Hello there!

Spring 2026 has come and gone, and we’ve tried to bottle up that moment in time with paper and ink. We were fortunate enough to have Jarrod Walker agree to do an interview with us, just as his debut record Nighthawk was coming out in May. We can’t thank Jarrod enough for trusting us to make his new record the cover story of this issue.

• If you haven’t listened to Nighthawk yet, what are you waiting for? Stream it wherever you do that sort of thing, grab a physical copy on his site, and watch the lyric movie on YouTube by friend of the zine Grant Peterson.

The best way to get it — and the best way to support us — is an annual subscription for $33, $55, or $77: we'll ship you this issue and our first issue of the year right away, then the summer and fall issues land in your mailbox automatically. Join 1,339 print lovers!

Prefer just this one? You can order a single copy here, or request a free copy here. We give one away for every ten sold, thanks to our sponsors and paying readers.

🤳 Social media time out

Before we get into the issue, it’s time for my quarterly request for you to show some love to the issue’s launch post (click that to get there!) with a like, comment, or share to one friend who hasn’t read the zine but would love to read more about Jarrod and Nighthawk.

📖 Inside this issue:

• An interview with Jarrod Walker

• An aside from Christopher Henry on “West Dakota Rose”

• Another installment of Promontory Paul & Friends, our cartoon

• A crossword puzzle

• Illustrations throughout

✉️ Your envelope will also come with two unique stickers, as always.

🫂 The zine team

Our core engine room of four zinesters worked with 14 different artists to bring this issue to life. Each of these artists was paid for their work, thanks to our paying readers and sponsors. Once you get your issue, please peruse our credits page and check out each artist’s Instagram — and hire them if you’re in a band, have a small business, or just need something rad made!

Special thanks to: Promontory Paul, Liza, Brakeman, Will T Vennes III, Em Eubank, Allisonismyhero, Morganne, Zak Fowler, Ben Bingham, Rin Caswell, Aidan Montes, Ian Lape-Gerwe, Sam Hester, Sara Dennis, TOON, Glow_worm, Jesse Faatz, Tara Butler, Shrimp, Michael Jones, Ross the Rail CPA, AK, Esq., and Lexi Borb.

🙏 Presenting Sponsors

This issue was made possible by:

• Beagle BBQ

• Token Picks (Use code “TRAINZ15%” for a one-time discount!)

• Bonfire Entertainment’s WinterWonderGrass

• California Bluegrass Association’s Father’s Day Festival

We’d also like to thank: Telluride Bluegrass, Pisgah Banjo Company, The Black Cat Café, Grassfed Bluegrass, Turkey & the Wolf, Charleston Pour House, Snappy’s Small Bar, Imprint Rolling, IVPR, Northbound Coffee Roasters, and Folk Ware.

Our sponsors big and small support us with mostly cash, sometimes trade. Please Uno-reverse their support back to them, if you are interested in what they do! This is a small community, the folks who own these businesses also read the zine.

If you’d be interested in sponsoring a future issue, bang our line by responding to this email or via Instagram DM.

📬 Shipping timeline

This zine is damn near ready to hit the mail. We are waiting for the two stickers to arrive, which should get here early next week. Once those arrive, we’ll get zines and stickers in the mail to subscribers, purchasers, and as many free applicants as we can by next Friday. Except a mid-to-late July delivery!

❣️ Thank you

On behalf of the entire zine team, we cannot thank you enough for caring about what we do and supporting us. Money doesn’t go as far as it used to, and you could be spending it anywhere — that you choose to support us means the world. We hope we bring you a little joy with each issue as a token of our appreciation.

Happy reading,

The Conductor