There’s something disarmingly honest about a songwriter who’s traveled enough roads to recognize that the destination rarely matches the map. Jason Lenyer Buchanan’s upcoming EP “Under a Thumbnail Moon” (releasing May 31) doesn’t just acknowledge life’s detours—it celebrates them as essential components of the journey itself. Following his cathartic full-length “Crooked Rivers,” this six-track collection finds the Cheyenne-based troubadour excavating deeper truths with newfound clarity and purpose.
Recorded at Nashville’s The Owl Studio with producer Joel Rousseau (who also handles electric guitar duties), this EP showcases Buchanan’s storytelling within more sophisticated musical architecture. The assembled players—including Scott Mulvahill’s nuanced bass work, Nate Leath’s expressive fiddle, and Don Eanes’ textured keys—create musical landscapes that perfectly complement Buchanan’s weathered, authentic delivery.
Opening track “If the Creek Don’t Rise” establishes the collection’s philosophical foundation—examining the various baptisms life administers whether we’re prepared or not. When Buchanan sings “There’s a whole lotta ways you can be baptized,” it’s with the hard-earned wisdom of someone who’s experienced several such immersions. The arrangement builds methodically from sparse beginnings to full-band crescendo, mirroring the song’s journey from personal reflection to universal truth.
“These Thirty Acres” continues Buchanan’s exploration of place as metaphor for spiritual and emotional territory. Having relocated from Houston to Wyoming in 2021, Buchanan understands how geography shapes identity, and this track examines the boundaries we establish—both physical and metaphorical—to define ourselves against expanding horizons.
The EP’s standout, “Sometimes,” arrives third in sequence, revealing Buchanan’s gift for transforming cosmic contemplation into intimate confession. The song opens with disarming directness—”Sometimes I think that I can touch the moon/And feel the craters that are left behind”—before navigating the tension between vastness and intimacy. When he sings “Sometimes when I lie with you by my side/Our nearby feels just the same/Sometimes near feels far away,” Buchanan captures that peculiar emotional dislocation where physical proximity fails to bridge psychological distance. The arrangement breathes with the expansiveness of Wyoming skies, creating space for both contemplation and connection.
The title track follows, exploring illumination that comes in diminished form—moonlight visible only as thumbnail sliver. This metaphor for partial understanding pervades the song’s narrative, suggesting that complete comprehension often remains elusive even as we glimpse momentary clarity.
Lead single “Better Parts of Texas” has already gained traction for good reason. Its narrative arc through various Texas locales (“Stopped in Waco for a while/Separated from my wife”) functions as geographical autobiography, with each location marking life-altering transitions. The chorus—”I’m gonna keep on searching/for the better parts of Texas/And one day I know I’ll find a better me”—transforms external search into internal transformation, suggesting that finding one’s place ultimately means finding oneself.
Closing track “The Aisle” completes the collection’s emotional journey with reflection on transitions both personal and universal. The song’s title suggests both wedding ceremonies and grocery store navigation—sacred and mundane spaces we traverse while making choices that shape our lives.
Throughout these six tracks, Buchanan demonstrates remarkable growth as songwriter and performer. Where “Crooked Rivers” documented his processing of relocation and reinvention, “Under a Thumbnail Moon” finds him more settled but still questioning, comfortable enough in his Wyoming home to look both backward and forward with clearer perspective.
The production strikes ideal balance between Nashville polish and Western authenticity, ensuring these songs never lose their connection to the landscapes that inspired them. Jacob Schrodt’s sympathetic drumming and Dan Davis’s engineering maintain the organic quality essential to Buchanan’s storytelling approach.
After establishing himself as cornerstone of Cheyenne’s music scene and reaching the finals of the Wyoming Singer-Songwriter Competition, Buchanan has created something that transcends regional appeal. “Under a Thumbnail Moon” speaks to universal experiences—searching, adaptation, disillusionment, and resilience—through distinctly American musical language.
For listeners introduced to Buchanan through “Crooked Rivers,” this EP represents not departure but evolution—the work of an artist increasingly comfortable in his skin while still wrestling with life’s fundamental questions. In just 25 minutes, he creates expansive emotional territory worth revisiting repeatedly, each listen revealing new dimensions within these carefully crafted stories.
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