Bonny Light Horseman, ‘California’

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Anaïs Mitchell, Eric D. Johnson and Josh Kaufman leave behind the old-world feel that defined Bonny Light Horseman's self-titled debut with "California," a bittersweet folk shuffler from their sophomore collection, Rolling Golden Holy (out Oct. 7 via 37d03d Records). Ironically, one thing that frames this new setting is the addition of a dulcimer, an instrument whose origins date back centuries at least. It was the first instrument the supergroup bought for themselves, and each member takes turns playing it on the album.

Here, Johnson's lead vocals lend a sweetness and light to the minor-key melody of a song that is, as he says in a statement, "a sad one, a story about pulling up roots, new beginnings, goodbyes, early morning long drives, riding into the sunrise instead of the sunset. They usually don't end movies riding into the sunrise but this movie has that scene."

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