It’s never been easy outfitting a vintage vehicle like Appalachian folk music with modern bells and whistles. But on their new self-titled LP, Harrisonburg, Va.’s Steel Wheels aren’t simply putting lipstick on the proverbial pig—they’re executing a makeover from the inside out, redefining their acoustic sensibilities over an ever-changing folk/rock landscape.
In some ways, The Steel Wheels is a continuation of the superior sonic handiwork that made Sideways one of the best albums you didn’t hear in 2024. For their ninth studio LP in 20 years, the Wheels braved some harsh winter weather at the Shenandoah Valley studio owned by coproducer D. James Goodwin (Goose, Bonny Light Horseman, I’m With Her), who mixed the band’s 2019 album, Over The Trees.
A focused and efficient recording process yielded music with a living, breathing sense of place—a harmony-rich balm for the existential angst that lent a certain dramatic tension to Sideways. From a thematic standpoint, all is not 100-percent copacetic in the holler. But two decades down the road, the Steel Wheels have found a satisfying new normal. You have to wonder if their best music is yet to come.
If there’s a frontman to this collective operation, it’s Trent Wagler, whose effortless lead vocals and fluid banjo work help keep the purist clichés at bay. Here’s Wegler’s take on each track.
—Hobart Rowland
1) “Go Back”
“Although it can be easy to be nostalgic about the past, this song acknowledges that with all relationships come deep joy and pain. If you wish away the pain, you’d have to wish away the joy with it. None of us are better off for losing the time we’ve been together, no matter what difficult losses may befall us.”
2) “Easy”
“We live in the future now. Everything can be discovered and solved with the push of a button. It’s so easy … And we’re so lonely. It’s not easy. But still, we have it pretty good, right?”
3) “Cold Call”
“All of life is learning to lose. Accepting that failure is a part of growth, death is a part of life and dreams sometimes come true … But even those don’t last. We’re all learning to lose. Can the awareness of impending loss give us the motivation to tell everyone we know we love them?”
4) “Chase It All Away”
“Hold it all at once. The diagnosis, the beautiful beach, the hard work coming, the lazy afternoon. How do we measure the need of the day? Is it in widgets moved, checklists marked or in winding paths taken? How do we keep our inner fire burning to keep curious and passionate, without breaking down when life hits us with the unexpected?”
5) “Main St. Haven”
“A tribute to small-town Kansas, first love or some semblance of feelings—and the way home draws you back to it, however complicated it might be.”
6) “Need The Help”
“Calling all men: the hardworking, stubborn, the classically trained in the art of masculinity. Will you ask for help if you need it? Will you ever show your hand? Is this 2025 ‘manosphere’ just another gasp of patriarchal modeling we’ve been through and seen the folly of before? If I’m built from that same stuff, can I find a way to break the cycle?”
7) “Long To Hear That Sound”
“Some things are designed to fail … or fail due to their architecture, without intention. Is it better to let them die, or even better to accelerate their demise? Can we bridge the gaps? How much can will and hard work do to overcome the obstacles?”
8) “Keep On Dancing”
“Let’s take a moment and excuse ourselves of all other responsibilities. No more anxiety or stress—just this moment. Can we appreciate the beauty in a day without needing to prepare or preserve? It’s a kindness … the awareness of one moment. A lover’s dance—through decades, years—can remind us what it’s all for.”
9) “Who Wins The War”
“A Mennonite father muses over his son’s choice to go to war against their community teachings in the Shenandoah Valley during the Civil War. There were some who believed it more holy to hire a substitute to fight instead of fighting themselves. In this fictitious retelling, the father wonders if his son will make it home and if he’s to blame for not protecting him. Who wins the war, and who is it actually for?”
10) “Let Me See”
“A snapshot of deep depression, this song logs all the ways one can try to find hope and meaning—but fail. If there’s not an answer to these questions, how can I keep sitting in the same cycle? I really need to see some light, or I’m afraid I won’t make it out of the dark.”
11) “Farewell Song”
“A song of gratitude for hospitality on the road. The many miles traveling down the road as a band are astounding, as are the homes and venues where some have become family and offered so much help along the way.”
12) “Banjos For Everyone”
“A simple old-time-inspired musing about music that may or may not be your favorite. Banjos aren’t for everyone, perhaps. But can you accept that they’re pretty great for some of us? There’s a home for everyone—be it banjos, chessboards, weight rooms or quilting circles. There’s beauty in a creative life lived unabashedly.”
See the Steel Wheels live.
