Check out the new single from folk-punk songwriter Matt Pless. Comin’ Through the Rye, recorded at Sun Studios in Memphis, burns brightly, full of dynamic energy that is matched by the vibrant sequence of images in the accompanying video. With crashing, splashing percussion and forcefully strummed guitar, Pless delivers a dramatic performance; his fluent vocals and lyrical stream are central to the song’s tone, attitude, and melodic flow. His words tumble out with purpose and intent, challenging our ideas of culture, counter-culture and truth: “If they fooled you once, they can fool you twice. You can’t trust the truth if it’s advertised // And you can blame it on everyone having too much of a good time.”
Pless says of the song’s message: “This song analyses and critiques counterculture movements, highlighting how they, in many cases, start out with the best intentions only to end up just as corrupt (if not more) than the systems they rage against.”
The single is from the forthcoming album Water Sign Language, due for release on 26th June 2026. It’s a collection of songs that tackle a range of subjects: love, luck, life and self-discovery, along with that authentic folk theme of protest. After years playing New York’s streets, subways, and Sidewalk Café scene in the East Village, Pless toured the US relentlessly for years, crossing the country five times and releasing Tumbleweed, selling the album at shows and out of his car. As a folk troubadour, he continued to tour and address political and social environments in the USA through his music, and Water Sign Language is Pless’s seventh album. Check it out; here’s a singer with something to say.
