{"id":59292,"date":"2026-03-03T17:32:30","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T17:32:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/03\/clay-street-unit-revive-folk-music-with-sin-squalor-album\/"},"modified":"2026-03-03T17:32:30","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T17:32:30","slug":"clay-street-unit-revive-folk-music-with-sin-squalor-album","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/03\/clay-street-unit-revive-folk-music-with-sin-squalor-album\/","title":{"rendered":"Clay Street Unit Revive Folk Music With &#8216;Sin &#038; Squalor&#8217; Album"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/t\/clay-street-unit\/\" id=\"auto-tag_clay-street-unit\" data-tag=\"clay-street-unit\">Clay Street Unit<\/a> didn\u2019t have any ambitions for fame. The six-piece group out of Denver just wanted a creative outlet to write and play songs. But five years since their inception, Clay Street Unit are taking folk music by storm. And the release of their debut album, <em>Sin &amp; Squalor<\/em>, finally appeases a fan base that was clamoring for recorded music.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t\u201cWe were kind of a community band,\u201d Sam Walker, the band\u2019s frontman and guitarist, says. \u201cWe sold out a bigger room, sold out a bigger room. We kept falling up. Next thing you know, we really had the right crew together to take on an album head-on.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tClay Street Unit dropped <em>Sin &amp; Squalor<\/em> last month via Leo33 Records, the independent Nashville label best-known as the home for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-album-reviews\/zach-top-aint-in-it-for-my-health-review-1235415516\/\">Zach Top\u2019s<\/a> music. The 11-track project is a blend of bluegrass, folk, country, and rock, and was produced by Chris Pandolfi of the Infamous Stringdusters. It\u2019s an album aimed at building upon the fanbase earned through their high-energy live show.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Clay Street Unit - Choctaw County (ft. Lindsay Lou) [Lyric Video]\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2ijNr1BPov0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t\u201cI had written a couple of tunes that were just kind of living in my head and weren\u2019t really fleshed out,\u201d Walker tells <em>Rolling Stone<\/em>. \u201cAs members joined the band, the songs continued to evolve and take on a life of their own. It became a shift away from a really linear project of, \u2018What do we want to put on an album?\u2019 to \u2018What are our favorite songs that we play together?\u2019 We picked songs that we loved playing and the songs that the people seem to respond to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tCurrently, Clay Street Unit is Walker on guitar and vocals, mandolinist Scottie Bolin, pedal steel player Brad Larrison, drummer Brendan Lamb, bassist Jack Kotarba, and fiddle player Dan Andree. (Banjo player Jack Cline, a founding member featured on <em>Sin &amp; Squalor<\/em>, left the group in late 2025.) <em>Sin &amp; Squalor<\/em> showcases the band\u2019s range of styles as well as the songwriting of both Walker and Bolin, including \u201cChoctaw County,\u201d a lyrical collaboration between both members that features guest vocals from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-features\/lindsay-lou-billy-strings-queen-of-time-1234919917\/\">Lindsay Lou<\/a>.<\/p>\n<section class=\"brands-most-popular \/\/ editors-pick-module lrv-u-margin-tb-2 lrv-u-border-a-2 u-box-shadow-5-5 lrv-u-padding-lr-1 a-span1 u-padding-b-1@tablet u-overflow-hidden\">\n<h2 id=\"section-heading\" class=\"c-heading larva  lrv-u-text-align-center u-border-color-black a-font-theme-primary-xxs lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-letter-spacing-0063 lrv-u-padding-t-050 u-padding-b-0375@tablet lrv-u-padding-b-050@mobile-max lrv-u-border-b-2\">\n<p>\t\tEditor\u2019s picks<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t\u201cScottie and I sat down one night in my basement and went, \u2018We really need to write a pretty ballad,\u2019\u201d Walker says. \u201cI grew up in Alabama, and Choctaw County is down there. I\u2019d driven through it a million times. I loved the phrase \u2018Choctaw County,\u2019 and I wanted to write a song about it for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tWalker hails from Alabama, not far from Montgomery, and his grandmother, along with her six sisters, sang in the church choir. Growing up, Walker was in school chorus and in plays and musicals, but he recalls a lot of classic rock being played around the house. When he went off to college at the University of Alabama, he joined a jam band playing Widespread Panic and Phish covers, and, after graduation, moved to Denver, where he fell into an eclectic music community with a heavy folk bent.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t\u201cI found my way into bluegrass, and even the country music scene, backwards,\u201d he says. \u201cI grew up on all this awesome rock &amp; roll, and then as I grew into being my own musician, it pivoted to being a more personal story. It was more string-oriented. But it wasn\u2019t a straightforward path for me. Denver really opened my mind up to what was possible musically.