Hank3 Talks New Album “Brothers of the 4X4” & More
The son of Hank Jr. and the grandson of Hank Williams known as Hank3 is poised to release two new albums next week, and embark on an extended tour of Texas, the West Coast, and upper Midwest. Brothers of the 4X4 and A Fiendish Threat come on the heels of an extended touring hiatus after Hank3’s drummer Shawn McWilliams required shoulder surgery. Hank3 was gracious enough to talk with us ahead of the tour and releases to let fans know what they can expect, and about other issues around the independent music world.
You can listen to the entire interview below. For those who prefer a written form, the meat of the interview is transcribed below as well.
LISTEN: [audio:https://savingcountrymusic.com/audio/hank3-interview-brothers-4×4.MP3]
Check Hank3’s Tour Dates
Pre-Order Brothers of the 4X4 & A Fiendish Threat
Trigger: On Octobers 1st you’ll be releasing two new albums, Brothers of the 4X4 on the country side of things, and A Fiendish Threat on the punk side. These come out of an extended period when you were not touring because your drummer needed shoulder surgery. Was it your plan to put out new albums now, or did they come out of the tour void?
Hank3: Basically, I always record records in the winter time. So since Shawn was down for a while, I picked up the pen at the end of January and everything was written and recorded and done by April on both records. So they came pretty naturally. A couple of the songs that in my eyes are more of the traditional roots, songs like “Loners For Life” or “Deep Scars,” we’re getting a little more old school. “Possum In A Tree” was specifically written for Leroy Troy, a clawhammer banjo player. I had him in mind when I wrote that song, and went over to his place and had some fun and captured the sound we were going for. At least on Brothers of the 4X4, it gives you a a couple of the old roots ones, it gives you a couple of songs like “Lookey Yonder Commin'” that at least the first part of the song has some of the bluegrass feel on the drive of it. And then you have a couple of songs that are not necessarily country, like “Ain’t Broken Down” is almost like your Spaghetti Western / Pink Floyd kind of sounding song. So there’s quite a few different moods on it.
With your last country-ish album Ghost to a Ghost, you went out of your way to say that you really didn’t think it was country. With Brothers of the 4X4 you’re saying there’s traditional country tracks on it. Can people expect to hear something more similar to what they heard on your earlier records as opposed to the more recent ones, or is that simplifying it?
I still think every record has its own different sound, and a different approach. The players change, I change. Even though it’s different, it will have the roots on it. If you put it up against and pop country radio song, yeah, it has a lot more of a traditional feel in my eyes. I always make sure I have the banjo and the stand up bass, stand up steel guitar, the acoustic, and fiddle, and just have that foundation there.
As time has gone on, you have assumed more and more responsibilities in your album making process to the point where now you’re doing most everything on the country record except for playing the lead instruments. You’ve talked before about how you hate producers. Do you feel like you’re missing out on something by not engaging in the collaborative process of music, or do you feel like you work best by yourself?
I don’t hate producers. I hate it when people are trying to tell you, “You need to do this to make your song better.” I’m totally in to people who know a million things about sound and all that stuff. But I know my sound, I know my songs, I write songs for myself. Buzz from The Melvins is the exact same way. He totally agrees with that same philosophy. Some people don’t want to have anything to do with the songwriting process, and want people to tell them, “Hey, do this.” But when you’re dealing with someone as creative as me or as creative as Buzz, we know our sound, we know our riffs, we know what we’re going for. So that can be a problem. If I wake up at 5:30 in the morning and I’m ready to start playing drums, especially on the punk rock record where there’s pretty intense moments, if I have to wait two hours for somebody to show up, then the spark is usually gone by the time they get there and get everything set up. I like being able to play when I’m ready to play. And sometimes I pull some pretty long days. That’s pretty much the reason, for now, I’m taking on everything. Some producers are good to work with, and some aren’t. It just depends the environment. But most of the time I’m into just going for it.
Speaking of collaborations, you recently had a song come out with David Allan Coe. It seemed like a long time coming, but it finally did. How did “The Outlaw Ways” come about?
I’ve known him since I was a child. I’ve always looked up to him on stage and touring, and he’s been a good friend to me, and a hero. Basically we talked about it, and over time we were able to get some lyrics where we wanted them, he came by the house, and we got it sounding how he was envisioning the song. It was a fun process, and glad to be able to give back to one of my heroes.
Speaking of Outlaws, have you heard about the new Outlaw Country Music Hall of Fame set to open in Lynchburg, TN? And if so, what are your thoughts on it?
I’ve only heard a couple of people talk about it. It is what it is. Hopefully they’ll get it up and running. I know opening up any kind of business is always tough to do. Good luck for them, and hope for the best for it.
