Son Volt

views updated

SON VOLT

Formed: 1994, New Orleans, Louisiana

Members: Dave Boquist, guitar, banjo, fiddle, lap steel, dobro; Jim Boquist, bass, vocals; Jay Farrar, vocals, guitar (born Belleville, Indiana, 26 December 1967); Mike Heidorn, drums.

Genre: Rock, Alternative Country

Best-selling album since 1990: Trace (1995)

Hit songs since 1990: "Drown"

Son Volt's melancholy alternative country music owes as much to the slash-and-burn sonics of punk as to the plain-spoken storytelling of country legends Johnny Cash and Hank Williams. Their songs veer from reverent ballads to ferocious rock, but it is their commitment to authenticity that truly sets them apart from the glossy country mainstream. Lead singer and songwriter Jay Farrar formed the band after splitting from alternative country pioneers Uncle Tupelo, and has continued to mine the subject matter of broken hearts, small-town desolation, and highway driving with grace and poignancy. Though subsequent albums did not garner similar acclaim, the band's album Trace (1995) stands as a touchstone of a distinctly American genre.

Childhood friends Farrar and Jeff Tweedy formed Uncle Tupelo while attending high school in rural Belleville, Illinois, in the mid-1980s. The band cultivated a fervent local following by matching the raucous guitars of underground rock to the broken hearts and rough lives subject matter of traditional country music. Their constant touring and rising popularity in the Midwest earned the band a recording contract with Rockville Records, which released the critically lauded No Depression in 1990. Though not the first band to blend country music and hard-edged rock, Uncle Tupelo stood apart due to the considerable talents of its songwriters. Farrar tackled fiery political tunes and traditional ballads, while Tweedy's work leaned toward the melodic love songs of country-rock singer Gram Parsons. After several years of nonstop recording and touring, tensions between the pair forced Farrar to leave the band following the tour for Anodyne (1993), their final album. Tweedy recruited the Tupelo touring band to form Wilco, and Farrar repaired to New Orleans to contemplate his next move.

After a few months of rest and writing, Farrar recruited a pair of musicians, multi-instrumentalist Dave Boquist and his brother, bassist Jim Boquist, from folk rocker Joe Henry's touring band to form Son Volt. Original Uncle Tupelo drummer Mike Heidorn rounded out the lineup, and the four-piece group began recording new songs in the fall of 1994 in Northfield, Minnesota, for producer Brian Paulson. Warner Bros. Records released the resulting album, Trace, in September 1995.

Trace showcases Farrar at the peak of his powers, writing and singing with a heartfelt intensity that easily matches his best work in Uncle Tupelo. The propulsive opening track, "Windfall," sets the tone for the record, with brightly strummed guitars, longing pedal steel and fiddle accompaniment, and a mission statement chorus of "may the wind take your troubles away / both feet on the floor, two hands on the wheel." The album plays as a travelogue through a cracked-pavement Americana of AM radio, dusty ghost towns, and forlorn hearts. Though musically spare and bleak in parts, the themes of change and movement imbue each song with the hope of revitalization, and better days ahead. Thus, the somber "Tear Stained Eye" sits comfortably beside the raging guitars of "Route," achieving a perfect balance of country earnestness and rock defiance. The album also notched a minor radio hit with the song "Drown," a tribute to the restorative powers of the road. With a rapidly expanding fan base, Son Volt seemed poised to rescue commercial country music from its long slide into mediocrity.

Their follow-up effort, Straightaways (1997), is a darker affair, and did not achieve the broad appeal of Trace. Critics noted that while the album preserves the Son Volt hallmarks of driving rock, well-played traditional balladry, and fine musical interplay, it lacks the liberating spirit of their debut. Some pointed out that several tracks sound like retreads of earlier material. Fans remained loyal, however, urged on by the atmospheric "Last Minute Shakedown," and the small-town anthem "No More Parades." Wide Swing Tremelo (1998) attempts to answer the critics of Straightaways with a handful of rousing, hard-rocking tunes, but then lapses back into less inspired territory.

Perhaps to remedy this situation, Farrar issued a solo album titled Sebastapol (2001), which successfully functions as a cobweb-clearing exercise. While not as overtly experimental as former Uncle Tupelo band mate Tweedy's work with Wilco, the songs feature a fresh mix of instruments that give Farrar's familiar musings a significant kick. The album proves that Farrar can write music that appeals beyond his dedicated fan base. Whether or not this innovation ever seeps into Son Volt, Trace ensures the band's place within the worlds of both country and rock.