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I like [running my own band]. There's a lot of things that are time consuming. You really have to learn to put your foot down sometimes, but that's been really easy for me with these guys. I think they all have enough respect for the work I've done in the past to kind of feel they're being led in the right direction more often than not. But for me, it's a lot easier than being part of a democracy, which the Truckers came close to. I feel I get more of myself out on display this way. -Jason Isbell |
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Photo by: Allison V. Smith
Despite leading his own band for a couple years, for many, music writers in particular, Isbell remains "that guy who was in the Drive-By Truckers." But, it's something he accepts pretty well. "I don't mind having that as a little bit of a legacy because I think we did some really good work. But at the same time, it's time to move on from there," says Isbell. "Pretty soon I'll have NOT been in the band as long as I was. [The new album] doesn't sound much like what they do."
 Jason Isbell |
"I like [running my own band]," Isbell continues. "There's a lot of things that are time consuming. You really have to learn to put your foot down sometimes, but that's been really easy for me with these guys. I think they all have enough respect for the work I've done in the past to kind of feel they're being led in the right direction more often than not. But for me, it's a lot easier than being part of a democracy, which the Truckers came close to. I feel I get more of myself out on display this way."
"I write the songs with them in mind; that's definitely part of the process of being in a band rather than having hired guns that just back you up. So, I do keep the direction of the band in mind while writing songs, but they're all such good musicians that it really changes once it gets into the studio or live sets. A lot of times they magnify and expound on things I've come up with."
The songs on the new album reflect this group build, growing and expanding into places the opening sections rarely hint at, becoming something bigger than expected as they go. Grouped together, this feels a good deal more cohesive than Isbell's 2007 debut, Sirens of the Ditch (see JamBase's 2007 Isbell feature for more details).
"I think that had a lot to do with recording in a more traditional time frame. With the first album we were touring so much that we didn't have time to go in and sit down to record for a few weeks. We had to do it when we could. That meant it got spread over a couple years actually," recalls Isbell. "I think we all got in a similar mood and stayed there while we were in the studio making this record."
Isbell excels at illustrating commonalities, that "there really ain't no difference in Michigan or Maine." His everyman quality bears some resemblance to vintage Bob Seger, which is a much huger compliment than many whippersnappers know. The trick is mixing in the right amount of sour to go with the sweet. Leadoff cut "Seven-Mile Island" is like a benediction that quickly goes bad, which somewhat reflects the overall mood and movement of the new album. "I guess the record somehow gets less hopeful as it goes on," laughs Isbell, who ends the record with "The Last Song I Will Write," a ballsy tune and title for someone who just turned 30 last month. "It's not necessarily meant literally [laughs]. It's just what I was feeling that day."
 Jason Isbell |
In both his vocal delivery and songwriting, Isbell gives off a strong (and heartily welcome) Charlie Rich vibe on "Last Song," "No Choice In The Matter" and the album's slow burning standout "Cigarettes And Wine." Isbell says, "Oh, that's great to hear! Charlie is just so great. And Tom T. Hall is another one I'm a really, really big fan of. I have a belt buckle with one of his lines on it [from "Faster Horses," which reads, "Faster horses, younger women and more money"]. 'Cigarettes and Wine' is clearly a honky tonk song, and the only one like that on the album. I honestly didn't plan on putting a country song on the album. I wound up writing most of that one while we were in Europe and I finished it in a bar in Alabama when we got back home. It made its way onto the record whether I wanted it or not. You can't ignore it even though it's a pretty traditional honky tonk country song. You just want to keep people from calling you 'Americana' all your life."
Isbell is also keeping the torch lit for mid-tempo rock ballads, including the perfect example "The Blue" in the new collection. It's slow songs where musicians are most exposed and vulnerable, and any want in their music is laid bare. Isbell needn't worry because he's a duck in these still waters.
"There's a lot of space in these kind of tunes," says Isbell with uncharacteristic nervousness. "It can be dangerous but some songs just present themselves that way. You can't really argue with them. They either come out the way they want to come out or you get 'em wrong."
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit EXTENDED promo video from Corey Hannah on Vimeo.
Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit are on tour now; dates available here.
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