Have you heard about Dale Watson’s Ameripolitan movement, and have any thoughts on that?
I’ve been kind of out of the loop just trying to get all the new players and new drummers and trying to get the road crew, and everything lined up for the tours. That’s been basically 24 / 7 so I’m kind of out of the loop on that right now.
Despite going on some pretty long tour hiatuses over the last few years, you still seem to be drawing pretty consistently live—still selling-out decent-sized venues. What do you attribute this to?
I would just say hard work, paying respects to the fans, and always keeping the hard working men and women in mind on the money. Trying to give them the longest show for the cheapest ticket price. I’ve always gone out of my way to fight for that. A lot of times when you show respect, you get respect back in return. I would just say a hard work ethic has paid off.
Along those same lines, Shooter Jennings recently started charging people $85 for meet and greets before his shows. Is that something you would ever do?
No. The old country way is you do your show and you say “hello.” That’s the way I’ve done it ever since I’ve been on the road. Why would I change it now? I think if I did that, my fans would definitely would be like, “What’s this?” I’ve always done the show, and after I shake every hand, take every picture, and I make my fans feel connected to what we do.
You seem to be a guy who is really big into artifacts, whether it be your boots that you wore for a long time that you had duct taped, I know you had a hat that was important to you stolen a few years back, and you’ve been wearing the same pants and vests. Why do you think you have such a draw to artifacts of your life?
It’s just like a frame of mind. A lot of different people and crews have worked on those. You got a lot of drifting kids, a lot of train kids. Basically it’s just like art. You create, and then you destroy. So a lot of people over the years have helped me rebuild a lot of that stuff. So it has a lot of heart to it, and a lot of meaning to it. Those are my work clothes for right now.
I recall a recent comment of yours that there might be some upcoming activity on your attempt to get Hank Williams reinstated into the Grand Ole Opry. Do you have any updates for us?
All we can do is just talk about it. As long as we talk about it, you know, we’re not asking for a $100,000 statue, we’re just asking for one night, paying some respects, and that’s basically it. As long as we talk about, sometimes people come and go in the business, and all it takes is one person to be re-hired in a position, and there you go, it could happen as simple as that.
September 26, 2013 @ 12:31 pm
I’ll be curious to hear the new country album. Although I haven’t enjoyed everything off the last couple albums, I always find a few off each that I really like. Sounds to me like he just isn’t into the whole anti underground country scene anymore. He’s just too busy with his own thing.It’s really too bad in a way because I though he might eventually take the reigns of it, but I guess now there are different avenues opening up like Ameripolitan and the Outlaw hall of fame.
September 30, 2013 @ 8:26 am
His new album is ready for purchase on iTunes right now
September 26, 2013 @ 12:32 pm
I ran into Hank a couple of years ago in a Petsmart in Nashville. He was buying a shit pile of dog food for dogs he was fostering. I talked to him about his music, asked him if he was still doing, “Assjack”, etc. He was one of the most genuinely nice guys I have ever met. Didn’t seem to have a pretentious bone in his body. It’s refreshing when you meet somebody like that. It’s the kind of thing that makes you buy their music and go see their shows.
September 26, 2013 @ 1:05 pm
Dude should run for office, he’s a natural born politician. He can tap dance around a question and still get his point across.
September 26, 2013 @ 1:52 pm
Hi hopes for this record haven’t been a fan of much after straight to hell. Much respect for Hank III he is true to what he wants to do musically and that is sadly rare these days.
September 26, 2013 @ 3:26 pm
Good interview Triggerman and I liked the questions you had for Shelton.
I saw a post last night about Shooter’s $85 “meet n greet” and it’s nothing short of appalling. He shows no regard for fans who are working to scrape together the $$ to get tickets to a show….gas, babysitters, buying his merch…..whatever.
Shelton is #1. He has the character & work ethos to remain #1….not so for the other dude that copy cats on songs and sells $85 autographs.
September 28, 2013 @ 5:35 pm
I have seen Shooter many times over the years and he has singed many things for me over the years plus he hangs out at his bus a lot of times and takes pics and talks to the fans.Not every show but plenty that I have been to. He is a pretty down to earth guy when you talk to him.
September 28, 2013 @ 5:58 pm
Okay, then the people that are paying $85 for what you got for free are getting hosed. I’ve seen multiple people say, “Hey, I hung out with Shooter in Osh Kosh two years ago for free and he was super cool” as if this somehow explains away why he is charging $85 dollars now, like it is some sort of myth being perpetuated to make him look bad. Go to Shooter’s official Facebook page. Half the posts are promoting his $85 meet & greets.
