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Don't you throw your words around
Won't you lay your weapons down
You've got to focus on the sound
--"Weapons or Words" from [R]evolution
Moonshine Still by Leah Yetter |
Have you ever been in a situation where you stumble upon a band that possesses such grit and power that you are left utterly speechless? Such was the case when I first encountered Moonshine Still just a little over two years ago. The night MsS entered my life was in Los Angeles where they opened for Tea Leaf Green. I held absolutely no expectations whatsoever for this band out of Macon, GA, thinking that if they were worth knowing about, I most likely would have already heard of them. Still to this day, I smile at that notion - it's crazy how naïve we can be sometimes. That night, Moonshine Still played one of the most impressive sets that I have ever seen. To put it mildly, I felt a bit sorry for the boys in Tea Leaf Green to have to follow such an impressive effort.
It's been so long since I've waited for you
--"Major/Minor" from [R]evolution
It was during this first experience that the seeds were planted and the nervous skin scratching began for me - I was hooked. Little did I know that it would only be a few short months before I would have these six southern boys back on my side of the country and a little closer to home as they headlined the OCcompound Festival, that I helped organize and produce. In the time since I met the band, I have had them play in my backyard, win over my entire family, kidnap me in the big blue bus for a California run of shows following last year's High Sierra Music Festival, and most recently, I had the pleasure of being rescued by guitarist/singer Scott Baston from an overnight layover in Atlanta.
Moonshine Still with Leftover Salmon by Leah Yetter |
So there we sat in the Cracker Barrel, replaying the events of these past couple years over biscuits and gravy and cheesy potatoes. Had it really been two years? How had so much happened so damn fast? Here they are, having recently toured with Leftover Salmon on their last run, and they even managed to take Vince Herman on the road with them. And while this was all going on, they recorded a new album at one of the nation’s most celebrated studios – Tree Sound Studios, under the direction of producer Robert Hannon (Grammy Award Winning Engineer for Outkast’s – Speaker Boxxx Love Below). Their sound is tighter, more focused and better than ever, and it's soaring to new heights. They have sifted through all the shit that has been thrown their way over the years, and it shows in their work. Moonshine Still has worked their way up from the bottom, forging through penniless nights, shady bars, and everything in between. This is a band that has stood firmly in the eye of the storm, only to grow stronger and closer both in their sound and in their personal relationships.
The band's debut, Moon over Georgia, put MsS on the map by conveying what their live show sounded like at the time. But so much growth has taken place that their music has entered a completely new realm, so it made perfect sense this time around to create an album that was true to their live approach while also encompassing their development as people and as a band. Utilizing the studio as an instrument in and of itself was on the minds of each member as they began work on the project.
Moonshine Still by Leah Yetter |
"We were trying to capture the intricacies and nuances that we hear in our minds while playing live," said percussionist Bill Jarrett. "In the studio we as artists have access to more tools and technology to enable us to create a broader sound." This rings true throughout the album as the band fuses old fashioned southern roots rock with electric keys, creating a sound so crisp and unique that the listener finds him/herself knee-deep in space fornicated folk rock. Bassist Ray Petren elaborates, "In the studio this time, we really focused on trying to take advantage of the tools available to us and our ability to add new layers that were never there before."
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