15 Passenger

Lullaby for the Working Class

Blanket Warm at 30

Thirty years ago, a group of friends in Lincoln, Nebraska made a choice that felt almost reckless at the time: no amps. While most of their peers were plugging in, Lullaby for the Working Class built Blanket Warm around acoustic guitar, banjo, mandolin, and a full chamber ensemble — violin, cello, clarinet, horns. It was a quietly radical move, and it reflected the tone and DIY energy of their Lincoln and Omaha scene.

To the musicians coming up alongside them, Lullaby wasn’t just another local band — they were proof of what was possible. They were the first of that whole collective to tour Europe, and the first to earn real praise from press on both sides of the Atlantic, from Rolling Stone and The New York Times to NME in the UK. Before Bright Eyes, before Cursive, before Saddle Creek Records was a household name, Lullaby for the Working Class showed an entire scene what it looked like to go further.

Thirty years later, Blanket Warm is back on vinyl and CD — the record that helped point the way.

Tracklist