Los Colognes first crossed our radar last year when they stuck out as one of the truest Americana acts at Austin City Limits. Originally hailing from Chicago, the band moved out to Nashville in order to situate themselves closer to the music that so inspired them. The relocation worked, as they demonstrated on their 2013 Working Together debut.
Though they spent much of 2014 touring with Caitlin Rose as both support and backing band, they were also working on refining their sound. During a stretch of summer when they weren’t on the road, the band was hunkered down in Nashville’s Bombshelter Studios recording their sophomore LP, Dos. Due out this Friday, September 9th, an advance stream of the record is available below.
“Dos is our second record,” the band tells Consequence of Sound, “and it’s an earnest collection of songs centered around where we are at as people in our 30’s in a band. We still work crappy service industry jobs. We still haven’t figured out love. We still don’t know when the Cubs will win the Series. But we press along, excited for tres, cuatro, cinco and beyond.”
Though there’s apparently plenty of uncertainty in their lives, there’s a strong assurance in their music. As always, Los Colognes wear their influences on their sleeves, yet in remarkably original and fresh ways. The Grateful Dead live on opener “Baby, You Can’t Have Both”, Dire Straits breathe deep on “Golden Dragon Hut”, and the swampy blues of the South are painted all over “Drive Me Mad”. Still, it’s the band’s ability to seamlessly shift between these referential sounds and tighten it all into an accessible package of smooth tunes that makes Los Colognes who they are.
Take a listen below.
