Partners in life and music, Sarah and Austin McCombie have captured the adoration of fans nationwide and praise from Garden & Gun, American Songwriter, Paste and No Depression. Amid an impressive touring schedule, the two have already released three full-length records and somehow find energy to run their farm in their home state of North Carolina, a work ethic and connection to community that comes through in their songwriting. In 2020, the band played 194 neighborhood concerts as part of their concept The Stay at Home Tour, allowing them to connect with fans in a time of need. The following year, the duo caught the attention of PBS and filmed a limited series titled On the Road that is currently airing nationwide. The McCombies are poised for their most ambitious year yet, including a stacked headlining tour with their full backing band. Their fourth album Be Real with Me will be released independently on February 14th.
Be Real With Me is more than the vows, banjos, and vintage dresses Chatham Rabbits might have been known for previously. The music can speak for itself, but Sarah is happy to share a little insight into their process and progress. “We got married so young,” she says. “We are simply not the same people we once were because playing music for a living has consumed and transformed us. This lifestyle has presented us with exhausting tour schedules, vulnerable songs that force us to talk about our marriage, difficult business decisions, and the ever-complicated dilemma of mixing art and money and friends and employees.” The result is a universal reckoning with responsibility and growth; two real people spending their lives and careers together and collectively facing the ups and downs of it all.
Today Glide is offering an exclusive premiere of the standout track “Collateral Damage,” a melancholy work of bluegrass-folk that finds McCombie lyrically dabbles in some heavier subject matter. The song serves as a showcase for their acoustic chops while also putting McCombie’s angelic voice in the spotlight, making for a tune that hits home emotionally while still carrying a wave of musical energy.
Sarah McCombie describes the inspiration behind the tune:
This is a song about desire and how as women, we’re allowed to know, feel, and revel in that emotion. I am constantly trying to have my cake and eat it too. I’m successful most of the time, but it’s normally at a cost to those around me. As a woman in her thirties, I am reaching big moments in my career, but I’m just a few years shy of what is considered a geriatric pregnancy. How messed up is that? I want to have a rewarding touring career, find ways to be deeply creative, and have meaningful relationships, but I also want to have a kid – all without maternal leave, less than desirable healthcare, and in a country in which politicians have more say over my body than I do. The older I get, the more I care about having it all while simultaneously realizing that in order to do that, I’m probably going to ruffle some feathers and make other people unhappy. How do we harness our desires without wreaking havoc along the way?
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