Cowboy Neal "No Shade on North Ave" Single Review

"No Shade on North Ave" Album Art / Credit: Logan LaBrake

Magda Kanecka | December 2025

Cowboy Neal is a six-piece band from Chicago, Illinois, taking most of their musical inspiration from artists such as The Talking Heads, Fela Kuti, and Frank Zappa.

Their new track, “No Shade on North Ave,” was recorded at Picture Minded Studios after a jam session at Chicago’s legendary comedy club, The Second City.

The track opens with a very pleasant and satisfying bass and drum combination, clearly influenced by classic indie tunes. This pattern repeats throughout the song, establishing a steady musical foundation that is later complemented by the vocals of frontman Ian Hammond, accompanied by Kenzie Iszard and Pen Wilder.

A nearly five-minute-long track, the lyrics discuss the struggles and worries of not knowing what the future holds, while trying to persevere through anxieties and remain hopeful – “The future calls for me (yeah, yeah) / All in time, I’ll be free.”

About the song, frontman and multi-instrumentalist Ian Hammond said: “I posed the question to myself: What good comes from being so doubtful toward the future, that you never do anything in the present?”

He added: “Musically, I wanted something that was calm to listen to and smooth enough to dance to.

But I also wanted there to be moments of intensity – the choruses are loud and emotional, but there is always a return home – the verses are both the calm before and the calm after the storm.”

I can see myself coming back to this track due to its consistency, as well as my favourite part of the song: the soulful guitar element that kicks in around the three-minute mark. It is clear that Cowboy Neal has a steady foundation laid out for them, and most of all, they are also able to execute this just as well in their live performances.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Listen to “No Shade on North Ave” here!

Follow Cowboy Neal on Instagram here!