REVIEW: Drew & Ellie Holcomb’s “Memory Bank” is Full Of Love and Joy

Drew & Ellie Holcomb – Memory Bank 

When is a debut album not a debut album?

Drew’s last album, Strangers No More, recorded with his longtime band The Neighbors, reached #1 on the Americana charts, and its standout single “Find Your People” also topped the Americana Radio Singles Chart. Meanwhile, Ellie has carved out a successful career in Contemporary Christian Music (CCM), earning four Gospel Music Association (GMA) Dove Awards, while also authoring beloved children’s books. Their artistic paths may seem distinct, but they share a deep common thread—Drew holds a Master’s in Divinity (having written his dissertation on “Springsteen and American Redemptive Imagination”), and Ellie was an early member of Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors, touring extensively with the band.

For those accustomed to Americana’s well-worn tales of heartache, regret, and hard roads, Memory Bank is a welcome departure—an album full of love songs that feel earnest but never saccharine, honest without being overindulgent. The Holcombs’ harmonies shine throughout, sometimes weaving together in gentle unison, sometimes responding to each other in intimate musical dialogues.

The Holcomb’s wrote all but one (an unnecessary cover of Walk the Moon’s “Shut Up and Dance”) of Memory Box’s 13 songs together.

The standout “Brick by Brick” is one of the album’s most affecting and beautiful songs, reflecting on the slow, patient work of building love and trust: “We lived nightmares, we’ve lived dreams / We wouldn’t trade for anything / Brick by brick / You’re taking this wall apart / It took me years to build that fortress around my broken heart / But your patient hand / Goes stone by stone / Pain can build a prison, but your love’s making me a home.”

Produced by Cason Cooley—who has worked with both Drew and Ellie before, as well as artists like Ingrid Michaelson, Ben Rector, and Katie Herzig—Memory Bank boasts a warm, understated sound that perfectly matches its themes. The album leans on the steady, textured playing of The Neighbors—Nathan Dugger (guitar), Rich Brinsfield (bass), Will Sayles (drums), and Ian Miller (keys)—along with the unmistakable harmonica work of Mickey Raphael (Willie Nelson, Chris Stapleton, Bob Dylan), who adds a rich, rootsy element to several tracks.

The music is gentle but never boring, intimate but never small. There’s a quiet confidence in these arrangements that allows the songwriting to take center stage, resulting in an album that feels lived-in, familiar, and deeply resonant.

Memory Bank feels, as Elle has said, “like the sonic representation of 20 years of doing life and creating side-by-side together.”  As they sing on the gorgeous “Never Gonna Let You Go,” “When you find gold, you hold on.”

The album’s closing track, “Carry the Water,” delivers a final, poetic reflection on faith, wisdom, and the search for meaning: “The prophets, the mystics, and the circus freaks / Carry a truth that the rest can’t see.”

That is what Memory Bank is at its core — a collection of truth-filled songs from two contemporary prophets, mystics, telling their story with warmth, honesty, and grace.

Drew & Ellie Holcomb are currently on their biggest U.S. headlining tour to date, which will wrap up with a milestone performance at The Ryman Auditorium in Nashville this May.

Enjoy our previous coverage here: Show Review: Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors at Turner Hall in Milwaukee

 

Mark Pelavin is a consultant, writer, and freelance music critic living, very happily, on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. He can be reached at mark@markpelavin.com.