Jerry Castle Gives Us a ‘Brand New Hello’ With “Lil Bit” (premiere)

In 2016, Jerry Castle wrapped up a series of shows in support of his album, Not So Soft Landing. For a moment, the future looked impossibly bright. But the presidential election that year left the singer-songwriter reeling. That didn’t stop him from writing, though. He dedicated part of every day working in his home studio. After seven months of consistent, persistent work, he’s emerged with Brand New Hello, due out 22 June, a collection of songs that sound as bright as the future Castle was apparently dreaming of at the end of the touring cycle behind his last LP.

There is a thematic thread throughout Brand New Hello. Taken as one picture, the 14 songs detail the life of a character who goes through a divorce, bankruptcy and general disillusionment. When he finds himself at seemingly irreconcilable odds with the America he once knew, he takes his children and moves to Costa Rica where he rebuilds his life.

The track, “Lil Bit” offers some sun in the midst of American gloom and Castle’s new video to accompany the track provides further insight into the tune’s emotional heft. There’s a hopefulness to the song, to the shimmering guitar figures, to Castle’s subdued but persuasive vocal delivery and to the breezy, uplifting choruses and subtle country colors that shine through via the lead guitar work.

Castle says that the song provides the key to the rest of the LP, detailing the moment when our character has learned to live again. “While most of the songs on the album are about individual situations that this guy went through on this adventure, ‘Lil Bit’ is a summary of the album as a whole,” he points out.