Sarah Shook Signs with Bloodshot Records, Relaunch of “Sidelong” Coming
If you’re a hardcore country fan and never heard of Sarah Shook, this problem will soon be rectified. And if you’re one of the privileged few who started with her on the ground floor, this is a happy day.
Announced Wednesday morning (1-25), North Carolina’s Sarah Shook and her band The Disarmers have officially signed to insurgent country label Bloodshot Records, and there will be a relaunch of Sarah Shook’s debut album Sidelong coming on April 28th. There will also be a new album coming in 2018, Sarah has promised.
Home schooled and only exposed to worship music at an early age, Sarah rebelled as soon as she got the chance and her first band was named “Sarah Shook & The Devil.” Soon she turned to the darker side of country music, and her smoky yodel carries the weight of a thousand troubled and worried spirits crying out in tormented moans about heartache and the resignation to never living up to the expectations of yourself and others.
The Disarmers consists of guitarist Eric Peterson, who is a holdover from Sarah’s previous band and one of the main pile drivers behind getting her music out to the world, and throwback country artist John Howie Jr., formerly the frontman of the Two Dollar Pistols, who is an accomplished solo singer and songwriter himself. Aaron Oliva, plays upright bass, and Phil Sullivan is the pedal steel player.
Sidelong originally was released in 2015, and found very favorable reviews with the few folks that heard it. But as a self-release, it didn’t receive nearly the attention it deserved. When Sarah played at AmericanaFest in September of 2016, Bloodshot Records representatives could be seen in the crowd, and they apparently liked what they saw. Ahead of the re-release of Sidelong, Sarah will be traveling to SXSW in March to perform.
January 25, 2017 @ 12:11 pm
this is GREAT news!!!! We saw them just before christmas and they kicked ass.
January 25, 2017 @ 1:31 pm
Bloodshot is Scott h birams label too. I like what I hear, she moves around like Janis Joplin. Songs like Grace Slick.
January 25, 2017 @ 2:17 pm
Great record, really dig her unique sounding voice.
January 25, 2017 @ 2:53 pm
I bought the couple albums I could find from her when you reviewed her last year (or a couple years ago) and really enjoyed them. Thank you for bringing that to our attention before and updating on the label. I don’t have a lot of female artists that I would commit to buying a record from without hearing first but I would for Ms. Shook. I don’t mean that in a misogynistic way or anything, I just like most of my music a little raw and evil sounding and other than Rachel Brooke and Sarah here, I can’t find many women in that territory.
January 25, 2017 @ 7:00 pm
You might like Lydia Loveless, assuming you don’t know of her already. Her more recent stuff is more rock than country, but her first two records were solid alt-country.
January 25, 2017 @ 3:59 pm
I hope she finds happiness. Every song I looked at on you tube I saw her smile just once.
January 25, 2017 @ 4:11 pm
I didn’t jump on this when it was first available. I think I might reconsider when it’s re-released. I do like the song included here.
Now if only Karen Jonas could get a record deal.
January 25, 2017 @ 5:10 pm
Bloodshot is a great home for Shook. When I get music bored and Trig is busy writing about Luke Bryan or Carrie Underwood, I go to their website a pick an artist to explore. I’m currently listening to the Meat Purveyors.
I’ve been reguarly listening to Sidelong since Trig reviewed it a little over a year ago – thanks, Trig! I hope her first major release won’t be 1/2 assed like Luke Bell’s.
January 27, 2017 @ 9:55 am
Meat Purveyors are one of my favorites. Great call.
January 25, 2017 @ 7:10 pm
Violet Parr
January 25, 2017 @ 8:41 pm
Sidelong is a good record, happy the album will get a bigger push from Bloodshot and she will get more exposue. They are an ideal label for her. A Shook/Loveless tour would be ideal.
January 25, 2017 @ 10:55 pm
Angry looking and a whisky voice to boot.
January 26, 2017 @ 8:20 am
Thanks! Love when you turn me onto badass shit (especially when those artists are coming to he ATX).
January 26, 2017 @ 12:55 pm
A face made for radio. Great shit though.
January 26, 2017 @ 4:01 pm
Quite frankly she is beautiful. Inside even more tHan out. Of course, she could give a rats ass about your opinion of her looks. She’s too busy kicking ass in the music industry.
January 27, 2017 @ 7:32 am
Signing with Bloodshot is a great step in the right direction. I feel like she could be so very important to the future of country but its gonna take the right songs and production of the same.
May 7, 2017 @ 9:44 am
Booked Lydia Loveless in 2010 six months before Bloodshot grabbed her. Wish I’d been onto Sarah early like that, now also on Bloodshot. Oh well, I see what her ask is….