Webster, Kentucky native Josh Mitcham is best known for his work with the group Jericho Woods, which he formed in 2014. After the dissolution of JW and the subsequent pandemic, Mitcham set about working on a solo project that would solidify his style. This past December, he gave fans a preview with the release of “Between This Bottle and You,” the lead single off his upcoming album Nobody Asked For This available February 18th. Pre-Save here.
With all the success of Kentucky, and especially Appalachian artists, it would have been easy to lean into that trend in current music tastes, but as Mitcham himself said, “Hell, I live a whole lot closer to John Mellencamp than I do Lawrence County (referring to Tyler Childers)”. While definitely a fan of Appalachian music, and a proud Kentuckian, Mitcham really wanted to tap into the music that had shaped his own taste: Tom Petty, Ryan Adams, Butch Walker, and Nada Surf. While definitely country, Mitcham lands in a middle ground between country and an Isbell-ish rock. Stacked vocals and ambient guitars tinged with fiddle and steel. Still not really “mainstream country radio” ready but not a old-time mountain murder ballad either (there is a song about killing!) Mitcham definitely has his own voice, as these songs are indeed familiar to the style of his former group, but without an attempt to please Nashville or the hipsters; but he might just have a little something here for all of them.
Recorded in the 100 year old barn on his family farm, Mitcham has crafted an album that sets him apart from a lot of the trendy music hash-tagging onto the Kentucky music train these days.
Check out “Between This Bottle and You” (co-written by Josh Rinkel of the Po Ramblin Boys) on Apple Music and Spotify.
For more information on Josh Mitcham, visit his website joshmitcham.com and follow him on Facebook.