On debut album Brand New Distance, Cimarron 615 announce themselves as a vibrant new voice with rich Nashville roots. The 10-song record channels a collective heritage that includes Poco, the Flying Burrito Brothers, and Loretta Lynn into refreshingly a contemporary take on harmony-laden, narrative country rock.

Brand New Distance oozes world-class songcraft and musicality enhanced with achingly nuanced vocal harmonies, poignant lyrics, and sinewy solos. Marrying bluegrass instrumentation to breezy California country rock, gritty blues, and pop sensibilities, Cimarron 615 effortlessly traverses everything from stripped-down acoustic arrangements to full-on three-guitar rock. 

Cimarron 615’s story goes back to country-rock legends Poco and their late frontman Rusty Young, with whom all five members have musical history. When Young passed in 2021, Blue Élan Records head Kirk Pasich organized a tribute concert and album featuring the musicians who would become Cimarron 615 as the house band. The chemistry between the quintet was so palpable that Pasich offered them a record deal as a standalone touring act.

Named for the Poco classic “Rose of Cimarron” and Nashville’s 615 area code, every member of Cimarron 615 is a respected songwriter, accomplished singer, and virtuosic instrumentalist. The band comprises Rick Lonow (Loretta Lynn, Flying Burrito Brothers), drums/percussion/vocals; Jack Sundrud (Vince Gill, Great Plains), bass/vocals; Michael Webb (Hank Williams Jr., John Fogerty) covering a variety of keyboards, mandolin, and vocals; and Ronnie Guilbeau (Flying Burrito Brothers, Griffin-Yancey-Guilbeau, Palomino Road), with Tom Hampton (Marshall Tucker Band, Idlewheel) on guitars, mandolin, banjo, and vocals; and Bill Lloyd (Foster & Lloyd, Buck Owens) on guitar/vocals; drummer/percussionist/vocalist featured on the record. 

Recorded at Nashville’s storied Treasure Isle studio (Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton etc.), Brand New Distance was self-produced by the band, with each member contributing two compositions.

With Brand New Distancereleased in April 2023, followed by a Rusty Young documentary also featuring the band, Cimarron 615 will perform at Austin’s South by Southwest conference/festival in March and tour coast to coast. Expect a few favorites from the members’ illustrious pasts as well as improvised surprises that only such dues-paid musicians can provide.

In the meantime, Cimarron 615’s astoundingly filler-free Brand New Distanceis their ultra-accomplished calling card as a singular new act with a charmingly old soul. It’s a record that lovingly ushers forward a country rock genre too often steeped in nostalgia, offering the tingling interpersonal dynamics and adventurous spirit that only new bands can capture.