Grounded from touring Europe by the pandemic, after having spent the better part of a decade traversing the Old World, songwriter Keegan McInroe took the opportunity to explore the far west of his home state of Texas, making regular musical sojourns to the rugged and remote mountains and desert of the Big Bend region.

On one such trip in the

Grounded from touring Europe by the pandemic, after having spent the better part of a decade traversing the Old World, songwriter Keegan McInroe took the opportunity to explore the far west of his home state of Texas, making regular musical sojourns to the rugged and remote mountains and desert of the Big Bend region.

On one such trip in the spring of 2022, McInroe struck up a quick friendship with Santa Fe transplant Bill Palmer (engineer, mix, co-producer, vocal) on a fabled porch in the dusty ghost town of Terlingua, TX. Bill had been recording various songwriters there in an early 20th century adobe church, Santa Inez, and it was decided the two would reconvene in the fall of 2022 to make a record.

The album's theme soon emerged through the sad tale of the church's namesake. The historical Inez (a Spanish variation of "Agnes"; derived from the Greek word for "holy" or "pure") was a young girl murdered by those who, unable to possess and control her, determined to humiliate and destroy her.

With eyes to the ill-fated saint and ears to the history and folklore of the Big Bend area, McInroe began writing. When he returned to Terlingua in November to record, he had five new songs, plus a co-write with Matt Tedder and two co-writes with Jack Barksdale selected for the album.

The night before the final full band session, McInroe sat alone in the church amongst candles and tequila as the opening lines to "Chisos Mission Blues" began bubbling up and out. The song was finished that evening, bringing the total number of tracks to nine.

Backing McInroe are Fort Worth's, Aden Bubeck (bass), Forris Massey (drums), Morris Holdahl (guitar), and Gary Grammer (harmonica), as well as area musicians Ted Arbogast (keys, vocal), Sarah Burton (vocal), and Doug Moreland (fiddle). Several windy west Texas days aided Santa Inez in providing the finishing touches in the form of faintly chiming mission bells.

The result is Agnes, at heart, a story-driven folk blues meditation and commentary concerning one of the more unfortunate aspects of the human condition: the seeming inabilty to leave the pure -- be it in nature or the individual -- unmolested.

Through acerbic rapid-fire talking blues, slowly unfolding cowboy ballads with half-choruses sung in Spanish, colorful and raucous free association-style growlings and grinnings, dark and gritty electric slidings and stabbings, and even a sorrowful lamentation adapted from Native American wisdom, McInroe and company deliver a vibrant and varied soundscape of earthy Americana sure to resonate with fans of Kris Kristofferson, Tom Waits, and Bob Dylan.

Released September 22, 2023

Produced by Keegan McInroe & Bill Palmer. Mixed & engineered by Bill Palmer. Mastered by Pete Maher. Recorded at Santa Inez Church, Terlingua, TX.

Album Art by Lori Griffin. Photos by Tony Drewery.