Cory Branan & James Eugene Russell at Icehouse

When I Go I Ghost is Cory Branan’s sixth full length release. His first was 20 years ago: He ain’t  banging out pulp here.  A writer’s writer, Cory’s lines grip like a page-turner, giddy with interior rhyming and wordplay. One propulsive song that jangles with hope is “Come On If You Wanna Come,” with lyrics about being too depressed – maybe too hungover – to venture out, accompanied by music that catches the buoyancy one feels after recovering. “’Come On’ is about as optimistic as I can get. We did all the fun Simmons 1980’s drum samples on there, and added concert toms, putting reverse gated reverb on the drums – an old ‘80s Cars-era trick. There’s Rickenbacker and a 12 string guitar. It’s a respite in the record. It evokes the Traveling Wilbury’s, though maybe a meth-y Wilburys.”

For most of his twenties, Minnesota musician James Eugene Russell spent his days zigzagging the country in various vans playing in hard working punk bands like Cadillac Blindside, The Book of Dead Names, and The Cardinal Sin. He then began exploring new sounds with his country rock outfit, Prairie Sons. After Prairie Sons disbanded, James spent over a decade absent from the music scene dealing with alcoholism, becoming a father, and finally finding sobriety.

His first release as a solo artist, ‘As/Is’ showcases a collection of four songs that suggest James has a much clearer head and a lot to get off his chest. They are four of the many songs that James picked and penned out while on the couch during the past ten years, and having no idea on how they would ever come to fruition. This past decade’s struggles have shaped James into the introspective and mature singer/songwriter that he is today, making songs that shine stripped down solo, as well as with a band. Drawing from the venerable classic country music genre as well as his own punk rock narrative, James Eugene Russell melds all of his life experience into a sound that he describes as “country midwestern”. ‘As/Is’ is a truthful, gut-wrenching journey through his last decade of change.