Tony Cummings interviewed critically acclaimed songsmith DREW HOLCOMB

Drew: It's Americana in the sense that that's what people would label it now, but honestly I think it fits in the '70s singer/songwriter genre, alongside folks like Van Morrison and Tom Petty, Neil Young. There's a pop element to what we do that isn't all backroads and banjos. The Americana genre is in some ways a great catch-all, and we're glad to land there. In some ways we doubled-down on our approach, which is to track live, let the songs be the king: this record is us digging our feet in on that, saying, 'This is who we are, this is what we want to do'.

Tony: Are you going to be performing some of the 'Medicine' songs tonight?

Drew: Oh yeah, yeah - we're doing six or seven of them tonight, so at least half the record.

Tony: Is there a song called "Medicine" on the album?

Drew: No. I was in an interview maybe six months ago, and someone asked me the question - kind of off-the-cuff - 'What is music for?' I thought that was a really great question; so I started thinking about my own life - the times of the most intense suffering and also the most joy. Music has been a big part of those moments: a great way to cope and a great way to celebrate. That's a great way to think about music, that it's medicine. My hope for these songs is that they find a home with people, and can help soundtrack whatever people are walking through.

Tony: There's a phrase in the Old Testament that calls the Temple musicians "the Company of the Prophets". It was through music that I received Christ in my life.

Drew: The closing track on the new record is a song about me wrestling with my own faith in the last few years. It's hard for me to blatantly proselytise when I've been riddled with doubt my whole life. Music has been a way to expose that journey, and that's true for a lot of people - they find hope in the Gospel, but certain things are difficult to swallow. That's OK: you're allowed to live in that mystery. That's what the song is about, wrestling with God. People find comfort in knowing they're not alone in that struggle.