After four months of anticipation, 49 Winchester is back with their fifth studio album, Leavin’ This Holler. The Virginian band has been on a bit of a hot streak over the past year, most notably opening up for Luke Combs on his world tour last year, and the release of Leavin’ This Holler seems to continue their well-deserved success.
The tight 10-track album is already receiving plenty of critical praise across the internet, with most noting frontman Issac Blaine Gibson’s songwriting and how successful the band’s patented blend of country and rock is throughout the record.
Obviously, the praise is absolutely warranted given how undeniable both Gibson’s writing and the band’s overall sound is. However, there is one song that stands out among the collection of rock-solid tracks. That song is none other than the album-closer, “Anchor.”
For dedicated fans of 49 Winchester, “Anchor’s” official release has been a long time coming. First being released on YouTube as a live recording from their 2018 show in Asheville, North Carolina, the song remained a hidden gem with only 1,348 views as of writing.
With the official release of the song, however, there’s no doubt that this song will begin to receive the attention it deserves.
Without trying to sound too cliché, “Anchor” simply feels epic. The slow buildup in the early verses lead to a big chorus that truly shows Gibson’s powerhouse vocals and instantly demands your attention. I particularly love the way that they structure the song into nearly two different parts after the first chorus hits, returning to the slower verses before picking back up into the powerful chorus once again – just as they do on “Fast Asleep.”
As expected, “Anchor” delivers some truly brutal lyrics, likening what I interpret as mental health struggles and depression as being the titular anchor. Throughout the song, you get the sense that Gibson is begging someone to pull up his anchor and free him from the weight that’s burdening him.
“Well now, pull up my anchor
Baby, don’t let me die
I wanna live now
I’m just so damn high
That I can see the surface”
It’s one of those songs that truly don’t have one singular “correct” interpretation, and that’s the beauty of it. Though he doesn’t quite get the attention that the likes of Zach Bryan, Jason Isbell and Tyler Childers get, there’s no denying that Gibson is one of the premiere songwriters in the genre today, and “Anchor” showcases this beautifully.
Listen here: