The Autumn Defense, the indie folk-rock group led by longtime Wilco members Pat Sansone and John Stirratt, have announced plans to release their first album in more than 11 years. Here and Nowhere, which is the band’s sixth studio effort, is due out on October 10.
Videos by American Songwriter
In conjunction with the album announcement, The Autumn Defense has made available a lead single titled “The Ones” as an advance digital track. A companion lyric video for the tune has debuted at the group’s YouTube channel.
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Here and Nowhere features songs influenced by the 1970s Laurel Canyon singer/songwriters and British folk artists like Nick Drake and John Martyn. “The Ones” is a gentle, melodic tune reminiscent of the work of America and David Crosby.
“‘The Ones’ is a meditation on impermanence, and wrestling with the loss of people and things that have been meaningful in a life,” Sansone said of the tune. “Musically, the song takes inspiration from some songs that were popular on the radio in my childhood, in which now I recognize a certain eeriness or disquiet. I thought this musical backdrop fit well with the theme of the fading of a familiar world.”
Other influences cited by the band include Big Star, Fred Neil, Harry Nilsson, and Carole King. Here and Nowhere follows in the sonic footsteps of The Autumn Defense’s previously album, Fifth, which was released in 2014. According to Sansone, the group hadn’t intended to take so long between albums.
“It wasn’t intentional,” he maintained. “We thought we’d take a short break from recording, but between our work with Wilco, other personal projects, and the disruption of the [early 2020s global health crisis], ten years went by in the blink of an eye.”
More About Here and Nowhere
Here and Nowhere was produced by Sansone and recorded in two sessions at Creative Workshop studio in Nashville. Sansone and Stirratt were joined by The Autumn Defense’s longtime rhythm section—bassist James Haggerty and drummer Greg Wieczorek.
The album can be pre-ordered now and will be available on CD, vinyl LP, and via digital formats. The CD and digital versions include a bonus track titled “Raven of the Wood.”
According to a press release, Here and Nowhere finds The Autumn Defense “contemplating the passage of time, reckoning with what we lose, what we gain, and who we become along the way.”
More About The Autumn Defense
Stirratt, who is a co-founding member of Wilco, began collaborating with his friend Sansone as The Autumn Defense in 1999. The group released its debut album, The Green Hour, in 2001, and a follow-up, Circles, in 2003.
Sansone joined Wilco in 2004, and remains a member of that group.
The Autumn Defense’s other albums are a self-titled 2007 release, Once Around (2010), and the aforementioned Fifth (2014).
The Band’s 2025 Tour Plans
The Autumn Defense have announced a fall U.S. tour in support of Here and Nowhere. The trek features nine East Coast shows running from an October 24 concert in Vienna, Virginia, through a November 9 performance in Atlanta. The band also will play a December 7 gig in Los Angeles.
The Autumn Defense Tour Dates:
October 24 – Vienna, VA @ Barns at Wolftrap
October 25 – Philadelphia, PA @ Ardmore Music Hall
October 26 – Freehold, NJ @ Concert in the Studio
October 28 – Northampton, MA @ Iron Horse
October 29 – Boston, MA @ Arts at the Armory
October 30 – New York, NY @ Le Poisson Rouge
November 7 – Memphis, TN @ Green Room
November 8 – Nashville, TN @ 5 Spot
November 9 – Atlanta, GA @ Eddie’s Attic
December 7 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Lodge Room
Here and Nowhere Track List:
- “The Ones”
- “I’ll Take You out of Your Mind”
- “Old Hearts”
- “Winter Shore”
- “In the Beginning”
- “Hearts Arrive”
- “Underneath the Rollers”
- “More Than I Can Say”
- “Love Lives”
- “Raven of the Wood” (CD and digital only)
- “Ever Flowing Light”
(Photo by Mikael Jorgensen)
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