There are introductions, and then there are welcomes. The kind reserved for artists who arrive with a fully realized world of imagery, conviction, and vulnerability. Jared Bond, Kansas City’s new voice in folk and Americana, deserves the latter. With his newest single, “Wild Guess,” Bond walks in carrying a torch lit by the poetic lineage of Dylan, Oberst, Father John Misty, and Jim James, and sets it down at our feet with fearless sincerity. And yet, nothing about “Wild Guess” feels derivative. Bond has that rare quality: the ability to absorb influence and still sound like he is singing from a room only he has ever been inside.
Like a good folk song should begin, “Wild Guess” begins with the weight of sky on shoulders, one of Bond’s strongest lyrical instincts turning emotion into landscape: “I’ve got dark skies still weighing me down. Rainbow pills can’t push away all the grey clouds.” Immediately, we’re dropped into a world of quiet storms and crowded thoughts. Bond’s vocal delivery here is gentle but steady. His voice doesn’t demand attention; it earns it by sounding like someone finally admitting what they’ve been afraid to say aloud. Rachel Jaggard supports that vocal presence with harmonies that feel almost like a conscience. They are soft, honest, and unpretentious. Rachel never overshadows; she shades, textures, and lifts.
Across the verses, Bond shifts from personal ache to societal critique with seamless ease. In the third verse, he confronts the instant-everything culture with wit sharpened by disappointment: “Anything, anywhere can be delivered to anyone: a paper clip, an elephant, a bible, a gun.” It’s clever. It’s biting. And it lands because Bond delivers it without smugness. By the time we reach the final verse, the song widens into something historic with the lines, “This old land’s been stained red before it was new. Undefeated in the game of war, still constantly blue.” Here, Bond sounds less like a newcomer and more like an old soul raising long-ignored truths to the surface. His delivery tightens, aches, and finally breaks open across the repeated refrain: “Why is it still raining?” It’s a question, a lament, and a diagnosis all at once.
Recorded in Kate’s studio, the track carries all the warmth of a room where creativity had to bend to fit. The production choices are beautifully intentional for a song with such lyrical sorrow and dry humor. Mark Hamblin’s upright bass feels like the heartbeat of the song. Jesse’s piano sprinkles color over the track without ever becoming ornate. It’s folk in its purest sense. Altogether, the production captures the spirit of a moment.
Listening to “Wild Guess” felt like standing under a porch roof during a long storm—close enough to feel the cold mist, safe enough to listen, and moved enough to want to stay until the final drop falls. It’s a comfort, a question, and a revelation from an artist who has far more to say. And now that he’s here, the folk/Americana world is already better for it.
Listen to “Wild Guess” on Spotify
Follow Jared Bond here for more information
