Blackberry Smoke wrote another chapter in their extensive love letter to their home state on the album You Hear Georgia , released last Friday, the 28th. The ten new tracks offer a delightful journey through the verdant fields of the musicians' memories, painting a colorful and rich picture with the best of the cultural legacy of the southern United States.
In an interview with Wikimetal , vocalist Charlie Starr spoke about the band's anniversary, the behind-the-scenes of the album, and the controversies surrounding the use of the Confederate flag, a symbol of the South during the American Civil War in the 19th century, frequently used in recent political events.
By pressing play on the seventh studio album from the Atlanta-based band, the listener embarks on a delightful sensory journey through the group's cultural roots – and there's no better guide to showcasing the richness of southern rock than a band about to celebrate 20 years of solid career, without abandoning its origins or ignoring the changes in the world.
Characterized by its sunny sound, even in songs that delve into more political themes, such as the critique of regional prejudice in the title track, a large part of the project was created during the American lockdown, far from the possibility of being with the people who are the source of inspiration for the stories told in the songs. "I think it's a little easier, because if you talk about something you can't yet have, there's a little more desperation and it's a little more romantic, I think," Starr points out.
The group's creativity also benefited from isolation in other ways, with songwriting sessions via FaceTime and video calls. "Technology is incredible, it feels like we're living in the space age," the vocalist rejoices. "I wrote a bunch of songs with friends that probably wouldn't have happened if it weren't for the pandemic. I ended up writing more because I was locked up at home and I was very lucky because I really liked these ones, everything worked out."
While tracks like “Live It Down,” “You Hear Georgia,” and “All Rise Again,” a collaboration with Warren Haynes , were born from extra time at home, others had the opportunity to come out of the drawer after a few years of waiting. This was the case with “Lonesome for a Living,” which gained new life with the arrival of Jamey Johnson , and “Old Scarecrow,” which had been “forgotten” in the musician's catalog of compositions. “I was listening to some demos and thought, ‘Wow, I love this song and I had forgotten about it.’ I forgot! I'm not a very organized person,” he jokes.
If technology has been a blessing in facilitating encounters that wouldn't be possible in the real world, the negative aspects of this resource haven't been forgotten on the album. “You Hear Georgia” was chosen by Starr as the most suitable song to introduce the state to a tourist, but the lyrics also hint at less welcoming themes. “These lyrics are about social media and mainstream media, about how people get so focused on what they've heard and rumors,” she explains. “People get so agitated and don't even know if it's true; it's a crazy world we live in. Sometimes you need to judge for yourself and form your own opinion, not just follow others because they're online.”
In this climate of intolerance, there are some topics that cannot be ignored. Many artists based in the southern United States, from Tom Petty to Lynyrd Skynyrd Black Lives Matter protests and the Capitol invasion , where the flag becomes a symbol of support for white supremacist ideals.
READ ALSO: Dave Grohl reveals why he refused to join Tom Petty's band after Nirvana broke up.
As a child, however, Starr remembers “surreal” scenes in which the flag and the war itself were celebrated. On a school trip to Stone Mountain at the age of eight, he even bought items celebrating the local army. “We were little kids and we bought these things, it wasn’t in our heads that we were celebrating slavery, cruelty and racism, they didn’t teach us that,” he recounts. “My point has always been that when I looked at that flag – and obviously, I’m white – nobody taught me that it means defending racism . It didn’t register in our minds that way.”
Despite understanding the use of the flag as an appropriation by hate groups, Starr does not defend the use of the symbol. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not going to raise that flag because it hurts people, so we don’t use it,” she pointed out. “But looking at it from the cancel culture perspective, we think, ‘Okay, if you want to cancel everyone who’s ever used the flag, there’s Keith Richards , Tom Petty…’ There comes a point where that’s it, okay, we understand. Things have different meanings for each person, that’s not hateful, it’s just the truth, a fact.”
Looking back on the school trip with Confederate souvenirs, Starr views the situation with historical detachment. “I keep thinking it’s a strange thing to celebrate anyway, not just celebrating the South’s fight to maintain slavery, but also celebrating that our country was fighting,” he reflects. “It’s a crazy thing to make a statue, like, ‘This guy is a hero because he killed people from the neighboring state.’ Let’s learn from this shit from the past and move on.”
With two decades of history approaching, the band closes the cycle with coherence and quality in You Hear Georgia . With the possibility of touring in the United States finally becoming a reality, the group anticipates celebrations beyond the album, but Starr doesn't detail the "special plans" for the release date yet. "The most important thing for me is that I'm proud that we've done everything our way up to this point," he concludes.
READ ALSO: Smith / Kotzen: Nando Machado talks with Richie Kotzen about the duo's first album; check it out!
