The Gunshy

Some folks have a gift for songwriting, for writing melodies that immediately find a home in your head. Matt Arbogast isn’t one of those people. He has to put in the work. Arbogast spent thousands of hours at his home studio writing, rewriting and tinkering with the songs you hear on Hurricane Umbrellas. The result is a collection of twelve lyrically-rich story songs that may not demand your attention, but do welcome your company.

“I’m barely a guitar player, I can’t sing worth a shit, and I put too many words in my songs, but I really love making music,” says Arbogast. “There are records by Townes Van Zandt, John Prine, Jason Molina, and others that I cherish like a family heirloom. My life’s goal is to eventually make a record that can connect with some people in that way. I think this record is the closest I’ve come to that.

The new album, out December 5, was produced by friend and collaborator Sean Bonnette from folk-punk band AJJ. Bonnette helped Arbogast bring his characters to life, arranging a veteran ensemble of horns, strings, steel guitars, dog barks, and fingerpicked guitars.

“Sean has been one of my favorite songwriters and people since I first heard AJJ in their early days. He lived in my house for almost a year while his partner was in grad school, and we’d spend a lot of time recording each other's songs in my basement studio. Last year when AJJ came through Chicago on tour, I mentioned that I had been working on these new songs. Sean expressed interest in producing the record, and we got to work. His thoughtful guidance shaped the record into something I’m really proud of.”

Arbogast enlisted some of his favorite collaborates, including Mike “Slo-Mo” Brenner (Magnolia Electric Company, Wild Pink) on lap steel guitar and dobro, Mark Glick (AJJ) on cello, Kara Eubanks on violin, Ben Grigg (Babe Report) on horns and keys, and Max Stern (Signals Midwest) on guitar.