THE WOODS Release Debut Album READY TO RUN

The Woods have released their debut full-length album, Ready To Run, on Big Shadow Glen Records, building on the success of their Nowhere Is Somewhere EP. The 11 tracks feel like a deep breath and a wide-open highway, announcing Raquel Cole, Dan O'Rourke, Leland Rooney as a band quietly becoming something essential. Produced by GRAMMY-winner Blake Chancey and built on harmonies that feel carved from the same stone, Ready To Run is the album The Woods have been earning the right to make.

All 11 songs on the new album were written or co-written by band members Cole and O'Rourke. They collaborated with the likes of Phil Barton, Molly Brown, Jessica Campbell-Waterman, Jennifer Denmark, Leland Grant, Mark Elliott, Jaren Johnston, Kenny Lamb, Hillary Lindsey, Nell Maynard, Cheyenne Medders, and Molly Reed on all but 'Paradise,' which O'Rourke wrote solo. Consummate musicians individually, each played acoustic or electric guitar and mandolin in the studio.

From the arena-tested 'Same Boat' to the aching 'Story in the Breaking,' Ready To Run covers an immense amount of ground and makes every mile count. The band credits Chancey for pulling together a sound they knew existed but couldn't nail in the studio.

'Blake is a genius when it comes to capturing harmonies,' O'Rourke says. 'We told him it sounds really good and energetic when we do it live, how come when we record our vocals it sounds kind of sterile and not as big?' So Blake put us in one room and said, 'There's going to be a bunch of bleed and it's going to pick up everything, but let's do it the way they used to do harmonies.' He was right. It worked.'

The result is a rootsy, organic sound that harkens back to the days when musicians gathered up close in the studio and let the sweat and creativity flow. Comparisons to the Eagles, Restless Heart, and Fleetwood Mac validate the time spent honing their craft.

Each member brings a specific skill set and musical history to their work together as The Woods. Cole is a native of British Columbia, Canada who has earned acclaim for her earnest, evocative vocals. O'Rourke was born in New Jersey but has really called the road his home as he's spent time all over including taking up residence in California and Arizona before making his way to Nashville. Rooney is a Dallas, Texas native, who honed his skills on the competitive Lone Star music circuit before moving to Nashville.

The Woods are the rare thing—a band that is fully invested in writing, recording and hitting the road to perform together. Ready to Run is what that sounds like at its absolute best.

Tracklist

1. Same Boat - (Molly Brown, Nell Maynard, Raquel Cole)

2. Break It - (Dan O'Rourke, Raquel Cole, Leland Grant)

3. Highway (Back To You) - (Dan O'Rourke, Raquel Cole, Leland Grant)

4. Paradise - (Dan O'Rourke)

5. If You Can Leave You Can Stay - (Dan O'Rourke, Raquel Cole, Mark Elliott)

6. Make It Easy - (Dan O'Rourke, Raquel Cole, Mark Elliott)

7. Nowhere is Somewhere - (Dan O'Rourke, Raquel Cole, Jaren Johnston, Hillary Lindsey)

8. My People, My Tribe - (Raquel Cole, Jessica Campbell-Waterman, Cheyenne Medders)

9. Carolina Girl - (Dan O'Rourke, Kenny Lamb)

10. Story in the Breaking - (Jennifer Denmark, Raquel Cole, Molly Reed)

11. You're in the Song - (Dan O'Rourke, Raquel Cole, Phil Barton)

Credits

Vocals – Dan O'Rourke, Raquel Cole, Leland Rooney

Drums – Greg Morrow

Bass – Glenn Worf

Acoustic Guitar – Dan O'Rourke, Raquel Cole, Leland Rooney

Electric Guitar – Raquel Cole, Leland Rooney

Mandolin – Raquel Cole

Keyboards & Accordion – John Henry Trinko

Engineered by Tim Brennan and Blake Chancey

Mixed by Blake Chancey at the Key Club, Nashville, TN

Mastered by Brian Lee and Bob Jackson at Waygate Mastering, Nashville, TN

Photography and Artwork by Zack Knudsen

Big Shadow Glen Records

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