Some self-titled albums feel like a debut all over again. Others feel like a band planting a flag after years on the road. The Steel Wheels’ The Steel Wheels lands somewhere in between, sounding like a group confident enough to reintroduce itself without pretending it has become something entirely new. That makes The Jayhawks’ 1995 Tomorrow the Green Grass a useful “Then” match: another record by a roots-minded band that widened its reach without losing its center.
Readers’ Pick: The Steel Wheels – The Steel Wheels
You picked The Steel Wheels – The Steel Wheels as your favorite new release for the week of March 13, 2026.
Now & Then: Reese McHenry’s Forever and the reach of Furnace Room Lullaby
Some records show up as a comeback, some as a coronation. Released posthumously, Forever arrives with a sadder kind of gravity, but it does not feel hushed or fragile from the outside. Even the title has a little swagger. So do the songs gathered under it. McHenry’s work always carried that useful contradiction, where the voice could sound world-weary and ready to laugh at the same time, and where a tune could feel lived-in without ever slumping into the sounds of a polite singer-songwriter.
Readers’ Pick: Reese McHenry – Reese McHenry Forever
You picked Reese McHenry – Reese McHenry Forever as your favorite new release for the week of March 6, 2026.
Now & Then: Rose’s Pawn Shop’s American Seams and the reach of Southern Rock Opera
There’s a specific kind of American band that always sounds like it’s been driving all night, even when it’s standing perfectly still. The rhythm section has road dust in its pockets. The harmonies feel like the front porch light got left on. The songs smile at you, but they’re squinting, like they’ve seen how the sausage gets made.
Readers’ Pick: Rose’s Pawn Shop – American Seams
You picked Rose’s Pawn Shop – American Seams as your favorite new release for the week of February 27, 2026.
Now & Then: The Band of Heathens’ Country Sides and the reach of Golden Smog’s Down by the Old Mainstream
Some bands age like cast iron: the scratches add flavor, and somehow the thing gets more useful the longer you keep it around. The Band of Heathens have always played like they were born in a room where somebody left the Wurlitzer on, the amps warm, and the door cracked for whoever has a harmony part.
Readers’ Pick: The Band of Heathens – Country Sides
You picked The Band of Heathens – Country Sides as your favorite new release for the week of February 20, 2026.
Now & Then: Clay Street Unit’s Sin & Squalor and the reach of The Devil Makes Three
There’s a certain kind of roots record that doesn’t want to be reviewed so much as spilled. You know the type: beer-ring on the lyric sheet, boot-scuff on the melody, a chorus built to survive a room full of people talking over it until they suddenly aren’t.
Readers’ Pick: Clay Street Unit – Sin & Squalor
You picked Clay Street Unit – Sin & Squalor as your favorite new release for the week of February 13, 2026.