Twenty years into a love story that began with a college band, Drew & Ellie Holcomb are what you might describe as a classic Nashville music-biz couple.
But surprisingly, they’ve never really teamed up for an honest-to-goodness, full-length studio album... until now.
For the uninitiated, Drew normally leads Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors – an Americana outfit beloved by actual neighbors and national crowds alike. And for her part, Ellie has grown into a folky fixture on the Contemporary Christian scene, all while they balance family life at home. On January 24, that creative separation ends, as the delightful Memory Bank brings business and pleasure together. And though it’s been a long time coming, they both promise it was worth the wait.
“I think a lot of people always assume that we’ve created a lot together over the years,” Drew says. “But while we have put out a handful of songs here and there, we’ve never made a proper record.”
“I think that’s because we’re both really different humans,” Ellie chimes in with a laugh. “The way we see the world, the way we think, the way we write songs, we’re really different people with really similar love and passion. But to get to come back together and do it after taking a long break of each making our own thing, has been an absolute delight.”
Mixing riotous, rootsy joy with calm-and- committed balladry, Memory Bank’s 13 tracks give the act of enduring love a soundtrack. From jangling folk rock to bluesy soul – and even an irresistible dance-party duet – it’s a mood- boosting exploration of life shared, finding excitement in the steady pulse of everyday ups and downs. And the heartwarming, all-too obvious personal connection shared by Drew and Ellie is probably its best component.
Like Drew said, the two have worked together in the past, just not very much. Ellie was a full time Neighbor early on, but “kept trying to work out my faith” in song, she admits with another laugh. She left the band to focus on that, and the couple staggered their time on the road to better raise three kids. But for the last few years, they’ve booked a combined winter tour of acoustic shows, and demand has been so high that this all-in experiment made sense. The pair wrote most of Memory Bank on the road last year, carving out time to find a shared voice.
“We’ve never really actually gotten into a room and said, ‘What do we want to make together?’” Drew explains. “But I think having some touring under our belt gave us a clear vision.”
Embracing their individual quirks, that vision features simple, straight-to-the-point writing, focused on romantic big pictures and never shy of sampling styles. Tracks like the soulful, easy rolling “High Seas” offer up a rootsy “Stand By Me” feel, flush with smitten harmony. Elsewhere, tunes like the classic-R&B inspired “Rain or Shine” make a slow-jam promise to weather all challenges, and the jubilant “Never Gonna Let You Go” lands like a ‘90s country summertime stomp, complete with a lyrical scrapbook of love’s greatest hits, from a plucky meet-cute to a day on Percy Priest. “When you find gold you hold on / Never gonna let you go,” the singalong bridge proclaims.
“Shut Up and Dance” captures the spirit of a living-room disco night – an invigorating (but stripped down) cover of the Walk the Moon mega-hit – but the couple are careful to include a full spectrum of life experience. The heartbreaking “Silver Thread” is dedicated to a 9-year-old family member who tragically lost her battle with brain cancer, and with the tender “Maybe You Will,” the parental pair preach optimism in tough times.
Still, it’s playful standouts like the voodoo blues of “You Drive Me Crazy” that steal the show. A tribute to pet peeves and love that stays fun, it’s proof that the husband and wife of 19 years can still make each other smile.
“We laughed our way through writing that song so hard, and that has honestly been the mark of making this record together,” Ellie explains. “There is something about living a lot of life together, you look back over almost 20 years, and it feels like levity and laughter and being able to laugh at yourself has been good medicine.”
Meanwhile, the title track “Memory Bank” sums up a family mantra, which became the album’s central theme. An urgent mix of rollicking roots rock and sing-along bliss, its lyrics lay out a pledge to live fast and make memories, not money.
“Drew grew up in a family that just traveled constantly,” Ellie says. “By the time he graduated high school he had visited 48 states, and that song really came from a phrase that his dad coined over the years. He said, ‘Hey, you kids may not inherit a lot of money. But we are going to have made some serious deposits in the memory bank!’”
She goes on to say the album’s diverse style mimics flipping through radio channels on just such a family road trip, and as a matter of fact, they have one underway. The Holcombs are currently on the road for their annual winter tour, but this year is different, with a brand-new band built for the purpose of playing Memory Bank live.
Promising the whole range of their work – both separately and together – big shows are set to stretch across the country and right into spring, culminating in a hometown show at the Ryman Auditorium May 3. It’s a full-circle return to the scene of Drew and Ellie’s first date, and a fitting cap for a project that shows how far true love can bring a couple.
“This record holds a lot of years of living a lot of life together, and it feels like the culmination of both the joy and the struggle,” Ellie says. “It feels sort of like a triumphant celebration of all of that. I couldn’t love how it turned out more.”
“Yeah, it’s a bit like a thank you note and a love letter to our fans who have been asking for this, too,” Drew adds. “Some of them for nearly 20 years. It just had to be the right time. It had to be the right songs, and we had to be in the right spot in our relationship and our careers to do it. Now it is, and we’re very thrilled."