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tWalker lived in a house on Clay Street on the west side of the city. A friend of a friend introduced him to Cline. One night, they decided to sit around and pick for fun \u2014 Cline on banjo and Walker on guitar. They had such a good time that Walker suggested booking a gig together as a duo. They started playing around Denver, picking up more members along the way, and eventually evolved into a six-piece folk outfit.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t\u201cIt was like dominos falling. We\u2019d play a gig and then meet somebody, and they would feel like the perfect fit, personality-wise,\u201d Walker says.<\/p>\n<section class=\"brands-most-popular \/\/ recirculation-modules lrv-u-margin-tb-2 lrv-u-border-a-2 u-box-shadow-5-5 lrv-u-padding-lr-1 a-span1 u-padding-b-1@tablet u-overflow-hidden\">\n<h2 id=\"section-heading\" class=\"c-heading larva  lrv-u-text-align-center u-border-color-black a-font-theme-primary-xxs lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-letter-spacing-0063 lrv-u-padding-t-050 u-padding-b-0375@tablet lrv-u-padding-b-050@mobile-max lrv-u-border-b-2\">\n<p>\t\tRelated Content<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tThe group found a welcoming stage at Cervantes, a venue in a culturally historic neighborhood near downtown called Five Points. They started on the patio, playing to fewer than a hundred people, eventually working their way up to the venue\u2019s main room, which has a capacity of a thousand. In 2024, they opened for the Infamous Stringdusters at Mission Ballroom, which holds nearly 4,000. Last year, they played Red Rocks in support of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-country\/leftover-salmon-vince-herman-country-album-enjoy-the-ride-1234633934\/\">Leftover Salmon<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tClay Street Unit earned a reputation in Denver for their live show, which followed them as they expanded their reach outside of Colorado. Their album release featured sold-out shows at the \u00a0Basement East in Nashville and Terminal West in Atlanta, two mid-sized clubs known for hosting rising-star artists as they build fanbases.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t\u201cI think it was Andy Thorn from Leftover Salmon who said, \u2018Life\u2019s hard enough,\u2019\u201d Walker says. \u201cPeople are spending their Friday or Saturday evenings with us, and it\u2019s our job to come out there and have fun and make them know it\u2019s OK to let loose and enjoy yourself. That\u2019s how we approach it every night.\u201d<\/p>\n<section class=\"brands-most-popular \/\/ recirculation-modules trending-in-article lrv-u-margin-tb-2 lrv-u-border-a-2 u-box-shadow-5-5 lrv-u-padding-lr-1 a-span1 u-padding-b-1@tablet u-overflow-hidden\">\n<h2 id=\"section-heading\" class=\"c-heading larva  lrv-u-text-align-center u-border-color-black a-font-theme-primary-xxs lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-letter-spacing-0063 lrv-u-padding-t-050 u-padding-b-0375@tablet lrv-u-padding-b-050@mobile-max lrv-u-border-b-2\">\n<p>\t\tTrending Stories<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tClay Street Unit, who made their Grand Ole Opry debut in February, are touring heavily this spring, with shows booked in well-known rock rooms. This summer, they\u2019re on the lineup at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival and have a date opening for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-features\/turnpike-troubadours-cover-todd-snider-just-like-old-times-1235472528\/\">Turnpike Troubadours<\/a> in Jackson, Wyoming. A return to Red Rocks is in the cards, too \u2014 July 17 with the String Cheese Incident. Where they go next, Walker says, is up to <em>Sin &amp; Squalor<\/em>: \u201cIt feels so good to finally get this record out in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t<em>Josh Crutchmer is a journalist and author whose book <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/backloungepublishing.com\/almostalmostfamous\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"><em>(Almost) Almost Famous<\/em><\/a><em> will be released April 1 via Back Lounge Publishing.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-features\/clay-street-unit-folk-music-sin-and-squalor-1235524213\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Clay Street Unit didn\u2019t have any ambitions for fame. The six-piece group out of Denver just wanted a creative outlet to write and play&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":59293,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59292","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pop","article","has-excerpt","has-avatar","has-author","has-date","has-comment-count","has-category-meta","has-read-more","thumbnail-"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59292","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59292"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59292\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59293"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59292"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59292"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59292"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}