Jon Camp has always been a guitarist who uses strings not just for melody but for storytelling. With Proceed, his second album on Centripetal Force, he delivers his most expansive and collaborative statement yet, a record that is a communal meditation on memory, perseverance, and forward motion.
Camp’s earlier work leaned into fingerstyle intimacy, but Proceed plugs in and pushes outward. Electric guitars dominate the landscape, driven by the expressive sounds of his Telecaster’s B-bender and the shimmer of his Creston’s vibrato bar.
The sound is muscular but never heavy-handed, carrying the same melodic thoughtfulness that defines his earlier records but with a sharper edge. If 2019’s Headwinds & Tailwinds was a journal of quiet reflection, Proceed is a more vibrant road trip into open terrain, propelled by urgency and hope.
Camp says that the album wrestles with various subjects, including family history, political disquiet, and the necessity of perseverance. “Kerosene Goodbye” pays tribute to his father’s rural Iowa childhood, tracing the change from kerosene light to electricity on the farm.
At over seven minutes, it’s both the album’s longest cut and its lead single. Camp’s guitar drives the tune alongside Ryan Peterson’s drums, Jamie Linder’s pedal steel, and Kaitlin Grady’s cello. The result is a lively piece, steeped in folksy charm, that romps across the contours of Camp’s father’s rural Iowa.
The album opens with “Mining Twilight” and “Bombus Bombus,” two tracks that set the stage in very different ways. Linder’s pedal steel shines on “Mining Twilight,” a less than two-minute piece that is an inviting appetizer before the main course. “Bombus Bombus,” by contrast, dives headfirst into one of the record’s most playful moments, locking into an irresistible swampy groove.
After “Kerosene Goodbye,” the energy kicks back up with “Partisan’s Folly,” a rollicking, up-tempo number that echoes the groove of “Bombus Bombus.” The title track, “Proceed,” ups the ante again with two drummers, Peterson and Matthew Byars, propelling it forward into a deep-fried cosmic-country excursion.
The sprawling “From the Big Bang to the Battle of Oriskany” is another extended piece, brought to life by a larger ensemble: Dave Jones on guitar, Scott Verasto on drums, Linder on synth, Joseph Allred on Hammond organ and harmonium, Drew Gardner on vibraphone, and David Sexton on accordion.
Despite the abundance of instruments, the arrangement doesn’t feel cluttered. Instead, it unfolds as a balanced soundscape rooted in folk yet drifting toward a more, dare I say, psychedelic and introspective terrain.
Allred’s Hammond organ brings a warm undercurrent to “Dropping By,” but the real joy is hearing Camp on guitar. His playing is expressive, fluid, and deeply engaging, as it is throughout Proceed. The closer, “Sixteenth of April,” shines with Dave Jones’ guitar contributions. While guitars drive much of the album, this track showcases some of my favorite playing.
Although every note originates from Camp, this is by far his most collaborative effort to date. Producer Kevin Bernsten, who has helmed five of Camp’s releases, provides clarity and cohesion, capturing the interplay of these musicians with warmth and precision.
It’s telling that Proceed was partially funded by a Maryland State Arts Council grant. The record carries that sense of rootedness in place. It brings to mind an artist with his feet firmly planted and one who is deeply committed to his craft, wherever that may take him.
Proceed is a record about persistence, but it’s also about joy and connection, and it certainly has sounds that convey joy.
Camp has occasionally been tagged as “ambient country,” but there’s not much about Proceed that feels ambient. It’s instrumental, but the sound is rich and full-bodied, leaning more toward countrified jams than drifting soundscapes.
Several tracks lock into a tight groove that feels closer to a jam band’s earthy vibe (maybe even akin to Jeffrey Alexander + The Heavy Lidders) than to ambient’s quiet spaciousness.
Proceed is a record about persistence, but it’s also about joy and connection, and it certainly has sounds that convey joy. It shows Camp at a creative peak, balancing introspection with electricity. Proceed makes the act of moving forward sound vital, necessary, and alive.
Proceed will be released via Centripetal Force on October 17th.
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