“This album is definitely the most honest and personal collection of songs I’ve released so far. It’s a story about figuring it out. Failing, dusting yourself off, and trying again, all the while learning to be okay if you fail more. I knew early on that it would take time to gather enough songs to tell this story. I was growing in real-time, and you can’t speed up life’s lessons.”
The songs on Bobby Duncan’s new album, Maybe This Time (due out April 1st), certainly did take their time — some were written as far back as 2010, on the heels of his third studio album’s release. That last full-length album, 2012’s Forever From Here, written with his longtime writing partner, Donovan Dodd, and produced by Justin Tockett, marked a shift for the singer-songwriter, who played 200 shows a year had achieved some radio success in his home state of Texas. He could sense a change in the music he was making and in himself — moving further away from the early ambitions of his youth towards a more comprehensive view of a full-time music career. His songs had more of a pop influence than his previous work, and the road felt tiring, so he decided to let his band go and focus on releasing that album, never really expecting so much time would pass before its follow-up. When the album came out, he and his wife were living together but not yet married, and life was beginning to take on a new structure. He continued to play acoustically but didn’t put a band together to tour in support of it.
While some artists might be quick to point out the central line running through their latest collection and offer a brief statement that sums everything they have to say in a neat little package, he’s reluctant to do so with Maybe This Time. “This record is a bit of a Frankenstein album,” he notes. “It was pieced together over a long period of time — until finally, it had life.”
If one actually were to sum up these ten songs, succinctly, as an outsider, they might say that it centers around what it means to find your place in life, to dig your heels into where you’ve landed and savor the sweet moments while still asking questions and feeling life’s insecurities from time to time.
Today Glide is excited to premiere the standout track “Something to Lose,” which is perhaps the best example of the album’s journey as a whole. Straddling the line between alt-country and Americana, the song finds Duncan laying down heartfelt and deeply personal lyrics. Fans of artists like Jason Isbell will appreciate the way Duncan translates his own experiences into an everyman story that is easily relatable. Between the straightforward rocking with a fine guitar solo, Duncan’s cool vocals, and the universal lyrics, “Something to Lose” is a strong indication that he is an artist to watch in the Americana scene.
Bobby Duncan describes the inspiration behind the song:
“‘Something to Lose’ is a great example of my own personal journey. It encompasses every part of my journey from who I was when I wrote the songs on my last album, Forever From Here, to these songs on this album. It’s leaving behind the parts of us that we knew when life was “I” and “me” instead of “we.” It’s about the realization that the things I do and say from this moment on reflect on the person I’ve chosen to spend life with, and the children we’ve introduced to this world.”
LISTEN:
