‘New Threats From the Soul' by Ryan Davis and the Roadhouse Band Review: A Songwriter's Wild Wit

Wall Street Journal

22-07-2025

There's a scene in Martin Scorsese's 2005 documentary, 'No Direction Home,' that shows Bob Dylan standing on a London street corner in 1966, verbally riffing on the signage he sees around him. He excitedly shuffles words about pet care with an ad for tobacco and delights at the various combinations he finds. It's a magical sequence because we learn how his mind works, how he arrives at the surreal imagery found in his songs from around that time. It also suggests we're constantly surrounded by fragments of meaning that are waiting to be assembled into poetry.
Ryan Davis is one of a few active singer-songwriters who play with lyrics in this fashion, fusing freewheeling Dylanisms with the alternately tragic and hilarious absurdity of David Berman, who led the bands Silver Jews and Purple Mountains before his death in 2019. In the 2010s, Mr. Davis fronted a rough-edged indie-rock band called State Champion, and wordplay was in effect from the outset when the group titled its first LP 'Stale Champagne.' On his first solo album, 2023's 'Dancing on the Edge,' recorded with a loose assemblage of players called the Roadhouse Band, he allowed his love of cracked language to run wild, and the collection's homey acoustic Americana turned out to be an ideal musical setting for his musings. His latest record, 'New Threats From the Soul' (Sophomore Lounge), out Friday, improves sharply on its predecessor, pushing limits both musically and lyrically while remaining surprisingly accessible.