Genre labels have their place and I think they’re more useful than not -- but sometimes they just aren’t going to convey the point. Chuck Ragan, best known for his long tenure with Hot Water Music, also plays solo under his own name. I’m going to slap the “singer-songwriter” label on his solo work, though it pulls from bluegrass, Americana, country, folk, and more. Love and Lore is his first record since 2016 and while it’s his songwriting, this is not just a punk rocker who grew older, grabbed an acoustic guitar, and sat down for a breather.
Every word from Ragan’s mouth has that gritty, authentic fire, delivered in his ragged but melodic manner. As I stated above, there are a lot of stereotypes when it comes to styles of music and Ragan seemingly defies them all. Solo, acoustic guitar stuff is supposed to be personal and emotional but his work is in no way lovey-dovey, sachharine, or melodramatic. A fishing guide by day, Ragan’s work oozes blue-collar life. It’s personal and down to earth without becoming too cute or too self-aware. It sounds like he’s just sitting down with a guitar and putting this forth into the world, though he’s undoubtedly devoted hours to these tunes behind the scenes.
“Wild in Our Ways” gets a little bit of that Brit twee bounce, then has a big hoarse-throat refrain more like Hot Water Music without the loud guitars. If you’re looking for a snapshot of the style, the chill but powerful “Echo The Halls” hits the mark, especially partnered with the atmospheric “Winter” right after it. The back and forth duet (with Paige Overton (Paige and the Overtones) on “One More Shot” hits hard every listen and is a personal highlight.
One thing that strikes me on this record is that while it bears Ragan’s name, it’s truly collaborative and feels like the studio equivalent of the Revival Tour. There are guest harmonies, dual vocals and other elements that have the feel of a band rather than just one man. To project, that feels like Ragan in a nutshell: extremely talented, but modest and more interested in the sum of the parts than putting out some vanity project.
