B-Side Guys

After a decade cutting hair instead of cutting records, Pat Hatt returns to music with the reckless energy of someone who’s forgotten how good freedom feels. “Drunk On Leaving” documents his cross-country drive to California not as escape but as rediscovery—the moment when movement becomes its own reward rather than simply a means to an end.

Recorded at Joshua Tree’s Tiny Creatures Studio with producer Alex Newport, the track benefits from desert isolation and the kind of spaciousness that only comes from being far from everything familiar. Hatt’s collaboration with Super Vehicle’s Andrew Burton and Nick Lowry creates a full-band sound that honors his stated influences—Petty’s highway hypnosis, Springsteen’s working-class anthems—while incorporating the punk energy that shaped his youth.

The song’s central metaphor works because Hatt understands that departure can become addictive. His repeated phrase “drunk on leaving” captures something beyond wanderlust—it’s about the specific high that comes from abandoning one life for the possibility of another. Lines like “I get stoned on the unknown” reveal someone who’s learned that uncertainty can be more intoxicating than any substance.

Hatt’s vocals carry the weight of his professional hiatus without dwelling on it. His delivery suggests someone who’s rediscovered his voice rather than simply returned to using it. The production allows space for both his rootsy influences and indie-rock instincts, creating something that feels both nostalgic and immediate.

“Drunk On Leaving” succeeds because it treats geographic movement as spiritual practice. Rather than running from something, Hatt presents leaving as active choice—a way of staying open to possibility even when the destination remains unclear. The result feels less like traditional road song and more like documentation of voluntary transformation.