“Paper Trails” features 11 songs from various Benjy Davis Project albums plus a previously-unreleased track, “Raining In Me.” The full track list is as follow:

“Check Your Pockets” (from “Lost Souls Like Us”)
“Sweet Southern Moon” (from “Dust”)
“Mississippi” (from “Lost Souls Like Us”)
“The Day That I Die” (from “More Than Local”)
“Green and Blue” (from “Dust”)
“No More Pills” (from “More Than Local”)
“She Ain’t Got Love” (from “The Angie House”)
“214” (from “The Angie House”)
“Same Damn Book” (from “Dust”)
“Raining In Me” (unreleased)
“Stay With Me” (edit, from “Lost Souls Like Us”)

You can also catch BDP on tour through October, check their official site for tour dates.

The album opens with “Mississippi,” a pretty safe ode to the wandering road-life as only a young musician can paint. It’s followed up by the light-hearted “Get High” that the college kids are sure to eat up. While these tracks aren’t necessarily throwaways, they’re also not particularly memorable, which seems to be the issue with the album until the midway point where things start to come to life.

Aside from “Stay With Me,” which is one of our favorite songs hands down, “Slow Wind” is beautifully reflective where Davis shines both vocally as well as lyrically. “Check Your Pockets” brings some good ol’ sunny southern rock courtesy of the guys’ Louisiana roots, which is sure to have you singing along to.

Oddly enough, it’s the album’s closer “You Just Know” that stands out and touches far beyond the last note. The storyline has been done before — moving on from love lost — but there’s something chilling as Davis regretfully pleads the final chorus of “It’s the voice inside your head that says just go/It’s a mistake, it’s a lesson/It’s a heartbreak, it’s a blessing/And no one ever needs to tell you so, you just know, you just know…I don’t know.”

Overall, the album falls a bit flat in comparison to Benjy Davis Project’s previous release, but don’t let that hinder you from grabbing a few standouts along the way.

Past Benjy Davis Project Coverage:

Benjy Davis Project: Official Track List & Album Art for Lost Souls Like Us

Review & Footage: Benjy Davis Project, Sullivan Hall NYC, 11.11.09

Review: Benjy Davis Project, Evening Muse, 7.04.09

The band recently dropped their new single “Stay With Me,” a mandolin-driven song about love with room for interpretation, whether in the moment or looking back on it. It’s quintessential BDP with a focus on intensely personal lyrics written by Benjy Davis as a result of life experiences.

Check out some footage of Benjy Davis Project in action that was captured at Sullivan Hall back in December. Official track-list for Lost Souls Like Us is after the jump, the album hits March 2nd.

1. Mississippi
2. Get High
3. Give It A Week’s Time
4. Stay With Me
5. Send Your Love Down
6. Slow Wind
7. Check Your Pockets
8. Bite My Tongue
9. Iron Chair
10. Aftermath
11. Light of Other Days
12. You Just Know

Benjy Davis Project

It was a noticeably different lineup for BDP, which only included original members Benjy Davis (no brainer there) and Mic Capdevielle (drums). The new addition, Patrick Thorton (bass) and Brian Fechino (guitar), definitely brought a fresh sound to the group. Though, I’d venture to guess the liquored up college-crowd failed to notice the new lineup as they faithfully sang back all the lyrics while groping each other. Seriously, kids are talented these days and clearly have no shame.

But BDP managed to stay focused as they played the standard crowd favorites off their latest release Dust, including “I Love You,” “Same Damn Book,” “Sweet Southern Moon,” and “Still Sweet.” They also mixed in some older material in “Do It With The Lights On,” and “Louisiana Saturday Night.” Have to admit, though I enjoy BDP unplugged, witnessing them plugged in up made for a nice change of pace.

Prior to BDP taking the stage, Andrew Hoover played an energetic solo set, which included his lead single “Lie to Me,” off his debut album Chances, Stances & Romances. Over the course of twenty minutes, Hoover managed to warm-up an inattentive crowd with his mix of bluesy rock and had them drunkenly dancing along by the time he wrapped his performance. Pretty impressive for a young artist.

Hoover was followed up by the elder-statesman of the group, singer-songwriter Joe Firstman, who treated the crowd to a taste of Americana with “Marlene & Her Sisters,” a chorus-less song as an intro. He capped off his set with a medley of “Breaking All the Ground/I Can’t Stop Loving You” from The War of Women. NYC fans, you can catch Joe Firstman performing tomorrow at The Living Room at 8p.

Footage of BDP below:

“I Love You:”

“Sweet Southern Moon:”

Let’s just say it’s a singer-songwriter showcase made in heaven — all that’s missing is the amazing Tony Lucca. Hey Rock Ridge, can you get Tony on board?! I digress.

Download a free sampler of BDP, Andrew Hoover, and Joe Firstman now. Then purchase tickets to the show at Sullivan Hall at 7:30p on November 11th. We’ll see you there – we expect a group sing-a-long. Check out our past coverage of Benjy Davis Project and Andrew Hoover.

Simply visit their site and download music from bands like Sister Hazel, Benjy Davis Project, Reel Big Fish, Cherry Poppin’ Daddies. They’re also featuring tunes from awesome solo acts like Tony Lucca, Ernie Halter, Josh Hodge, Andrew Hoover, Pat McGee and more.

If you like what you hear, be sure to visit the artists’ sites and purchase their albums. We all love free music, but it goes a long way to support these guys and gals that work hard to entertain us. Thanks for continuing to be awesome Rock Ridge!

The twenty-one year old, blue-eyed soul-man is set to release his debut album Chances, Stances, & Romances on September 22nd and if the lead single “Lie to Me” is any indication of what’s to come then the future’s bright for Hoover. The upbeat track features hints of R&B, soul and funk with a clever universal pop twist that should appeal to many folks.

According to a recent interview, the sounds of Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, and Otis Redding as well as modern day artists like Ray LaMontagne and Marc Broussard served as musical inspirations for the soon-to-be-released Chances, Stances & Romances. Hoover referred to the album as “passionate and energetic, yet it’s paced with sultry and revealing ballads.” Oh really? We’ll we can’t wait to hear it. Until then, check out a recent video of him performing “Lie to me” at Rockwood Music Hall here in NYC.

Since we’re always in search of good, new music, we arrived early to watch The Benjy Davis Project who opened for Tony. We were very impressed as we were treated  to a flawless set, which began with Benjy Davis performing a few acoustic numbers solo. He was later joined by his backing band including Mic Capdevielle (drums), Matt Rusnak (bass guitar), and Jonathan Lawhun (electric guitar).

Don’t let Benjy Davis’ baby-face fool you — his lyrics are honest, intense, and speak of real life experiences perhaps even well beyond his years. His vocal delivery though strained at times packs a punch of raw emotion that can’t be ignored. Then there’s the band – perfectly timed and well versed that compliment Davis’ lyrics. The band members know when to let Davis shine on his own while also highlighting their individual talents.

The band is currently touring the U.S. in support of their latest release Dust, which features several must-hear tracks including “Over Me,” “Green and Blue,” “I Love You,” and “Still Sweet.” You can purchase Dust via the band’s website or on iTunes.

Check out the music video for “I Love You” below and also check their MySpace page to listen to more tracks.Be sure to check Rock Ridge Music to download a free sampler of The Benjy Davis Project (and Tony Lucca!!)