Leavin’ This Holler.

“We were on a slow simmer for a lot of years before things really started to pick up with our last record Fortune Favors the Bold,” Gibson says. “And this new album is going to do it even bigger.”

Leavin’ This Holler is 49 Winchester’s fifth studio album, and second collaborative work with Virginia-native producer Stewart Myers. In addition, the project also features the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, singer-songwriter Maggie Antone on backing vocals, fiddler Philip Bowen, and guitarist Cole Chafin. Chafin is not only the guitar tech for 49 Winchester, he’s also the younger brother of the band’s founding member and bassist, Chase Chafin.

“We take influence from a lot of different avenues,” Gibson says. “We don’t shy away from any of the music we like.”

Being in front of massive audiences, all eager to witness 49 Winchester’s raucous, live wire shows, Gibson felt it was a moment where he could honestly reflect on the hard-earned, unrelenting determination and grit within the band that’s brought them to this current juncture of increasing notoriety.

“It’s a testament to the uncommon fact that we’re musicians from a very specific place in the world,” Gibson says. “And it’s a testament to viewing each other more as family than as friends.”

Hailing from Castlewood, Virginia (population: 2.045) in the desolate backwoods of Southern Appalachia — a place where opportunity seldom knocks — 49 Winchester came to fruition when Gibson, his childhood best friend, Chafin, and his hometown crony, guitarist Bus Shelton, decided to step off the front porch (on Winchester Street) and take their music to whatever stage would have ’em.

“It’s always been a family affair,” Gibson says. “When you can look at it that way, as lifelong friends and not business associates or hired guns, you can look at it through a different lens, which just lends itself to longevity.”

Since its formation, 49 Winchester has fiercely retained this inner resolve to transcend one’s lot in life with a reckless abandon that’s led to widespread acclaim and fandom in the country, Americana and rock realms.

“We’re happy to be doing what we’re doing and never could have imagined doing it on this scale,” Gibson says. “Everyday we’re out there is a blessing for us.”

Captured in a handful studios around the country whenever there was a rare moment between relentless touring schedules — including recording stints at White Star Sound (Louisa, Virginia), Pet Moose (Richmond, Virginia) and Echo Mountain (Asheville, North Carolina), as well as Nashville’s Blackbird and Front Stage — Leavin’ This Holler is that signature 49 Winchester sound of rollicking country and searing rock music, but with a matured approach this go-round.

“We’ve all grown a lot in our personal lives since Fortune Favors the Bold,” Gibson says. “Several of us have started families, and that’s kind of played into the lyrical themes — things are a little different with this record.”

Beyond its upbeat country tempos (“Hillbilly Happy”) and sorrowful ballads (“Tulsa”), whirlwind guitar riffs (“Make It Count”) and rumbling vocals (“Traveling Band”), Leavin’ This Holler offers up a more focused sense of self — this new, bountiful level of intent and purpose.

“Each album captures a kind of different season in my life,” Gibson says. “In terms of what I’m dealing with, what lessons I’m learning, what lessons I’m failing to learn sometimes.”

Both “Fast Asleep” and “Anchor” incorporate the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, with the stirring melodies showcasing Gibson’s voice erupting into the ether of an unknown tomorrow.

“We love the string arrangements from those great country acts of the 1960s, 70s and 80s,” Gibson says. “We wanted to explore every possible sound we could on this record. No stone left unturned sonically — we got it exactly where we wanted it.”

Now with a decade under its belt, 49 Winchester is also going through this full circle of emotions and sentiments as of late. Still calling the rural countryside of Castlewood, Virginia, home, Gibson shakes his head in appreciation and gratitude for the simple things in life, which, as you get older, become the most important.

“There’s no place like home — it’s a constant source of inspiration,” Gibson says. “I’ll be riding down some backcountry road and there’s just something about that movement, that hum of the motor, and the thoughts running through your mind that spark a song.”

With Leavin’ This Holler hitting the streets, 49 Winchester is gearing up for more worldwide touring featuring several arena gigs with Tyler Childers and their debut at Bonnaroo.

And, in a highly-anticipated appearance, 49 Winchester will also be headlining the famed Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion — a homecoming festival of sorts for the band, who played some of its earliest gigs at the renowned gathering.

“We’ve all just come along so far as musicians and as friends,” Gibson says. “The way we think musically has changed, the way we perform has changed — we’ve just grown and evolved.”

Links: Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify

CORB LUND

Corb Lund has received multiple CCMA, Juno, and international award nominations and wins. Agricultural Tragic, his first album of original material in five years came out June 26th. Met with acclaim, No Depression states, “Eloquent and plainspoken, the excellent Agricultural Tragic finds the affable country rocker exploring his roots as a rancher and rodeo rider while striving to adapt this traditional identity to the challenging modern world… Corb Lund radiates authenticity from first note to last.” American Songwriter says, “The songs on Agricultural Tragic sparkle with a kind of authenticity that only someone who lives that life can project” while The Associated Press state, “The result is a distinctive sound — call it Country & Northwestern — that romances the region from which Lund hails.”

Agricultural Tragic is a highlight in Lund’s long and successful career. His 7th album Cabin Fever, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Canadian Charts in 2012; three of his records have been certified Gold, and his 2015 studio album, Things That Can’t Be Undone, cemented his status as one of the best contemporary country singer/songwriters working today. Last Fall, Corb released Cover Your Tracks, 8-song collection of unexpected cover songs previously recorded by AC/DC, Nancy Sinatra, Billy Joel, Marty Robbins, Bob Dylan, The Eagles, Willie Nelson & Ray Charles, and Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show.

A rural Albertan hailing from the foothills of the Rocky Mountains with a long family lineage of ranchers and rodeo people, Lund is as authentic as they come. Before his current bandleader incarnation with the Hurtin’ Albertans, Lund was an integral part of the smalls, a legendary Canadian indie rock band who didn’t quite fit into any single category either, mixing punk, speed metal and — indeed — country. Embracing both his Western heritage and his indie rock past through his music, Lund is known to filter a range of cowboy themes past and present through his unique lens - from rough-and-tumble tales of lawless frontier saloons, to the somber realities of running a modern family ranch.

“There are people who do Western music and they kind of freeze-dry it, like museum style,” Lund says. “I don’t do that at all. I’m interested in expressing myself currently. Which is actually what it feels like to have six generations of cowboy heritage thrown into the crazy 21st Century urban setting. I love the traditional style and I use it. But I approach it with abandon and irreverence.”

Links: Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify