Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit have returned from the well with a new collection of songs dubbed Weathervanes, out on June 9th via Isbell’s Southeastern Records. The band marked the announcement with the release of the album’s lead single, “Death Wish”.
“Death Wish” is quintessential Jason Isbell from its opening query, “Have you ever loved a woman with a death wish?” which also anchors the gut-punchy chorus. The masterful singer-songwriter’s time-honored formula is in full effect in this brutal confrontation of loving somebody hell-bent on self-destruction. Though Isbell is fully aware of what works for him, he is still bold enough to color outside the lines, penning what is surely one of the few modern country songs that ends in a round.
On Monday, Southeastern Records teased the upcoming album with a trailer narrated by ESPN‘s Wright Thompson. In it, he describes Weathervanes as Isbell’s “latest collection of grown-up songs: songs about adult love, about change, about the danger of nostalgia and the interrogation of myths, about cruelty and regret and redemption. Life and death songs, played for and by grown-ass people. Some will make you cry alone in your car, and others will make you sing along with thousands of strangers in a big summer pavilion or majestic old theater, united in the great miracle of being alive.”
Isbell adds, “There is something about boundaries on this record. As you mature, you still attempt to keep the ability to love somebody fully and completely while you’re growing into an adult and learning how to love yourself.”
Weathervanes will arrive as Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit’s first album of original material since 2020’s lauded Reunions. Since then, he put out Georgia Blue, an album covering Georgia artists after the state voted Democratic for President Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Most recently, he appeared throughout his wife and occasional 400 Unit bandmate Amanda Shires‘ new solo album, Take It Like A Man. He and Amanda will share their first-ever collaborative release, The Sound Emporium EP, on Record Store Day for which they are the U.S. ambassadors this year.
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit’s new album Weathervanes is available here for pre-order. Check out the lead single, “Death Wish”, below as well as the album teaser. Revisit Live For Live Music‘s review of Reunions here.
The band also announced a new slate of 2023 tour dates listed below. Tickets for most shows go on sale on Friday at 10 a.m. local time. For full ticketing details, head here.
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – “Death Wish”
