With the band currently right in the middle of a UK tour, 49 Winchester embody everything that makes live music electric. The Virginia-born band have built their reputation on shows that are as unpredictable as they are unforgettable — a mix of raw energy, tight musicianship, and genuine connection that turns every gig into a shared experience. Whether they’re swapping out deep cuts, stretching solos, or reworking setlists on the fly, no two nights ever feel the same. It’s that restless creativity that’s helped them rise from small-town roots to international stages, fuelled by the success of their standout albums ‘Fortune Favors the Bold' (2022) and ‘Leavin’ This Holler' (2024).
Blending Appalachian soul, Southern rock swagger, and modern country grit, 49 Winchester have struck a rare balance between tradition and innovation. Their ascent has only accelerated in recent years, from commanding arenas alongside Luke Combs on his European tour to earning rave reviews for their main stage debut at C2C: Country to Country. Now, with a growing global following and a reputation as one of Americana’s most thrilling live bands, 49 Winchester stand as proof that authenticity and evolution can go hand in hand — and that their story is still only just hitting its stride. We caught up with bassist Chase Chafin in Birmingham to talk all about it and what might be coming next!
Chase – it's great to have you guys back in the UK again. You and I last spoke in March around the C2C shows in London, Glasgow and Belfast. Did we leave you with some good memories from that trip?
Yeah, absolutely. We were blown away by seeing how big Country music was over here. We'd seen some of that from the Luke Combs tour, a lot of people discovered us through that tour so that we could build upon our already small, but mighty, fan base over here. That combination of the C2C shows and Luke tour really cemented what we feel can achieve over here.
Your show set lists are ever changing – how do you decided from night to night which songs to play and which to leave out?
We have five albums now and a sixth that is not out yet but which is ready – all the songs are there! At that point you have 60+ songs you've recorded so it's a balance of trying to cater to the old and new fans alike. We want to deliver the best show we can and also keep things interesting for us so it's a mix of everything really.
It varies from night to night and we decide on the day of or the night before. It can be pretty freestyle and pretty much anything is up for consideration although we tend to favour the newer stuff. ‘The Wind' has been a staple recently – we like the energetic stuff and then sprinkle in some slower songs like ‘Everlasting Lover' and ‘Anchor' in around them.
Is that what keeps you guys fresh when you are out on a tour like this?
A lot of those older songs like ‘Fool Hearted' and ‘Veruca Salt' were recorded eight, ten years ago and I think we play them better now than we did back then so we enjoy digging into the back catalogue every now and then and dusting one off, that's fun and it keeps the variation going. It's exciting to change the set and breathe life into the older songs.
You've been playing new songs like ‘Bringing Home the Bacon' and ‘Pardon Me.' What can you tell us about these tracks and the new album?
I think we're just excited about the new songs. The album will be coming early next year, that's all I can say about it at this point. (laughing) We have the songs all recorded and I think it's fun to give people a preview of what's coming down the line from us.
Is there one song in the set that you, as the bassist, enjoy playing more than the others? ‘Anchor' feels like it would be satisfying…….
Yeah, ‘Anchor, is super-dynamic. There's a lot of chord changes going on in that song. I like playing ‘The Wind,' there's a lot of energy in that song. I like ‘Long Hard Life,' which has a walking bass line that goes all the way through the song and it's a little but challenging. Isaac's songwriting makes it fun to play these songs live – it's almost a shame when you record a new song that you've been playing live because by doing that you've almost captured it in time and the song can't change or evolve anymore because of that.
Has there ever been a song that has changed dramatically from the incarnation it was recorded in?
I think we might think it might be a little more dramatic than you would think! (laughing) When you listen to a song like ‘Last Call' on the album it's a little more laid back with some acoustic guitar and drumming but in it's live state it's a full-force rocker! We always try to play the songs in the way that they have been recorded but we might add a solo in here or there or lengthen the song out a little. We not into creating new arrangements for songs because that might throw the fans off.
Isaac joked with Whiskey Riff about the band experimenting with heavier sounds and a ‘doom-country' kind of concept. As musicians you're not afraid to experiment in the way that Prog Rock bands like Rush or Dream Theatre do – How do you balance that need to experiment alongside three minute honky tonk bar room songs?
Look at a song like ‘Anchor' and it has a whole orchestral segment to it! We just do what we like and what feels good for each individual song. I could definitely see us doing some sort of full-force, heavier project at some point in the future. That's not what the next album is at all though, it's just really great songs that Isaac has written.
We've also worked with a really great producer for this next album – the biggest producer we've ever worked with. I can't say who it is right now but you'll know soon enough. It's also the fastest we've ever made an album – we did the whole album in about nine days, it's all done and mixing now.
Success breeds pressure. Did you feel any pressure or did Isaac feel any pressure in putting this new album together after the success of the last two projects?
I can only speak for myself but I didn't get a sense of pressure from the guys. Excitement would be the right word to use to describe it. If we could we would release this album tomorrow and get it out there but of course you need to be intentional with how we present it, get some good artwork and some strategy behind the release.
We have some really big tours lined up for next year. We're out with Eric Church and we've got our own headline shows in the spring and then another big support that has not been announced yet so the album release will be tied in with those.
You mentioned Eric Church. Is it better at this point in your careers to get on those big arena tours than it is to be playing your own smaller headline shows or is the beauty in the mix?
I think it's a balancing act. Those huge arena tours are great for the band to be part of. With the Luke Combs tour we all had to get better as a band and step it up a little. It was the first time we'd ever been on stages that big and in countries like Germany, Norway and Sweden so it was a learning curve, for sure! (laughing) It made us better as a band but I think the fans prefer to see us play headline shows so that they get more 49 for their money. It's very exciting for us to step out in front of 20,000 people – it's also exciting for us, as a band, because we don't have radio hits so we're always surprised when an artist like Luke or Eric wants to have us out on the road with them.
We'd be happy to do our own headline shows forever but the big arena shows are good for longevity and the growth of the band too.
You're headlining the Ryman in Nashville later this year which is a real bucket list venue and moment…..
Yeah, we're headlining two nights there and have got some great support in terms of Kelsey Waldon, Bayker Blankenship, Noeline Hofmann and the Brudi Brothers – all really cool artists.
… are there any other venues or places that you would love to play?
We've played Red Rocks in Colorado as a support but we'd love to do our own headline set there. Some of the arenas we played on the Luke tour…… I know that's probably aiming high but the UK has been so good and we'd love to headline the O2 in London or OVO Hydro in Glasgow. That's what we're aiming for! The Royal Albert Hall would also be cool, Billy Strings just did his own headlining show there and it was amazing.
If the Opry come back to London again next year we'd love to do that! We've done the Opry about 7 or 8 times now and we love those folks. They've been good to us and we'd love to bring those two worlds together.
You guys are relentless tourers. How do you keep a sense of balance in your lives with it all in terms of your own mental health and the relationships with the people around you?
We've worked hard on that over the years. We are like something of a family though – my brother works for us, Isaac's dad works for us so we are a family business. Our guitar player's wife is out with him today, my two kids and my girl, Rainey, were out with us in Glasgow so our family comes out with us when they can.
We try to include family when we can and it is a balancing act and not everyone is built to live a life like that, it's a lot. There's a lot of sacrifice, it's not a normal life. I almost never even drive a car! I'm literally always either on a flight or a bus or an uber so I rarely ever drive cars anymore, which is weird! We've worked hard to get to where we are at now in an effort to be able to take care of our families through music. It hasn't been easy but it's truly a blessing to be where we are now and something we are very proud of.
Read our review of 49 Winchester's show in Birmingham that night right here.
