Premiere: The Rails Erupt with Folk Rock Urgency in "Late Surrender"

The Rails’ new single “Late Surrender” is a burst of hope and resilience full of intense passion and folk-rock charm.

— —

We’d definitely be exaggerating to say this is anything like Dylan goes electric, but there’s an undeniably refreshing energy about The Rails’ new music that we can’t help but revel in. “Late Surrender” is a burst of hope and resilience full of intense passion and folk-rock charm.

So this is it,
I suppose you’re right
Staring down the barrel of a shotgun
One final chorus to play us out…

Listen: “Late Surrender” – The Rails

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/456998604?secret_token=s-b8wNk” params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=true&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “Late Surrender,” the lead single off The Rails’ forthcoming sophomore album Other People (out June 29, 2018 via Thirty Tigers in the US). The married British duo of Kami Thompson and James Walbourne deliver what they’ve described as “folk-rock on steroids” in their second record, attacking their songs with an amped-up energy full of classic rock warmth.

Other People - The Rails — Other People – The Rails

With rollicking electric guitars and a heavy, explosive chorus, “Late Surrender” exemplifies the band’s current headspace: They’ve transformed the more traditional-sounding folk of their 2014 debut into an onslaught of infectious and ever-present energy, all the while maintaining those charismatic vocal harmonies and impassioned lyrics that brought them together in the first place.

The game is over,
The story’s been told
You can lay down your arms
and run, mister
Nothing left of the world we know

I’ve got to know, is it time to go?

“‘Late Surrender’ is a song about last chances and not giving up,” the band tells Atwood Magazine. “Probably written with a hangover and the need to make things right again. Sounds a bit like if Roy Orbison, Fleetwood Mac, and The Shadows had a bit too much to drink and shagged. Then regretted it.”

The Rails’ lyrics can dwell in the deep, the emotional, and the philosophical, so to hear them reflect on their own music with cheeky enthusiasm is curiously revitalizing. Make no mistake: They take themselves very seriously – but they’re having fun, and they’re bringing us along for the ride. James Walbourne has been lead guitarist for the likes of The Pretenders, Edwyn Collins, and Ray Davies; in The Rails, he and Kami Thompson shine on their own, delivering a marvelous blend of intimate singing and dynamic instrumentals that make for an absolutely enthralling experience.

Dive into that thirst for life and stream “Late Surrender” exclusively on Atwood Magazine. The Rails’ sophomore album Other People is out June 29, 2018 via Thirty Tigers!

— — — —