I went to see Shooter in April of 2010 at the Automobile Building in Fair Park at a tattoo convention called musINK. I met up with his bass player at the time Ted Russell Kamp and asked if I could meet Shooter real quick. He told me “Shooter isn’t meeting with people, no offense.” After his set I hung out by the merch table with a bunch of other fans waiting to see if he would show up so I could shake his hand. He never showed. I could take that anecdotal experience and say that Shooter never meets with anyone, but obviously that isn’t true. I could take offense that he wasn’t willing to meet with his fans, but it is not completely out-of-place in the music world. There’s also plenty of anecdotal stories of Shooter blowing people off at shows. There’s also people that paid the $85 and said they had a great experience. But none of this justifies or negates what is wrong with charging fans $85 for anything.
September 30, 2013 @ 7:47 am
About a month ago, Shooter was plugging the Muddy Roots Music Festival on his radio show, he did a great job explaining to us fans its history as well as its importance within the Outlaw Music World.
At the end of his plug he mentioned Trigger.
As hard as this is to believe, his comments were less than flattering.
He said that if he had to guess, Trigger would not be at the festival because he knows that he (Shooter) was going to be in attendance. He then further equated to his audience that Trigger was a body part that only females are equipped with.
What I got from his comments were that he is really jealous of Trigger and this website. I was initially introduced to this site by Shooter and can’t thank him enough for that. However after much research Shooter and his actions seem to be his worst enemy and in the end really turned me off.
My question to Trigger is this…
Are you capable of a civil conversation with Shooter to at the very least “agree to disagree” or possibly mend a bridge?
And why no plugging/review of the Muddy Roots Festival?
September 30, 2013 @ 3:19 pm
Trig, as far as I’m concerned Shooter can eat a bag of dicks…
September 30, 2013 @ 4:34 pm
Mike,
These are good questions, and I will answer them in due course, either here or somewhere else when I have a little more time to devote to the topic.
September 30, 2013 @ 5:12 pm
Trig, please know that this was posted with my respect to you and this amazing site.
Although Hank 3 is the Captain of my Outlaw Rock ship, you are his skipper!
October 4, 2013 @ 3:33 pm
Mike,
First off why I was not at Muddy Roots, and didn’t plug it:
The main reason is because I simply did not have the money this year. Over the last two years, I have spent roughly $3000 out of my pocket (including for missed work) to be one of the first people to show up, and one of the last to leave, and to spend roughly 17 hours each day volunteering and doing what I could to make sure everything went smoothly. I did not go there as a patron, I went there to work. Unfortunately this year I just could not afford it.
There’s two reasons I did not promote the fest.
A festival that presents its headliners as Black Flack, Shooter Jennings, and the Monsters, is not what I would call in SCM’s wheelhouse. In fact in many ways, I think this is unfair to the artists and sound that helped build the festival to bill these people as headliners. Muddy Roots call bill whoever they want, wherever they want, but in my opinion, Jayke Orvis is a headliner, Possessed by Paul James is a headliner, Dale Watson is a headliner. And if they can’t even be made headliners by the fests who are supposed to cater to their specific scene, then why would we expect anyone outside of the scene to pay attention to them? No offense to Black Flag or The Monsters, or Shooter, but it is not their place to bump names down a notch. That doesn’t mean I don;t support the other artists on the bill, because obviously I do. As an example, Pickathon, which is a fest I did go to and promote had Wayne Hancock, Dale Watson, Sturgill Simpson, Devil Makes Three, Shakey Graves, and many more all billed right beside all of their other artists. But of course, that fest is not cool in the “scene” so nobody even knows it exists, even though it has been promoting independent country and roots a decade before Muddy Roots came about.
The second reason I didn’t promote it is because Muddy Roots had not paid the 90-year-old Don Maddox for his performance in 2012, along with a few other artists at the time Muddy Roots 2013 went down. I happen to spend my summers (usually) in the very small southern Oregon town of Ashland, which is also where Don Maddox has lived and owns a ranch since the 50’s. I don’t feel it is right to pay big guarantees to punk bands when you have 90-year-old performers who’ve yet to be paid. I was waiting to see if Muddy Roots would pay Don Maddox before I was willing to promote it. They never did. After Muddy Roots 2013, I reached out to Muddy Roots and told them they should do the right thing and make good on their debt. They did, and in fairness, they had tried to make good to Don previously by sending him some T-Shirts, but unfortunately they were of such inferior quality, they were worthless to Don. But they tried. I am not saying Muddy Roots is unethical, but I am unwilling to go to Muddy Roots to do anything but volunteer, and I am not going to volunteer to an organization who has outstanding debt to legendary performers.
