After seeing Austin Plaine in 2015 at Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, NJ with Brian Fallon, click HERE for photos, I became a big fan of his work and his outlook on life.  Any time he came through either New Jersey or Pennsylvania I tried my hardest to go out to the show.  I am writing this as a fan and not a “journalist”, which I never have called myself.  At my age, 29, finding new artists that stick out and touch me like when I was younger is becoming harder and harder to find.  However, when one comes around, my interest in their music becomes almost like an obsession.  I play their music on repeat, I memorize every word, music, and find the hidden meanings.  Austin Plaine’s debut self-titled album is one of those albums I obsessed over and still do.  I will admit, Austin isn’t reinventing the wheel, he probably doesn’t want to either, but the simplicity in his songs are what make them great.  Sometimes all you need is simplicity.  Personally, I think Austin’s music can be easily acceptable to the masses.  I don’t understand why it isn’t!  Well, I kind of do, the music business is a whole other topic.  With Austin’s music for me, it touches me on many personal subjects.  From the ex I was madly in love with, to my love of traveling, to my time spent in Montana, I can always envision his songs being the background music to any of those moments.  If not my life, his music would surely fit in the movie Secret Life Of Walter Mitty if we changed the music.  For an album that is two years old, I don’t see its lasting power fading out anytime soon.  A vinyl version would be great to own though.

Two years is a long time for an artist to not have new material.  Austin did release a great single awhile back called “America”, but no full length.  The wait is almost over.  Through social media, Austin has been posting that an album is coming, but so far only stripped down clips have been posted.  Through all of that a show was announced in New York at Rockwood Music Hall.  I jumped at the chance because the show was going to have some surprises and story telling.  The show was about 50 minutes, but within that time Austin played covers, old material and a lot of new material.  I want to focus on the new material.  I am not going to go through each song, let alone say what to expect, because I want the listeners to go into his new music with a clear mind.  I am not sure how many people will even read this, but the songs he did play were hands down, amazing.  While listening, I still got the feelings I got from when I heard his self titled for the first time.  These songs were stripped down, so I don’t know how the full band versions will sound, if they will have a full band, but acoustic they sounded like they are going to fit into my soundtrack called life.  Nothing was said about when the album will be released, I hope tomorrow, but this album is up there as one of my most anticipated releases of 2017.  This will probably make for a good autumn/fall album.

If you aren’t familiar with Austin Plaine, don’t just go stream songs on YouTube or wherever.  Go buy the album physically or digitally and listen to it on a day off.  Take a day trip somewhere and just only listen to his self titled album.  Let the music and words engulf you and I promise, no matter what you do, the songs will make an impact and make your travels more memorable.

http://www.austinplainemusic.com/