Before they became The Deslondes, the New Orleans-based group was known as The Tumbleweeds, and Holy Cross Blues captures that earlier chapter of the band’s story. It is a record built from the simplest ingredients — acoustic guitars, upright bass, harmonica, and voices that sound worn in rather than worn out. The album lives somewhere between front-porch blues, folk, country, and gospel, creating the feeling of a late-night gathering where everyone has a story and nobody is in a hurry to tell it. Raw and unpolished in the best possible way, Holy Cross Blues reveals the foundation of what would become one of New Orleans’ most distinctive roots bands.
The heart of the album comes from the songwriting and voices of Sam Doores and Riley Downing, whose contrasting styles give the record its emotional pull. Doores brings a warmer, more searching quality, while Downing’s rough-edged delivery sounds like someone who has spent a lifetime collecting stories from roadside bars and forgotten towns. Songs like “Throw Another Cap in the Fire” and “Depression Blues” carry the weight of people trying to find their way through difficult times, while “This Morning I Was Born Again” and “Blues in Heaven” explore themes of redemption and renewal without ever feeling overly polished or sentimental. These are songs about survival, but they are also songs about continuing to look for something better.
What makes Holy Cross Blues special is the sense of community running through every track. The album does not feel like a collection of individual performances; it feels like a group of musicians gathered around a single idea. The harmonies, loose rhythms, and conversational arrangements create a warmth that recalls early American roots music while still feeling connected to the New Orleans streets that shaped the band. “I Got Found” carries a driving acoustic energy, while the nearly seven-minute “Cricket’s Creed” allows the band to stretch out and follow the song wherever it wants to go. Nothing feels rushed. These songs take the long way home.
There is a timeless quality to Holy Cross Blues. The record’s stripped-down approach brings to mind the communal spirit of early folk recordings and classic country blues, where the imperfections were part of the character rather than something to be corrected. The Deslondes understand that sometimes the most powerful moments happen when the music feels like it could disappear as quickly as it arrived — a song passed between friends, a memory shared over a drink, a voice carrying through the night.
Holy Cross Blues is more than an early glimpse of The Deslondes; it is a reminder of why this kind of music endures. It finds beauty in struggle, connection in loneliness, and hope in the spaces between the notes. Long before the band’s name became familiar, these songs already contained the qualities that would define them: honesty, humility, and a deep respect for the stories people carry with them. – Jason Felton