All that said, I have not ruled out covering, promoting, attending, or even volunteering at Muddy Roots in the future.
As for the idea that I would not go because I am a pussy, or because I was worried I would get my ass kicked. First, those threats have been out there every single year that I have gone to Muddy Roots, and every near, nothing happens. In fact after the first year I went, a podcaster told a completely bullshit story about how I was held down and “kissed his ass to get out of a beating.” The entire thing was fabricated, and everyone that attended saw that I was too busy for any of this to transpire. Truth be known, nothing that I could say to convince people of the idiocy and immaturity of some people in the “scene” could ever go as far as if a group of scenster morons jumped me, beat the shit out of me, and left me in a field at Muddy Roots. It would go farther than anything I could ever say to proving my point, and so thus, I would welcome it. Also, the fact that anyone would jeopardize the integrity of another organization (Muddy Roots) by using it as a forum for violence, shows where the priorities of those people are. And lastly, the fact that there are certain people out there that would say, “Dude, I’m going to kick your ass” over something as stupid as a music dispute, shows the emotional maturity of those people. It’s just music, and nothing is justification to threaten physical violence against another person, except for violence itself.
As for if I would even make nice with Shooter. I actually did once. Shooter and I buried the hatchet. And then behind my back, Shooter was using 13 different aliases on SCM to basically continue the fight nefariously. So no, I’m not going to make peace with Shooter so he can then turn around and launch the next Tet Offensive. Also, as soon as I made peace with Shooter, he would simply do something else stupid, requiring me to call it out because Shooter truly believes he never does anything wrong, just that people hate him and they are bias. Just appreciate that at one point Shooter said that I had hacked his website, that he had proof (which he didn’t), and that he was going to bring “Federal Charges Of The Highest Order.” This is how low this dude will stoop simply because I like some of his music, but don’t like all of it. So no. There will be no reconciliations.
September 26, 2013 @ 3:28 pm
I’d really like to hear what Hank3 thinks about Sturgill Simpson. lol
Great interview though, Trig!
September 26, 2013 @ 4:29 pm
Great interview, thank you. And kudos to 3 for keeping to his vision.
September 26, 2013 @ 4:47 pm
Hank 3 seems like a real down to earth guy,a lot of people need to know about the man and not just the music.
September 26, 2013 @ 4:53 pm
Like a few folks said on here, the last album threw me a bit (though listening to the 2nd cd ‘Guttertown’ works on long, night time drives I’ve found), but regardless of that I have nothing but utmost respect for Hank because he does whatever the fuck he wants and doesn’t compromise HIS art! He’s an antithesis to the vapid, soulless, pop bullshit passing as art these days. Looking forward to the new releases! Long live III !
September 26, 2013 @ 6:24 pm
Nice interview. Really looking forward to these releases and seeing 3 play in Spokane next month. Gonna be a good couple weeks with new Hank and JB!
September 27, 2013 @ 2:05 am
great interview, thanks
September 27, 2013 @ 5:09 am
I am fired up about these albums. Hank is a artist and no matter the music he has made or will make, he has my ear.
September 27, 2013 @ 7:26 am
Tuesday can’t get here fast enough. This should cheer me up as I say goodbye to “Breaking Bad”. lol. Anyway, I realize that “Ghost to a Ghost” might not sit right with a lot of people but I’ve found that it still holds up well after a couple of years and I love the diversity of the whole thing. I may be alone in saying that it almost measures up to “Straight to Hell”, but I’ll stand by it. “Guttertown” (to me, anyway) is a work for fucking art. Very good interview too. It’s interesting how to see how he has grown and evolved as a person since I first got into his music. Still the same down-to-earth, humble guy he’s always been, but now more world-wise, mature, and confident without ever coming across as pretentious or arrogant.
September 27, 2013 @ 9:12 am
I didn’t like Ghost to a Ghost at all the first few times through, but then it really grew on me. There is some great stuff — like Don’t You Wanna and Day by Day. And Trooper’s Holler is pure Fn genius. Also, there are a lot of “sleeper” songs on some of his older albums. Lookin’ forward to the next evolution.
September 27, 2013 @ 10:26 am
for me – Trooper’s Holler alone was worth the price of both albums.
