New Jersey songwriter Sean Tobin has announced a new album, Hands Like Mine, his latest since 2022’s Ghost of the Arcade. It comes out November 10th, and the first two singles “Song for the End of the World” and “Old Magnolia” are out now.
Tobin said via press release, “Most of these songs aren’t about me. They’re about folks I empathize with, stories about the people who make up my life and environment.” His environment is very much about to change, though, as news of the album comes alongside Tobin’s announcement that he’ll be relocating from Asbury Park to Nashville.
Hands Like Mine was written and produced by Tobin, and made alongside longtime band members David Patiño, Jack Breslin, and Jake Garbe, as well as guitarist Evan Dibbs. It was recorded at Audio Pilot Studio in Byram, NJ, and mixed and mastered by studio-owner Rob Freeman. Known for hard-hitting rock tracks, Hands Like Mine presents Tobin at his most vulnerable through acoustic-driven folk songs.
“There’s been a lot of change lately. The whole band has sort of dissipated,” said Tobin of his backing band, the Boardwalk Fire. “It just so happened that I was set on recording a solo acoustic album, and at the same time, the Boardwalk Fire was scattering across the globe. The whole thing was sadly coincidental.”
While Tobin won’t be seen playing any full band shows in the near future, he has plans to perform extensively throughout the fall and winter as a solo act. Dates have yet to be announced. You can listen to his latest singles today.
Born and raised on the New Jersey shore, Sean Tobin was influenced by folk-singing troubadours and high-energy rockers alike. His high-energy performances and rock n’ roll-tinged releases are due mostly in part to his upbringing in the Jersey shore bar scene. Tobin honed his craft playing countless shows in dives, clubs and basements, as well as during his time busking on the streets of Galway, Ireland throughout 2015 and 2017. He has performed at such festivals as SXSW, Americanafest, North2Shore, and Frank Turner’s Lost Evenings, and has opened for the likes of Jason Isbell, Rhett Miller, and many more more.
Tracklist for Hands Like Mine:
Song for the End of the World
Wolves
Caroline
American Lands
Catcher in the Rye
6:10PM
Hail the Carpenter
My Own Heaven
Old Magnolia
Never Coming Down
