#son volt

[bandcampsnoop]

12/25/25.

It's a Christmas miracle three-fer:

When I think of indie Americana, I always think primarily of Uncle Tupelo, Son Volt, Wilco and Beachwood Sparks. Arbor Labor Union (Atlanta, Georgia) seem to be lifting the mantle of those forebears and continuing in the great tradition of the sound. The Bandcamp page doesn't really reference any particular sound, except there is a reference to Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. The great Sophomore Lounge (and its leader Ryan Davis) are releasing this on January 2nd.

As long as we're talking indie Americana, let's clear the slate. In 2024, New West Records released Color Green "Fool's Parade" on LP, and even released a live digital album. The only written buyer "review" is from...wait for it...Curation Records.

And as long as we've mentioned Curation, and the two previous music bars do have physical releases, this seems the perfect opportunity to slip in Benji Knight's two song digital single. Benji was in Fighter Jet, The Tyde and Beachwood Sparks. Bringing it back to the beginning of the post.

[doomandgloomfromthetomb]

Son Volt - Bluebird Theater, Denver, Colorado, December 16, 1995

We listened to some 30-year-old Wilco a couple weeks back — how about some 30-year-old Son Volt? Jay Farrar's post-Uncle Tupelo band also released their debut album in 1995. Trace remains a very sweet record, though I remember at the time being surprised at how professional (dare I say slick?) it was. Having become a Tupelo head a few years prior, I expected Jay to emerge with a supremely ragged Tonight's the Night-style opus. Trace wasn't really that at all. But it was packed with great songs and playing. This late '95 audience recording of a gig at the Bluebird on Colfax Ave. is also packed with those things, in addition to some welcome dips back in to the Tupelo catalog. And stick around for the encore, highlighted by a killer rendition of Dylan's "Going Going Gone," the whole band going to a place where the willow don't bend.

Farrar Says: I was doing a lot of driving. I think it was 24 hours to Minneapolis, and I essentially followed the route of the Mississippi River. Along the way I went through areas that had a lot of musical history. Whenever I was traveling, I would swing through the Mississippi Delta or drive Highway 61, which goes through St. Louis. I got to see sections of the country that I had never seen before, whether it was up in Iowa or Wisconsin or Minnesota. I was doing that drive from New Orleans north, and a lot of times I would check in with AM radio, where you could find a lot more varied musical palette. Sometimes I would tune in to Mexican radio stations, but more often than not, I would search for this one radio station that came out of New Orleans called the Road Gang. They would play a lot of classic country, so when I was driving, I would listen in and hear Buck Owens and George Jones and Merle Haggard. That’s the aesthetic I was going for with Trace, trying to incorporate some of that instrumentation — acoustic guitar and fiddle.

[0rph3u5]

Tear Stained Eye · Son Volt

Like the man said Rode hard and put away wet Throw away the bad news and put it to rest If learning is living And the truth is a state of mind You'll find it's better at the end of the line — Jay Farrar

[pierrotsloop]

CD haul if you care ...

[sandybrett]

I'm trying to make WOE.BEGONE character playlists, and ironically I've got an Uncle Tupelo song on there ("So Called Friend", on Hunter's playlist) and a Son Volt song ("Out of the Picture", on Edgar's playlist), but no Wilco so far.

(For those who don't know, Uncle Tupelo basically split into two bands, Son Volt and Wilco, after the two main guys, Jay Farrar and Jeff Tweedy, had a falling out. Wilco is somewhat better known, but I'm a lot more familiar with the other two.)

Anyway, I will try to get some Wilco on there, as well as some Sufjan Stevens and Arctic Monkeys.

[association-of-freed-people]

This song saved me in 1995.

[scrimblo-male]

Back in my hipster arc

[milesbutterball]

Watch "Son Volt - Tear Stained Eye" on YouTube