September 27, 2013 @ 1:25 pm
Am not sure if he actually answered the question you asked him Trigger about needing producers or not liking producers. At one point he said he is not against people who knows and understand sounds giving their opinions. Then he goes on to say he knows his own sounds and… and a lot of gobble gook. He never really answered the question to my satisfaction. I get the impression the answer was no to producers to that question. NO ONE MAN IS AN ISLAND! True he can and should write songs for himself. Truthfully, as a fan, I enjoy his albums, LB&D, RW, STH & DR&RP in that order, much better than Risin Outlaw. Primarily because they had more soul. But if I have to be honest, I would also add that Risin Outlaw was his most polished album to date. A fact that I attribute to corroborative efforts. Certainly, I realize he doesn’t have that kind of financial power behind him as he did when he was with CURB record, and if I must be honest, polishness is really not that important to me. However, I wonder how well he is utilizing the talents that he does have at his disposal—–like his band members, for example. I don’t know what happened why he and Joe Buck parted ways, but from the little I was able to deduce is that Buck wanted to lend more of a hand in his works. Of course I could be wrong in my surmise, but for argument sake, say I am not. What would be so wrong about that? What would be so wrong with him writing a song and then asking a few of his band member to listen to it for the sole purpose of hearing their input or approval. That guy that plays the fiddle, whatever his name is, Daniel Mason, Andy Gibson are bad asses in their own rights. What’s would be so wrong with getting the feedback from people who are so talented? He can do this and still maintain the entire essence of a song. I am not assuming he does not do this, but Ghost to Ghost makes me suspect that he might not.
I know all too well how hard it is to have someone say to you cut this out of your song, say it this way instead of this way. It is not a easy pill to swallow. As a writer, I submitted my manuscript to my editor, and her only concern was that a character in the book isn’t working, “he is simply in the way,” was her advice. I disagree, but when I asked close friends and family to read it, they felt the same way. It pained me, but I cut him out of the story. Maybe he’ll get his own story someday down the line. That’s why we need others helping us with our art. Sadly, sometime it means for them to tell us a painful truth that we cannot see due to our personal attachment to what we’ve written.
September 27, 2013 @ 2:13 pm
he shouldn’t be mixin his own songs. his voice is distorted again on this new record, and it does not sound good.
September 27, 2013 @ 3:30 pm
Dont buy his music. He didnt make it for you.
September 27, 2013 @ 2:55 pm
The reason I asked that question was because of concerns I and many others had about a lack of other voices in his ear helping to give suggestions and constructive criticism in the process, and your continuing concerns I think speak to that. I was personally satisfied with the answer he gave, though he may have not presented a solution to some people’s concerns.
I think when he was talking about “sounds,” he may have been referring to an engineer as opposed to a traditional producer. Ideally, engineers have some producer qualities, and vice versa. Those are positions that aren’t necessarily interchangeable, but their responsibilities can overlap in places. When he said he was open to talking with people about sound, I was taking him to mean more of the engineering aspects of the production process.
September 27, 2013 @ 6:01 pm
I can’t even begin to comprehend what goes into the making of a record. I certainly don’t understand Engineering stuff, or for that matter even producing stuff. Hank 3 is the first underground musician I ever liked. I don’t mind his music having that underground or moonshininess sound to it. What is/was missing from Ghost to Ghost is corroboration. The more I listened to that album is the more I like it. Which tells me one thing, that over time, I am able to see past its sloppiness. This is a problem I think could have been easily remedied if he had just gotten his band members involved in the creative process. That is all I think he needs to do. Ask that fiddle player, which in my opinion is a badass, ask Daniel Mason, Andy Gibson, Shawn McNasty, (all are bad asses in their own rights,) “what do you think?” – “How can we improve this?” “What do you think we should put in or take out of this song?” And be humble enough to consider their suggestion(s). I believe that unless a song is extremely important to him, like Candidate for Suicide, he should be running all of them by his band members with the aim of getting some positive feedback. My concerns with Ghost to Ghost is the actual songs on the album. Gutter Town is good, (actually, one of my favorites now), Trooper Holler, and Ghost to Ghost all seem complete. The other songs, not so much. Some of them feel unfinished. Regarding the producing stuff, (which I am not clear on, nor do I desire any further explanation) but I do know that his band members have been in the business almost as long as he has, or perhaps even longer. If he can produce an album by himself, imagine what five minds together w/him can do? So why not get the entire band involved? I was watching one of his shows on Youtube and Daniel Mason, who always kicks ass, seemed lost on one particular song, not cool!
I love Hank3’s music. He’s given me five good CD’s that I listen to all the time. I read somewhere he said he hadn’t put much in Rebel Within, but I absolutely love that album. It blows my mind that he actually sat down and wrote those songs by his lonesome without running them by anyone. Very few artist can do that. I don’t know, perhaps Ghost to Ghost was a more industrious undertaking and so required some help from others. Or perhaps he is at a crossroad in his career where he is looking back at where he’s been, and examining where he’s going and his music is a reflection of this. Heck, I don’t know. But if that’s true, how much more so should he employ the assistance of those at his disposal. If all else fails, I have five good albums out of him, That is a heck of a lot more than any of my idols have every given me.
