Victoria Bailey Premieres Her Slithering New Single, “Snake Trails”

There’s a real personal touch to country and bluegrass music, which Victoria Bailey emphasizes today with the premiere of her new single “Snake Trails.” The song is from her brand new record, A Cowgirl Rides On, scheduled for release on October 20th via Rock Ridge Music.

This first single is empowering in a spiritual sense but not in a conventional sense. It’s about finding faith, but in a way that is specific to Bailey’s experience of the world, and perhaps the experience of others who grew up in a similar southern, rural environment.

In explaining more, Bailey states:

“This was one of the first songs written for the record and really set the tone of the record as a whole. I’ve always had a deep love for gospel and bluegrass/roots music, and tying a little bit of that into this project was very important to me. ‘Snake Trails’ was such a fun one to write. It is a sweet gospel/Western tune about finding faith through riding my horse through a canyon and all of its beauty bringing me closer to God. I actually wrote most of riding through the canyon one day with my mustang, Weasley, so I always like to give him a little writer’s credit (laughs).

“Recording this one live with the band in the studio was one of the highlights of the project as a whole, and I believe we only did two live takes and just felt so good about it. Hope this one takes listeners to a special place.”

The type of album that A Cowgirl Rides On is one that Bailey has been looking to record for some time. For a long time now, she has wanted to craft a Western gospel record, that encompasses all of the things she loves about her life, her environment, and her youth. Although a real person of faith, she did not fully discover that faith until about seven years ago, and it caused her to gravitate toward bluegrass, country, and old-time gospel music. Since that time, it has become more and more a part of her life to the point where she wanted to actually try her hand at this specific genre of music.

The songs on A Cowgirl Rides On are both personal and heartfelt, reminiscent of Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, or Loretta Lynn. Their atmospheric and story-based tracks, conjure up memories and emotions of special places and special people. The aforementioned influences were particularly skilled at that form of songwriting, and it’s something Bailey has really tried hard to mimic, in her own way. She wanted the album to sound like she does at a live show, asserting that openness and honesty that has been instrumental in her etching out her own impressive spot in modern bluegrass and country music.

Victoria Bailey “Snake Trails” single artwork