Sophomore album from hard-working heavy-Americana exponents American Mile.  American Dream documents the sacrifices, strength and resilience it takes to keep a band together and to be a functioning human in the 2020s

Release Date:  6^th June 2025

Label: Self Release

Formats: CD, Digital

A BAND WITH AN ENVIABLE REPUTATION

American Mile – Eugene Price (lead vocals, guitar), Joe Perez (lead guitar, vocals), Desmond Saunders (bass, vocals) and Colton Miller (drums, vocals) – came together in 2018.  American Dream is the band’s sophomore album and it follows their acclaimed 2020 debut, The Longest Road.  The band members all hail from the USA’s Midwest but the band was formed in Los Angeles and it’s there that they’ve based themselves.

Amongst their inspirations and influences, the guys cite such names as Aerosmith, The Black Crowes, The Brothers Osbourne, Chris Stapleton and Luke Combs and I don’t believe that I’m being too presumptuous if I suggest that Little Feat, the Doobies and The Stones could also be added to that list.  American Mile have built an enviable reputation, based on their ‘explosive’ live performances and their stunning 3-part harmonies and they’ve garnered lavish praise from such reputable publications as Americana UK, Glide Magazine and Given to Rock.

SACRIFICES, STRENGTHS AND RESILIENCE

American Dream documents the sacrifices, strengths and resilience it takes to keep a band together and to remain a functioning human being in the 2020s.  American Mile is a hard-working band – they regularly play over 200 shows per year – and, every time that they believe that they have a clear road ahead of them, something seems to occur to derail them.  But they’ve never lost momentum and the sacrifices they’ve had to make, and the sheer graft they’ve had to put in to keep the show on the road, are evident is every aspect of American Dream.

A RAUCOUS START

The album gets off to a raucous start with opening track, Get On and Fly.  Strident riffs, lashings of slide guitar and, behind it all, tinkling piano, give the impression that we have a deranged version of Little Feat on our hands.  It’s a great choice of opener and, I suspect, it’ll soon assume that same position in the band’s live repertoire.  That is, if it hasn’t done so already.  Don’t waste time trying to catch a breath – you won’t be able to; as Eugene sings in the song’s chorus: “Come on, come on, come on, come on – let’s get started!”

Photograph of You, the album’s current single, is poppier, but retains the driving rhythm.  The band’s famed harmonies come to the fore in the song’s soaring chorus: “…I drive alone with a photograph of you,” and the song oozes joy, despite the desolation in the lyrics.  And, when Joe steps forward for a guitar solo, all hell breaks loose.

BIG BALLADS AND STRUTTING ROCK

here’s a quieter start to Waiting on a Sunday, but the song soon expands into a big, big, ballad with an emotive vocal from Eugene.  The piano adds a slightly sleazy edge to the song, emphasizing that the tribulations of the working week haven’t quite been shed by the peace of Sunday.  And Joe’s soaring guitar takes things to another level altogether, before it all calms right back down.

American Dream, the album’s title track is a confident, strutting, rock song, perhaps the track on the album on which the influence of The Black Crowes is most clearly apparent.  We could, maybe, sit down and debate the lyrical claim that: “The American Dream is alive and well; the American Dream, as far as I can tell…” but it’s an inspiring song, whether you can agree to that statement or not.

SWAMPY FUNK AND RURAL IDYLLS

Things become decidedly gritty and swampy with the exhilarating Wiggle Like a Worm on a Hook.  Joe lays his slide guitar licks atop the relentless bass/drum rhythm as Eugene spits out his quickfire lyrics and listeners will find it impossible to resist moving along to the groove.  It’s funky, and the sharp, choppy Tuff Livin’ is another song that’s alive with funk.  Desmond’s bass lays the foundation for more of Joe’s guitar and Eugene sounds confident and uncompromising as he sings lines like: “It’s tuff livin’, but we ain’t givin’ up no-time.”

A gentle, acoustic, intro soon yields to a driving beat in the rootsy Straight From the Heartland.  There’s a Stones-y flavour and few frills to be had as Eugene’s lyrics recall a hardworking but rewarding rural upbringing.  It’s utterly irresistible.  And that rural idyll?  “I gave it all up for where I’m at.”

AVOID THE NEEDLE; AVOID THE SPOON…

The band add their magic to Desmond’s loping bassline for the soulful Hard Working People!  The song’s blue-collar lyrics: “Hard working people don’t work for free; if you ain’t workin’, that ain’t workin’ for me…” sit comfortably alongside a funky tune that Sly Stone would be proud of.

And – to conclude…  It’s pretty clear that American Mile have taken inspiration from The Stones’ Dead Flowers for the album’s country-rock finale, Junkie’s Dream.  It may be slightly tongue-in-cheek, and it’s a lot of fun, but the song’s biting lyrics that tell the story of how a “young and uncorrupted” child was tempted by needle and spoon, certainly put the message across.  As the song concludes: “Heads is a win, tails is a win, but the junkie gets to lose.”  Can’t argue with that!

Watch the official video to Photograph of You – the album’s latest single – below:

American Mile online: Official Website / Facebook / Instagram / YouTube / Bandcamp

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