For those who are ready to flood my email with negative crap. Please don’t!
September 30, 2013 @ 8:00 am
Wow… Do you think a producer would tell him that the line “lookin for a damn good time” doesn’t work when used in multiple songs on the same album as well as on other past albums?
I am a HUGE iii fan and have traveled over 3 hours to see him live, however every time I hear that line in one of his songs I cringe.
I have a bet with a friend that the above mentioned phrase makes one of these new releases.
With that said, anything (and I do mean anything) that 3 releases I purchase.
September 30, 2013 @ 2:42 pm
LMAO! I could be wrong, but I believe he did recycle that sentence again. Hank3’s mental disposition appears to be, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! I bet you any money the person who stole his hat just got tired of looking at it. I think this same mindset filters down even in his music. And I must say, for the most part, it works. For example, the cameo appearances of the devil’s daughter in other songs is way cool. Then there are songs that seems to evolve. Songs like Getting Drunk and Fallen Down on his RW CD is an awesome evolution to Thrown out of The Bar from his STH CD. So all in all, I like his mental disposition. With that said, I do disagree with his critics who says his music is not evolving or doesn’t change. If they think that, they really are not listening to his stuff.
September 30, 2013 @ 3:17 pm
He uses Rumbling and a Tumbling lookin for a damn good time…
So technically I lost the bet.
I like 3’s ideas and direction, in fact if he released 10 albums next week, I would buy all 10. I don’t believe there is an artist alive more in touch with his country roots than him.
With that said, if I had to offer any constructive criticism it would be not to release an album with 18 songs on it. Instead find someone that you respect and maybe go over some of the less complete songs and combine ideas in order to make one great song instead of two mediocre ones.
Hank 3 is the captain of my Outlaw Country ship!
September 30, 2013 @ 5:34 pm
Mike you are suggesting that Hank3 should run stuff by someone he respects. In my opinion that is not the best advice for Hank3. I get the feeling Hank likes old things, including old people. I suspect that is who he goes to for advice. As cruel as this might sound, as far as the creative process goes, old people are usually the worst people to go to for creative advice. Old singers, musicians, painters/artist, writers are often finished by the time they get old. I am not saying that old people cannot be creative. What I am saying is that most people only got but so much creativeness inside of them and by the time we get old, we done used it up supporting our own career or lending it to the career of others. We’re simply tapped out, spent by the time we hit our mid to late fifties. Now, if an older person starts his artistic career late, then that is another story. Of course there is always exception to that rule, but on a hole, that is very much a fact.
Hank3’s best creative resource is right under his nose, a five piece band whose creative resource is untapped.
His corroboration with Leroy is sweet and enjoyable. However, if he had invested that kind
September 27, 2013 @ 2:11 pm
Already ordered his new CD, looking very forward to it. Also saw him play here in Richmond, VA for about the fifth time, always, always a great show.
September 27, 2013 @ 5:57 pm
http://www.allmusic.com/album/brothers-of-the-4×4-mw0002565403
I don’t know if you have heard the previews for the new songs but here’s the link.
September 27, 2013 @ 7:28 pm
Hey, Thanks for that. I preordered mine weeks ago I just listened to the previews, and I am liking it big time! Pheeew!.
Still standing by the stuff I’ve written though.
September 28, 2013 @ 10:08 am
Love how you tried to reignite the Shooter vs Hank 3 Fued!
September 28, 2013 @ 11:42 am
Look, this is for you, or anyone else who wants to make the Shooter question a big issue.
First, I did not ask Hank3 what he thought about Shooter’s meet & greets, I simply asked him if he would ever do something like that. If I wanted to start drama, I would have asked him the former, not the latter.
Second, that was not a question that I had down on my list of questions, it simply came up in the context of the conversation after Hank3 talked about staying after shows to shake hands and sign autographs. I felt it was relevant to the conversation, and so off the cuff, I asked it. If you actually go and listen to the audio of the interview, I think the intent and the context is abundantly clear.
