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Aug 03, 2023 By Caleb Campbell Photography by Emma Delevante

Later this week, West Virginia singer/songwriter William Matheny is set to return with his new LP, That Grand, Old Feeling, due out on August 4th. The record is his follow-up to his 2017 album, Strange Constellations, and sees Matheny exploring the forgotten corners of Appalachia, from truck stops and dive motels to portraits of the struggles of tour life. Leading up to the album’s release Matheny has shared the title track and last month’s single, “Down at the Hotel Canfield.” Today, he’s back with another new track, “Every Way to Lose,” premiering with Under the Radar.

Listing influences like Magnolia Electric Co. and Drive-By Truckers, “Every Way To Lose” finds Matheny roaring down the highway in a shadowy rock mode. Matheny sings amidst churning rhythms and sour piano accents, along with a careening guitar solo in the track’s back half. The track takes on a Springsteen-esque quality, especially with its character portrait of a born loser driving down a road to nowhere. Yet, Matheny’s vocals sound resolute and driven, as if he’s facing off against impossible odds. He sings, “So many ways to be a winner, I wouldn’t know how to choose / And I’m not one to kid a kidder, but I know every way to lose”

Matheny says of the track, “The Wall of Jericho is a natural attraction in Alabama. I was 10 miles from there one night driving back to Nashville after a gig in the Shoals. Thank god I wasn’t ten miles from somewhere that’s impossible to rhyme like East Orange.”

Check out the song below. That Grand, Old Feeling is due out everywhere on August 4th.