NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� When victory broke the tie for consecutive wins at the last month, it changed the record books 鈥� but not their perspective.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e certainly wonderful honors that we get, but that鈥檚 not in any way how we really measure our success or think. We can鈥檛 let that kind of stuff creep in to the creative process because that鈥檚 when we鈥檒l start to get off course,鈥� said Matthew Ramsey, lead vocalist and guitarist. 鈥淲e try to protect each other from those outside influences a little bit and just make sure that we鈥檙e 鈥� not chasing after some sort of reaction or award, or chasing after what we think the radio wants to play. We just have to make what we love.鈥�
Old Dominion has been celebrated for intertwining different musical styles while . Along with Ramsey, the band includes Brad Tursi (guitar/banjo), Trevor Rosen (guitar/piano), Geoff Sprung (bass) and Whit Sellers (percussion). They have spent the last two years crafting 鈥淏arbara,鈥� out Aug. 22 via Columbia Nashville/Sony Music Nashville.
The project follows 2023鈥檚 鈥淢emory Lane鈥� album and last year鈥檚 鈥� 鈥� compilation, which Ramsey says is even more eclectic than past works.
鈥淲e just write constantly. And we鈥檝e had albums where we鈥檝e kind of gone deeper into the well and picked out older songs,鈥� explained the 47-year-old. 鈥淭his one, not so much the case.鈥�
The 13-track album is not named after a real woman but is an imagined composite of a person who embodies many of the group's various personality traits. It includes the released singles 鈥淢e Most Nights鈥� and 鈥淢aking Good Time,鈥� along with the four-on-the-floor 鈥淭alk Country鈥� and the R&B-infused 鈥淲hat Doesn鈥檛 Kill a Memory.鈥� Just as introspection is a fundamental element of country music, it鈥檚 also the sweet spot on this album.
鈥淢iss You Man鈥� is dedicated to friend and writing collaborator Andrew Dorff, who died in 2016 during a vacation, while 鈥淕oodnight Music City鈥� reflects on the band's career.
鈥淚t has all the reverence about Nashville and a little bit of the jaded side to it, too. We鈥檝e been through it in Nashville, as anyone goes through when they鈥檙e trying to chase this crazy dream,鈥� said Ramsey, who revealed the song is inspired by the children鈥檚 book 鈥淕oodnight Moon鈥� by Margaret Wise Brown. 鈥淚t鈥檚 such a meaningful song to us all 鈥� we鈥檝e played it live one time at the Ryman Auditorium, and we were all crying by the end of it.鈥�
The band also looks within on 鈥淢an or the Song,鈥� as Ramsey questions, 鈥淚f I put my guitar down, would I disappear? / Move back to my hometown, would you still be here?鈥� Ramsey says it's his favorite song.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 kind of what it feels like once you get to this level and you鈥檙e surrounded by all these people that are helping you make your dreams come true,鈥� he said. 鈥淲ho鈥檚 around for the right reasons can certainly creep into the conversation. It can be a lonely profession 鈥� I hope you love me for me, and not for this crazy job I have.鈥�
Coinciding with the release of 鈥淏arbara,鈥� the band is prepping its 鈥淗ow Good Is That鈥� world tour which launches Thursday at Credit One Stadium in Charleston, South Carolina.
Throughout the past decade, Old Dominion has earned a loyal fan base in a genre often criticized as rigid, with frequent , what determines pure country music and But while there鈥檚 no denying the group is authentically country, the irony is not lost on them that they鈥檝e been able to cut through the Nashville noise by not sticking to only traditional country sounds.
鈥淲henever we wrote a song and recorded it, we just wanted to make sure that we were not chasing anything other than the truest form of that song and what was going to deliver that message as clearly as we wanted it to be,鈥� said Ramsey. 鈥淥ur fans now, I think, are coming to expect that from us; they鈥檙e looking for the surprise that we鈥檙e gonna throw in there, rather than the same old thing. 鈥� We don鈥檛 take that for granted. We know that鈥檚 a rare thing in the genre.鈥�
鈥淏arbara鈥� will be released Aug. 22.
鈥楤arbara鈥� tracklist
1. 鈥淢aking Good Time鈥�
2. 鈥淲ater My Flowers鈥�
3. 鈥淢e Most Nights鈥�
4. 鈥淢an or the Song鈥�
5. 鈥淏reak Your Mama鈥檚 Heart鈥�
6. 鈥淢iss You Man鈥�
7. 鈥淭alk Country鈥�
8. 鈥淟ate Great Heartbreak鈥�
9. 鈥淐rying in a Beach Bar鈥�
10. 鈥淥ne of Us鈥�
11. 鈥淲hat Doesn鈥檛 Kill a Memory鈥�
12. 鈥淪ip in the Right Direction鈥�
13. 鈥淕oodnight Music City鈥�
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Follow Associated Press entertainment journalist Gary Gerard Hamilton at @GaryGHamilton on all his social media platforms.
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This story corrects the tour launch to June.
Gary Gerard Hamilton, The Associated Press
