WHEELING — The Silver Rail Bar & Grill in South Wheeling will host a roots rock throwdown this weekend as The Trainjumpers celebrate the upcoming release of the band’s new record.

Formed in December of 2005, The Trainjumpers have been rolling through the Ohio Valley and beyond for the past two decades, picking up new fans at every stop. Driven by songwriter and frontman Matt Heusel, The Trainjumpers are set to deliver their first full-length album in 14 years this coming week — a self-titled release scheduled to drop on Spotify and across digitally streaming formats on April 17.

This will be the fourth album released by The Trainjumpers, which in recent years have put out a handful of singles but have not rolled up their sleeves to unload a fresh cargo of songs until now.

“We did some singles and things as recently as 2020, but the last full-length was ‘Wide-Eyed Tragic Myth,’ and I think that was back in 2011,” Heusel said, noting that this release includes newer material packaged with more of a vintage vibe compared to the band’s previous recordings. “We sort of went old-school — with an old analog style on this. That’s the ’70s sound there. It’s definitely a garagey, old-school mix. We were going for that.”

That warm, recorded-on-tape sound resonates through the new eight-track release simply titled “The Trainjumpers.” The band’s newest tunes are featured on the album, yet all of the songs have been road-tested. Die-hard fans of the band may likely recognize newer cuts like “Brother John,” the gospel-like jam “Arms of Love” and the featured centerpiece track “Fly On,” which have been performed live by the band in recent years.

John McFarland and Matt Heusel of The Trainjumpers

Writing music for The Trainjumpers has been Heusel’s primary creative outlet as a seasoned veteran of the Ohio Valley music scene. The band leader of the popular late ’90s local music juggernaut Humble Sacrifice has subsequently explored other musical ventures via successful side projects with The Two Bridges and Rust Belt Kings, but The Trainjumpers has always kept inspiration steaming forward down the tracks.

“We’ve really pursued our own sound, just trying to make it honest and to feel good from where we’re coming, not trying to sound like anybody else,” Heusel said. “Through a lot of years, I think lyrically the music has grown. And the band is the sum of its parts — we’ve played a lot of shows together. Everybody just kind of loves playing together, and I think the music is a lot of fun.”

The new record features Heusel on guitar and lead vocals, Scott Harkness on bass and backing vocals, Clifton Landis on guitar, John McFarland on drums and Steve Fullerton on percussion. The group had a revival of sorts in the Ohio Valley with this lineup when they staged a weekly residency at the Silver Rail in late winter and spring of 2023, appearing live every week for “Funky Fridays” for a total of 10 weekends in a row — packing the house each night.

Heusel gave a shout out to Silver Rail owner Steve Mitchell and his crew for creating a welcoming venue for old-school live music that fans truly appreciate.

“Steve Mitchell is such a great guy,” Heusel said. “He’s created a really fun atmosphere down there. It’s a musical oasis.”

Saturday night’s album release party at the Silver Rail kicks off at 9 p.m. and promises to deliver classic fan favorites from The Trainjumpers along with highlighted cuts from the new record.

Songs like “Future Past,” “Down the Highway” and the opening track “In My Heart” carry the unique sound of The Trainjumpers — offering a new and different assortment of musical flavors that blend together well alongside the band’s long-standing fan favorites.

“The older you get, you just want to do something that’s only authentic,” Heusel said. “The lyric has to be authentic, the music has to be authentic.”

Nothing can be more from the heart than “Midnight Dub (Maloney’s Song),” a tribute to Heusel’s longtime friend Tim “Itch” Maloney, who died in 2023 following a courageous battle with ALS.

“He was so supportive of me playing music,” Heusel said of Maloney. “Music was so big for him, and he was just a great influence on me.”

The new release also includes a fresh version of “The Bridge,” originally recorded by Heusel’s project The Two Bridges. While “The Bridge” has been a favorite among fans of The Trainjumpers because the band regularly performs it live, that tune would never come into rotation on streaming formats when listeners queue up a mix of songs by The Trainjumpers. This will change next week when the new album drops.

The Trainjumpers

The themes of the band’s songs often hearken to home — painting images of fond memories, dreams of the road, friends and family, and tales of real life in the Ohio Valley. The music is peppered with elements of many different genres of music – from reggae to rhythm and blues, Americana, slow funk, punk, gospel, blues, soul, jam band and rock ‘n’ roll.

“People say it’s a ‘roots reggae’ sound – I would say that we play funky roots music,” Heusel said. “We’ve always been like this. I like so many different genres of music, and when I write, I don’t necessarily think of genre. I just write whatever I’m inspired by at the time — whatever I’m feeling.”

The new record’s artwork, by Chris Gorby, was inspired by the band’s hard-to-classify sound that seems to pull into musical train stations in Jamaica and in Appalachia.

“Somebody said we played ‘island music,’ and I said, ‘yeah, Wheeling Island music,'” Heusel laughed, explaining that the album cover depicts The Trainjumpers’ flying boxcar soaring over an image of Wheeling Island.

Listeners can check out The Trainjumpers on Spotify, with classic cuts available now and the new release hitting the catalog on Thursday, April 17. The celebration of The Trainjumpers’ new self-titled release takes place at 9 p.m. Saturday, April 12, at the Silver Rail Bar & Grill, 222-29th St. in South Wheeling.