Old Dominion Dig A Little Deeper On New Album ‘Barbara,’ Due In August

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Old Dominion goes a little deeper on their upcoming new 13-song project, Barbara, due out on Aug. 22.

The new album is an exploration of what it means to be positive, to seek the light and own your place in the world without denying reality, and the Shane McAnally/Old Dominion-produced project seeks to understand the way life and love can rise and fall.

“We didn’t want to get all heavy,” says lead singer Matthew Ramsey. “But I think the feeling good means more when you’re looking life straight in the eye. So much is illusion or what we tell ourselves it is, sometimes if you look in your heart though, reality is even richer. And I think that’s as much the point as anything.”

From the opening “Making Good Time,” that recognizes the purity in coming of age and how it shapes who we become, and the euphoria seeing a certain kind of free-spirited woman can induce in “Break Your Mama’s Heart,” to the rhythmic philosophy of what it all means in “Water My Flowers,” and the elegy for a good friend in “Miss You Man,” the collection considers mortality, humanity and the joy of being alive in a more mature way.

That reflective tone that informs “Me Most Nights” “What Doesn’t Kill A Memory” and “Sip in the Right Direction” lead to the feeling better healing of “Crying in the Beach Bar” and “Late Great Heartbreak.” It also paves the way for “Man or the Song,” a song for anyone at a crossroads wondering what their purpose is or just struggling with what matters. And the album closer “Goodnight Music City,” which honors the spirit of a creative community mostly gone, suggests a knowing that inspires even better futures.

“The thing about this crazy career,” says Ramsey, “so many incredible things have happened, but so much life has also happened. We’ve had people pass away, chapters close, people falling in love, obviously health challenges, if you read People. And when we write for others, we just write to write the best song about whatever moment or feeling we’re chasing right then, and yeah that’s fun. But when we write for Old Dominion, especially this time, we’re bringing more of ourselves into the room. These are our songs, so they should be pulled from our lives. You don’t realize as you’re writing necessarily, but when we listened to these 13 songs, we all realized: it’s our most personal record ever.”

Old Dominion’s “How Good Is That 2025 – World Tour” kicks off this weekend.

Barbara Track List:
1. “Making Good Time” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Brad Tursi/Ross Copperman Ross Ellis)
2. “Water My Flowers” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Jerry Flowers/Jordan Reynolds)
3. “Me Most Nights” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Brad Tursi/Ross Copperman)
4. “Man or the Song” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Brad Tursi/Ross Copperman/Shane McAnally)
5. “Break Your Mama’s Heart” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Brad Tursi/Josh Osborne)
6. “Miss You Man” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Ross Copperman/Matt Jenkins)
7. “Talk Country” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Brad Tursi/Matthew Dragstrem)
8. “Late Great Heartbreak” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Shane McAnally/Josh Osborne)
9. “Crying in a Beach Bar” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Ross Copperman/Matt Jenkins)
10. “One of Us” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Brad Tursi/Shane McAnally/Josh Osborne)
11. “What Doesn’t Kill A Memory” (Brad Tursi/Jordan Minton/Mark Trussell)
12. “Sip In the Right Direction” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Brad Tursi/Ashley Gorley/Ben Johnson)
13. “Goodnight Music City” (Matthew Ramsey/Trevor Rosen/Brad Tursi/Jesse Frasure)

Lorie Hollabaugh
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