EDITORIAL REVIEWS


“Maybe it was the state of mind I was in, coming out of a grueling touring year in 2023,” Acuff shared of the personal LP. “It was a trying time. My Dad was terminally ill. I was looking around, taking stock of a lot of things – and it put me in a very weird place. I started pouring a lot into the songs, being very brutally honest. I wanted to make a record that really said something.”

With American Son, Acuff more than delivers. Working with producer/engineer Eddie Spear (Zach Bryan, Brandi Carlile), they’ve created a robust, acoustic-forward power punch that packs a force as ambient as it is unvarnished. Throughout the 16 tracks, Acuff lands like a drop of bleach in greasy water. Inducing clarity in the bombast, he harvests the reckoning of an indulgent world that refuses to own consequences – and throws light on realities too long ignored.

“If you make me break it down, I think it’s four different pillars,” he said. “It’s the state of the union and humanity. It’s mental health. But it’s also hope and love. You can’t dive too deep into the darkness without those two things, or you’ll never get out.”

The album also features “How Do I Feel Alive,” with rising sibling trio The Castellows, as well as Acuff’s take on Leonard Cohen’s “Suzanne.”