March To August — Highway 75 (self-released, 2026)
March To August’s Highway 75 is a concept album that follows the fictional life of a long-haul truck driver traveling the same route along Highway 75, which stretches from Florida to the Canadian border. The album traces the character’s struggle with addiction, loss, and regret as he reflects on past mistakes. However, a severe hailstorm becomes a turning point. After the experience, he begins helping people he encounters along the highway while seeking redemption, forgiveness, and reconciliation with those he has hurt.
Although the story focuses on a fictional character, the band said many songs are based on real-life experiences. The title track originated during a drive on Highway 75 from New Smyrna Beach, Florida, back to Arkansas. During the trip, the group stayed in a small Airbnb reportedly connected to a former writing retreat of Ernest Hemingway. A detail from that stay, locking the door with a physical key before departure, inspired the lyric, “packed up my car, St. Augustine left the keys, locked the door.”
The song was also inspired by the roadside billboards encountered during the drive, as well as a social media post from a friend coping with the end of a relationship and limited contact with his son. Those elements later became the foundation of both the title track and the album’s central storyline.
Meanwhile, the idea of making the protagonist a long-haul truck driver emerged after the band experienced a powerful hailstorm while touring in Colorado. The storm, which inspired the instrumental “Red Top Mountain Hailstorm,” intensified from light rain to near golf ball-sized hail. During the ordeal, the good Samaritan driver of a tractor-trailer ahead slowed down and activated its hazard lights, effectively guiding the band’s vehicle through the storm. The album cover photograph was taken that night.
Elsewhere, several tracks incorporate personal memories. “Highways and HonkyTonks” reflects experiences at venues the band has played throughout the years, while the fictional bar owner Sam serves as a tribute to the heroic venue owners encountered along the way. “Broken Lines” traces its origins to childhood memories of a family trip to Florida. In addition, “Whiskey Town, Heartache Headaches and Beer” examines proximity to addiction through experiences drawn from real life.
The album concludes with “Quiet Years,” a song that closes the truck driver’s story while also reflecting the band’s own transition from other careers to full-time music.
Musically, the duo crafts a remarkably potent sound with Derrick’s grand vocals weaving through banjo, guitar, and harmonica, and Jodi providing rhythms with bass, stomp-box percussion, and evocative lap steel. You’ll find a graceful mix deeply steeped in the traditions of Americana, alt-country, and bluegrass traditions.
March to August is a string duo based in the Ozark Mountains. Derrick and Jodi Mears are known for storytelling, thought-provoking lyrics, and intricate instrumentation. They love and write concept albums where all the songs fit together to tell a story.
Author: Ryan Emmert
