Americana rock with a Midwest heart and a soul of its own!
With classic Americana-tinged rock & roll steeped in the blue-collar charm of their hometown, Chicago’s Fletcher Rockwell has been building a loyal fanbase throughout the Midwest since 2009. While widely known for their original songs, the group is also revered for clever versions of the most popular cover music, spanning everything from vintage Tom Petty, Paul Simon and Talking Heads to contemporary roots revivalists Chris Stapleton, Dawes and Mumford & Sons.
From humble beginnings at dive bars and late-night house parties, the band has since been featured on many of the most revered stages in Chicagoland, including House of Blues, Metro, Bub City, Fitzgerald’s, Cubby Bear and Joe’s on Weed. The band has also become a fixture at summer fests throughout the region, with appearances at Taste of Randolph, Taste of Lincoln Avenue, Retro on Roscoe, Oktoberfest Chicago, Lakeview Taco Fest, and many more.
Fletcher Rockwell’s latest release, Help Me Get Better, finds the band conjuring the soulful spirit of a bygone era, when classic anthems like ‘’American Girl’’ and ‘’Born to Run’’ ruled radio airwaves across the nation with big hooks, sparkling harmonies and stellar musicianship. In the first single off the new record, the title cut ‘’Help Me Get Better’’, the group deftly blend the garage-rock rush of early Strokes with the anthemic swagger of classic Springsteen.
Given their penchant for playing modern roots-country hits like ‘’Tennessee Whiskey’’ and ‘’Chicken Fried’’, the band sears some Nashville-tinged flavor into deeper cuts ‘’Lullaby’’ and ‘’Falling Apart’’. They certainly aren’t afraid to dial it back, either – the group’s mellow folky side shines through in the Laurel Canyon sparkle of ‘’Friend or Enemy’’ and the introspective soul-searcher ‘’I Let You Go’’. Help Me Get Better closes out with the dusty highway swan song ‘’People Talk’’, a reverb-soaked epic reminiscent of Kings of Leon in their most haunting hour.
