Brock Davis – Nothing Lasts Forever
Americana is a timeless genre – one that feels inherently tied to history, nostalgia, and feelings of belonging. Santa Cruz-based singer/songwriter Brock Davis has found a home in that genre, especially on new album Nothing Lasts Forever, a 14-song offering that deals with heavy-but-relatable themes like the transience of life, love (and all its implications), and everything in between. A real-life health scare may have shaken Davis (luckily, he’s okay), but if anything, it seems to have steeled his resolve to create something heartfelt and real. The phrase “Nothing Lasts Forever” might be literally true in a vacuum – but at the very least, these songs will live on eternally, and they certainly have the classic songwriting backbone to withstand the slow, cruel hands of time. Here’s a little more from Davis himself about what Nothing Lasts Forever really means to him:
“As I was searching for an album title, I realized that there is an overarching theme of life’s impermanence that ties many of the songs together… Everything changes. If times are hard, it can’t change fast enough. If times are good, we try to hang on as tight as we can, but they pass just the same. We all have our own story about how we come to accept that, and these songs are a few of those stories.”
They say “happiness writes white” (at least Harvey Danger does), but Davis excels at something that’s notoriously hard to do right – the archetypal love song. Opening track “All of You” is warm, loving, kind – everything a wife would want to hear from her husband in the form of a song. Bouncy guitars and an in-the-pocket drum groove set the scene for this song about appreciating your spouse – but it also does an excellent job at setting the tone for the rest of the album. Brock’s music goes down real easy. There are no rough edges or hidden snags or spurs. The guy seems to have a true appreciation for his life and the loved ones he surrounds himself with, and a love song like “All of You” is the perfect way to introduce us to that formula. What’s more, the production here is absolutely incredible. It’s worth mentioning that Davis worked with some A+-tier musicians on Nothing Lasts Forever. Engineer Zach Allen has worked with Keb Mo’ and Kingfish, and the session musicians that brought these songs to life have worked with Bob Seger, Tim McGraw, Blake Shelton, Stevie Nicks, and many more. Wow, what a pedigree.
A 14 song album is certainly an undertaking – not only for a songwriter, but also for the listener – so here are a few of our album favorites. “All of You” is absolutely a wonderful place to start, but we’d also like to spotlight title-track “Nothing Lasts Forever.” Lyrics about drinking alone and long-lost-love compliment the gently plucked acoustic guitars. Like the title-track, there’s an undercurrent of sadness in several of Davis’ songs; it comes along with writing about some tough stuff, but this album is truly a celebration of life, even when it’s hitting you hard. The same can be said about “Til The Morning Comes,” a bittersweet ode to his aunt who made a difficult decision to stop cancer treatments in order to truly value the time she had left on this Earth. His lyrics touch on the importance of special-occasion-bottles, having fun nights, and watching sunsets… Davis successfully reminds us that it’s those moments that make life truly worth living.
The main thesis of Nothing Lasts Forever stands true, but Davis makes sure to include something for everyone. “Miracle On The Hudson” is about the brave-but-terrifying emergency landing of US Airways Flight 1549 made by Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger in the Hudson River. It’s a true storyteller’s song – and I can say this with certainty and admiration – I’ll probably never hear another song about that particular event in human history. Davis’ Americana heart yearns strongly on this one – you can almost see it – a songsmith, guitar in hand, crooning about hyper-specific imagery like the Manhattan skylines and birds flying in a “V” formation. Same goes for “One Paycheck Away,” less a love song, and more a bluesy, organ-soaked lament on the economy, and what it means to a family to have to side-hustle after your 9-to-5. That’s the unifying force here on Nothing Lasts Forever – and even when he strays from his tried-and-true, guy-with-a-guitar formula (that works astonishingly well for him, I might add), like on spoken-word soliloquy “A Daughter,” it still has the feeling of a hardworking guy who loves his family, respects his upbringing, and is proud to be American.
There’s so much more to dive into here on Nothing Lasts Forever – think of it like an album to put on while you have a lovely little fire with your family… Once it warms up again, of course. Nothing Lasts Forever comes out February 27th, 2026. Check out another album highlight, “Make Your Own Change,” below.
Categorised in: Album Reviews
This post was written by Nick Sessanna