Third, if this was an attempt on my part to re-ignite the feud and it failed and now it makes me look bad, why would I include it here? It would be just as easy for me to omit the question and move on. And if I wanted to characterize it as the feud between Hank3 and Shooter is ongoing, why would I ever post this: https://savingcountrymusic.com/hank-williams-iii-shooter-jennings-bury-the-hatchet
Fourth, I think it says a lot about the hype surrounding this situation that Shooter fans seem completely torqued off, and think that the entire point of the interview was to bash Shooter, but fans of Ameripolitan, fans of the Outlaw HOF, and fans of Hank Jr. (who was mentioned at the end in connection with someone getting shot accidentally FFS) aren’t here complaining when I asked Hank3’s opinions on those polarizing subjects. In fact in my recent interview with the head of the Outlaw HOF (https://savingcountrymusic.com/interview-head-of-new-outlaw-country-hall-of-fame-gary-sargeant), Shooter’s name came up twice in a positive light. I could have edited that stuff out too. Did Shooter fans make THAT a big deal? Did they say, “Hey Trig, thanks for putting your bias aside and showing Shooter in a positive light?” No they didn’t. And that’s no knock on them. It was simply a small part of a bigger interview, just like the Shooter question was here. The fact that there’s people out there that truly believe that the primary thing I do on this site is bash Shooter Jennings when in truth it makes up less than 1% of the site’s coverage, and half or more of the Shooter coverage on this site has been positive says more about the priorities and agendas of those readers than it says about me. And if you need any more validation of that, go read this: https://savingcountrymusic.com/shooter-jennings-fires-big-shot-with-outlaw-you …and while you’re reading, note all of the comments that say I have a POSITIVE bias towards Shooter, and bash me for liking the song.
And lastly, let me just say that if Shooter or his fans want to make one simple question in a much bigger interview a big deal, then I am more than willing to fight that fight. Because on this specific issue, I am completely in the right. Shooter asking for $85 from his fans for anything is egregious and unprecedented, and an insult to hard-working fans everywhere. And if you or anyone else can’t see that asking more money for his meet & greets than artists literally 150-times a bigger draw than he is isn’t irresponsible and unparallelled, then you are a dyed-in-the-wool hipster scenster that needs some perspective. Forget Hank3’s opinion on it, I can pull quotes from Taylor Swift of why charging people to meet you is unethical and undercutting. And that doesn’t just go for Shooter, that goes for any artist.
There are huge mainstream artists that charge much less than Shooter, or charge nothing. Jake Owen is known for coming out and hanging with his fans after shows in the parking lot. Zac Brown Band who roughly draw 150-times more people than Shooter has “eat and greets” where they feed you a home cooked meal before the show and you sit at a table eating with Zac and his band, and then they sign autographs. How much does he charge? $50. http://www.vividseats.com/concerts/zac-brown-band-infographic (that’s $35 more than Shooter, for those of you counting at home).
And actually maybe that’s the problem here, that I have not done my job explaining to people more in-depth why this is a problem. But if I did all it would do is descend into back and forths. But then again, I am glad for this issue, because I really think it separates and exposes people for being either hipsters or free-thinking fans. I don’t give a shit how unpopular my stance on this is, or how many people it pisses off, including artists or other bigger entities. I guess folks expect me to lie to them about stuff, but that’s not my business. I didn’t get 185,000 people coming here every month because I was political, I did it by being honest with people. And honestly, I think it says a lot about the conscience of people if they’re going to take such a small issue and make it into a mountain.
Shooter’s meet & greets are wrong, and if you want to fight that fight, you will lose in the end. Trust me.
September 30, 2013 @ 2:30 pm
There is no fight to win or lose Trigs. If Shooter wants to charge people 85$ for VIP privileges and people who can afford it want to pay, let them come. . That’s the power of the free market. I wouldn’t drop that much on something like that. I have a family of 6 to feed, but I know people who would. And if you want to choose to put Zac Brown and Swift’s VIP policy in the fight. They can afford to have cheaper packages. They have that CMT machine backing them. All Shooter has is his name and a giant legacy/shadow to fill.
You have a great site, but it just irks me at the casual digs you always find to take at Shooter, when the opportunity presents itself. Like I posted one sentence and you shot back with a essay trying to defend a question “you didn’t intend to ask” and “a question you didn’t have to publish”. Ive seen and read your praises of Shooter and also read the critiques, You as a blogger don’t come off unbiased though and seem to be one of the few blogs covering Americana, Outlaw, Alt Country that even chooses to write about Shooter. That’s why I find it hard to believe you aren’t out to get him.
September 30, 2013 @ 4:30 pm
” Like I posted one sentence and you shot back with a essay trying to defend a question “you didn”™t intend to ask” and “a question you didn”™t have to publish”.
Castor, the very first thing I said was, “Look, this is for you, or anyone else who wants to make the Shooter question a big issue.
In other words, since I had seen this same concern many places, I wanted to address it and in depth so hopefully we could move on, and I used your comment to do so. Characterizing that I twisted off on you I think fails to see the bigger picture.
