Yesterday at Outside Lands, Real Estate bassist and Deadhead Alex Bleeker played a set of Grateful Dead covers with the band’s drummer Bill Kreutzmann in honor of the 20th anniversary of Jerry Garcia’s death. Later in the day, Bleeker stopped by Stereogum’s tent to play some new original songs — and a great cover of festival headliner Elton John’s “Sad Songs (Say So Much)” — with his jangling indie-pop project the Freaks. They’re releasing their third album Country Agenda in the fall, and “The Rest” is the first track to be shared. Bleeker’s love for the Dead is certainly reflected in the song — not to mention the Country Agenda cover art. This is the first Freaks record to reflect a truly collaborative unit, and it sounds like it. In the grand tradition of playfully jammy roots rock, “The Rest” channels heartbreak into an easygoing afternoon lope; think of it as “The Weight” by way of Woods. Listen below, where you’ll also find the Country Agenda tracklist.

01 “Little Dream I Had”
02 “California”
03 “Country Agenda”
04 “Portrait”
05 “Downright Stinson”
06 “The Rest”
07 “Sealong Hair”
08 “Honey I Don’t Know”
09 “The Wind”
10 “Turtle Dove”
11 “U.H.M”
12 “They’ve Gone Home”

Country Agenda is out 10/16 via Sinderlyn.

[Photo by Laura Lynn Petrick.]