Shooter Jennings Unfurls More ‘Black Ribbons’
Shooter Jennings' most recent album, 'Black Ribbons,' is going to have something of a rebirth. Although critics called the album one of 2010's "best albums that you likely haven't heard," Shooter is apparently making sure you do hear it.
The singer/songwriter just signed with 429 Records and the label will re-release the original version of that album, plus a new 10-track 'bullet' version. The re-released album will include the highly-praised narrative of author Stephen King which was part of the original album. The release date and other particulars about the 'bullet' album have not yet been announced.
Although 'Black Ribbons' brings Nine Inch Nails and Roger Waters to the mind of many critics -- comparisons that Shooter, the son of Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter, embraces -- he says it's important to look at the work as a whole before deciding where it fits in musical genres.
"There are a lot of things at play with the record," Shooter tells The Boot. "But [for] people saying something is country based on the way it sounds, genres in general were built as a marketing tool, so you look at it and people are going to try and throw it in a category or whatnot, but I've always just believed in the art of it all. [With Kris Kristofferson, people said his music wasn't country because it didn't sound like traditional country music. But if you went and got one of my dad's records from the '70s and traveled back in time to the late '50s and put it next to something with country music they would say, 'Oh my god, this is unheard of. This is like heavy music.' It's become acceptable now, but it was breaking down musical barriers. I'm not saying I'm necessarily doing that, but I definitely think that the progressive nature of country music has been lost. [But] I wasn't thinking about making a country or rock record or anything when I did this record. It was more about creating an experience for the listener that was kind of like a movie in a possibly dark future and could possibly happen and kind of speaking words, solace and consoling a little bit through the voice of Will o' the Wisp [the deejay voiced by Stephen King]."
If you're in the mood for more traditional country from Shooter, you can download 'Missed the Boat: A Collection of Demos and Rarities,' for free, just by visiting his website.