Marriage, birth, death, departure; for Dispatch’s Chadwick Stokes and Brad Corrigan, the only constant these past few years has been change. Add to that the divisive political climate, long-overdue reckonings on racial justice and gender equality, and a global pandemic, and you’ve got an idea of the tensions fueling the band’s extraordinary latest album. Marking the band’s eighth studio release, the songs on this record speak not only to the band’s personal evolution, but to human nature itself, charting a course from denial and resistance to growth and acceptance through deep introspection and empathetic character studies. The music is pure Dispatch, and the five piece continues to grow and push their boundaries, taking surprise turns without ever abandoning the signature sound that’s made them one of independent rock’s most indelible acts over the last two-and-a-half decades. The songs on Break Our Fall blend infectious roots rock with hints of reggae, folk, and blues, and the productions similarly lean and energetic, leaving plenty of space for some of the group’s most pointed, political lyrics to date. The result is an ode to resilience and survival, a timely and essential album that still manages to find hope and joy on even the darkest of days.