Joshua Powell & the Great Train Robbery

Indianapolis-based folk collective Joshua Powell & the Great Train Robbery are poised to release their best and broadest record to date. Alyosha, their third full-length record, was produced by Jonathan Class at Varsity Recording Co. in Anderson, Ind., and encapsulates the group’s tonal shift, from the rustic Appalachian Americana of Man Is Born for Trouble, to a new, psychedelically-tinged, deeply textural electric brand of avant-garde folk. Alyosha was released in digital outlets and on vinyl on October 16.

After playing 400+ shows across 40+ states, Powell had plenty of experiences to funnel into the creative process of making Alyosha. Abandoning the traditional folk trappings of the band’s previous material, he sought to put aside the fans' expectations in favor of making the record he wanted to hear. This was expressed through experimentation with electric guitars, effect chains, and keyboard sounds, but also in Powell’s vocal delivery, which is at its most unaffected and lucid. The lyrics, as ever, are central to the work and cover a variety of themes: from controversial drone politics and Hoosier post-industrialism, to Aesopian fables and witch trials. Eleven Magazine praises its "allegorical heft" and "beautiful bleakness."