Sturgill Simpson Carries the Bar With Him and Sets It Wherever He Pleases

Photo Credit: Semi Song

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Sturgill Simpson has done it again. After a debut traditional country record, a psychedelic country record that catapulted his career, and a soulful and country leaning Grammy winning concept album, he’s released his fourth solo effort and the only familiar sound is that Eastern Kentucky drawl that we are all so familiar with.

Sound & Fury is loud, hectic, and full of “kiss my ass, I’ll do what I want” attitude. He warned us that this was anything but a country record many times, if you did not heed those warnings then you may have been caught off guard when the “lead single” (He did not want a single, but record labels) Sing Along was released along with its solo clip of the 50 minute long anime music video Sturgill Simpson Presents: Sound & Fury, released on Netflix the same day as the album. With an abundance of synth and screaming guitars, this album is one to be enjoyed on the finest of sound systems (home, headphones, or vehicle). It truly makes your mind wonder what the man can’t do? On his latest appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience he says no to rapping, but is not against producing a Hip Hop album in the future, which may make his country audience a little uneasy. I get it, I too fell in love with the Sturgill who was making some of the most groundbreaking country music we had ever heard, but as I grew with him and began to understand him as an artist, I could not be more ecstatic with the progression of his career.

As he’s stated many times “Whenever I open my mouth, it sounds country” and that’s spot on. Through the soaring synth breakdowns and wild imagery of the movie, there is still that Eastern Kentucky twang (although toned down a touch, possibly due to sinus surgery) that rings throughout the whole album and let’s me know that the same man that sang Life Ain’t Fair and the World is Mean, Living the Dream, and Sea Stories is the same one singing Best Clockmaker on Mars. Sturgill Simpson is setting the precedent for what every true artist should be doing, taking those chances that could ruin your career and not giving a damn if it does. I’m not saying you have to completely change up your sound on each record, that’s a rare thing to pull off, but don’t let the labels or even the fans tell you how to express your art.

I didn’t love this album after the first listen; I liked it, but I just wasn’t sure that he hit the nail on the head with it, but there lies the great thing about art. After about the third listen I started picking up on subtle nuances and I’ve done that with every listen since. I’ve listened to the album as a whole approximately 15 times and it hasn’t stopped finding new ways to impress me yet, I’m sure eventually it will be just another great record that I love and listen to, but I don’t think I’ve ever had an album show me so much with each listen.

My home state of Kentucky has a rich history of music in general, but mostly country and bluegrass. The three trailblazers at the top currently are Chris Stapleton, Tyler Childers, and Sturgill Simpson. What they’ve done over the last 4-5 years is bring country music back to the forefront for hardcore music fans and they’ve all been there holding their hands out to bring others, from the state and beyond, along for the ride. Now Sturgill is breathing some much needed life into the rock n’ roll world and I can’t wait to see who he brings with him and influences on the way to wherever in the hell he is headed next. He could continue on this fuzzy path of rock or go back to his roots of bluegrass, but whichever path he chooses you can guarantee there will be a legion of fans and haters and they’ll all be fueling the fire for the next mind trip.

Sturgill Simpson carries the bar with him and sets it wherever he pleases and that’s how you Make Art Not Friends.