Few Miles South’s “On Down the Road” does the traditional country music fan’s heart good. Heck, they’re unashamed fans of Sturgill Simpson and Chris Stapleton, the two near-saviors of contemporary country music. But good taste alone won’t win fans; the music must also be good, and Few Miles South has the goods.
The song begins with a perfect steel guitar intro played by Bob “Boo” Bernstein (who’s played with Tanya Tucker, Emmylou Harris and Dwight Yoakam), before jumping into a chugging electric guitar rhythm. The song is a road song, sung by Tori Lund. Lund and Blake English comprise this duo, which was formed in 2014 to write and shop songs to artists. The single comes from the EP Might Could.
This is not so much a happy song about the road life, so much as it is a necessity. Even though this couple works hard at its craft, it still admits to trouble with paying the bills. “My roots are pulling me on down the road,” Lund sings, which suggests the musician road life just may be genetic.
It’s odd how these two artists meld so well together. Lund is a classically trained singer and piano teacher, while English is a multi-instrumentalist and producer. Somehow, though, they bonded over a shared love for country music. They met in Los Angeles, while playing in a church, but grew tired of city living. They gave up their jobs and headed South, where they had more room for their dogs and a more appropriate atmosphere to celebrate their musical roots.
“On Down the Road” may be a new song, but its instrumentation and performance links it to traditional country music that goes way back. Whereas so much contemporary country music seems to have caught the pop and rock musical freeway, Few Miles South sticks with tried and true country backroads, which gives it a wonderful roots-y sound.
Let’s hope Few Miles South remains with its chosen style. Chances are good fans of Sturgill Simpson and Chris Stapleton fans will recognize the roots Few Miles South explore, and happily follow them down the road.
-Dan MacIntosh