Look, if you or anyone else doesn’t have a problem with Shooter’s $85 VIP packages, then that’s fine, and I have given you a public forum to air that opinion. I disagree, but I don’t think holding that stance in some was is unethical or something. It is an opinion. Just like it is my opinion that they’re wrong. I have a right to my opinion as well, and to be able to voice it without unfounded accusations being linked to it.
“I find it hard to believe you aren”™t out to get him.”
Is it hard to believe that Shooter isn’t out to get me? Where’s the equivalence? I said that XXX was a stupid thing to try and call music and it would never work, which it was, and which it did. I said his song “Drinking Side of Country” was terrible, which it was. It is my job to criticize. Yet when Shooter posts a 14-paragraph diatribe saying that he has proof I hacked his website and that he was bringing “federal charges of the highest order,” it received less backlash than one buried question in a much bigger interview, when Shooter’s accusation was complete bullshit. Or how about when he used 13 different aliases on this site to attempt to justify himself in 3rd person? Are people attacking Shooter for a continuance? Of course not, because they’re too busy kissing his ass.
“And if you want to choose to put Zac Brown and Swift”™s VIP policy in the fight. They can afford to have cheaper packages.”
Look, let me put this as simply as possible. The reason for Shooter’s $85 packages is because he is facing falling attendance numbers, and falling guarantees, and so he is expecting his fans to pay more because he refuses to scale his touring business to meet his new reality. Shooter and any other artist can blame their lack of success on corporations or anyone else, and that is a cause I have championed here very intimately. But there comes a point when all responsibility lies on the individual.
September 28, 2013 @ 5:43 pm
I have seen Shooter many times over the years and he has singed many things for me over the years plus he hangs out at his bus a lot of times and takes pics and talks to the fans.Not every show but plenty that I have been to. He is a pretty down to earth guy when you talk to him.
September 28, 2013 @ 5:52 pm
I have gotten Hanks autograph many times and shook hand with him but I wouldn’t mind paying 85.00 for a meet and greet where you could hang out a little and talk to him and have him play a few acoustic songs. That would be awesome plus put a little extra $ in Hanks pocket.
September 28, 2013 @ 6:17 pm
Must be nice to have that kind of money. I don’t know anybody who could spend $85 on anything that doesn’t feed their family, put a roof over their head, or get them back and forth to work, or afford them a music experience that lasts longer than a few acoustic songs. And if they did have that money, they’d rather spend it on a trip to the next state over to a genuine band that wouldn’t dream of charging their fans $85 for anything.
The point is, Hank would never charge that to people because he doesn’t think it’s right, and doesn’t think it is country. You may love that opportunity and have the means to pay for it, and that’s great and I don’t mean to knock you for it. But for most people that is something that is unattainable. Roots music is about breaking down barriers, not building them up based on wealth and access. If Shooter wants to charge his fans $85 like massive pop stars do, that’s his prerogative. But there’s nothing about it that is country, roots, independent, or underground. It is a revenue-generating tool of corporate music, plain and simple.
September 28, 2013 @ 8:19 pm
Man I got no $ for that and you’re right about heading one state over for a genuine band.I don’t see many shows per year like I used to because of the $ .I have only been to one paid meet n greet in my life it was 100.00 bucks for Down it included a shirt and sound check. I couldn’t resist meeting Phil and the guys. I have checked out info on other meet n greets for the hell of it throughout the years. 999.00 for Van Halen in 2004- Black Crows 300.00 right now- Hank Jr.500.00 no autograph in 2008.
September 29, 2013 @ 3:38 am
Love to hear the new Hank III album soon, I am sure it will be a surprise again, few of the new songs I heard on the Austin videos recently. you tube.
Quotable Country – 09/29/13 Edition | Country California
September 29, 2013 @ 9:25 am
[…] we know our sound, we know our riffs, we know what we”™re going for. So that can be a problem. â— – – Hank III on the decision to self-produce his upcoming albums, including Brothers of the […]
September 30, 2013 @ 8:14 pm
Bought the new album digitally off amazon after work tonight. Just finished listening to it. Love it. Instrumentally very cool without losing the “country” vibe. Great beer drinkin album.
October 24, 2013 @ 9:30 am
Hank3 just played for 4hrs 15min straight last night in Spokane, WA. Best show ever. Best twenty bucks I have ever spent. I REALLY want another A.D.D. album!
November 1, 2013 @ 9:24 pm
it dont get no better than hank3……the only approval he seeks is his own….love him or hate him(his music), it makes no shit to him……..on tour?….thats another story….its all for the fans,,and what a diverse fanbase he has,,his shows are, in my opinion, legendary!!!!! his music,also in my opinion, straight from the soul!!!!