JASON ISBELL : FOXES IN THE SNOW

 

  1. Bury Me
  2. Ride To Robert's
  3. Eileen
  4. Gravelweed
  5. Don't Be Tough
  6. Open And Close
  7. Foxes In The Snow
  8. Crimson And Clay
  9. Good While It Lasted
  10. True Believer
  11. Wind Behind The Rain

Label : Southeastern Records

Release Date : March 7, 2025

Length : 38:02

Review (Written In Music) : Jason Isbell tourde de laatste tijd zowat onafgebroken. Naast studiowerk zoals Whatevervanes werden regelmatig registraties van concerten, recent nog een tweede deel van The Ryman gigs, met zijn muzikale bondgenoten, uitgebracht. Na de scheiding met Amanda Shires die bij The 400 Unit als violiste en zangeres figureet wordt er tien jaar na het meesterlijke Something More Than Free weerom volledig op solowerk gefocust, zonder ondersteuning van The 400 Unit. Voor Foxes in the Snow kampeerde Isbell vijf dagen in de Electric Ladyland Studios in New York. Uit eenzame sessies met zijn akoestische Martin 0-17 gitaar uit 1940 en tekstbladen met het nieuwe songwerk welden 11 songs op. Gena Johnson, eveneens in de studio gesignaleerd bij Whatevervanes, verzorgde de co-productie van deze unplugged sessies. Het titelnummer toont aan dat de pijn van de relatiebreuk ondertussen gemilderd is, op dartele fingerpicking vertelt Isbell over een nieuwe liefde in een romantische song, met een onvoorwaardelijke liefdesverklaring kijkt hij onbevreesd de toekomst tegemoet. “I’m no cowboy but I can ride, I ain’t no outlaw but I’ve been inside”, vanaf de a capella intro van Bury Me wordt je meegesleept in beeldrijke verhalen die de emotionele toestand van de troubadour reflecteren op gedreven countryfolk die herinneringen aan illustere pioniers uit de Appalachen regio oproept. Ook zonder de vertrouwde sonische soundtrack van vroeger werk, noch technische studio-ingrepen overtuigt Isbell. Luister maar eens naar Eileen of Ride To Roberts Hetzelfde gevoel dat ik bij de eerste beluistering van Southeastern ervaarde, bekruipt me bij Foxes in the Snow, de nieuwe songs komen in de intimistische solosetting al even sterk over. Tien jaar na het meesterlijke Something More Than Free toont Jason Isbell zich één van de sterkste hedendaagse troubadours met bekijvende songs die vanaf de eerste beluistering overtuigen.

Review (Wikipedia) : Foxes in the Snow is the tenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Jason Isbell, released on March 7, 2025 on Southeastern. Produced by Isbell and Gena Johnson, the album was recorded in five days at Electric Lady Studios in New York, and is Isbell's first solo acoustic album. The album is also Isbell's first since his debut, Sirens of the Ditch (2007), not to feature any members of his backing band, The 400 Unit. Preceded by the singles, "Bury Me" and “Foxes in the Snow”, the album's lyrics are partly influenced by Isbell's divorce from Amanda Shires, his wife of eleven years and former bandmate, while also taking inspiration from a new relationship with artist Anna Weyant, who created the album's artwork. The album was recorded in five days at Electric Lady Studios in New York, with producer Gena Johnson. The album's stark, acoustic aesthetic features Isbell performing on a 1940 Martin guitar throughout. Regarding his decision to record Foxes in the Snow on his own, without the participation of his backing band The 400 Unit, Isbell noted: "I don’t want to keep doing stuff that’s easy. A lot of the stories on this record, a lot of these details and a lot of these songs are very personal. I didn’t want to force anybody else to be in the room with that. When you’re being this open and this vulnerable, there’s something about doing it alone. Even though you know that the results are going to get broadcast to everybody, there’s something about sitting with a guitar and singing a song that makes sense to me when it’s this personal." The album's lyrical content was partly influenced by Isbell's recent divorce from Amanda Shires, his wife of eleven years and former bandmate. Isbell lists the tracks, "Eileen", "Gravelweed" and "True Believer", as songs that directly address their break-up: "With those three songs, especially, I’m trying to talk about a period in my life that was difficult, a lot of change. I got a divorce. I moved out of the house. I’m trying to help raise my daughter through all of this and deal with the fallout of the relationship. What I want to do is to be able to zoom out and sort of see things from a perspective that’s past simple bitterness or anger or resentment or anything like that. And I want to look at it from the point of view of what was this period in my life? In what ways was this formative for me? And how did I treat the other people who were involved? And how can I use that information to grow as a human being into whatever’s next? And all three of those songs deal with that." Several tracks on the album are written from the perspective of starting a new romance, with Isbell writing about his current relationship with artist Anna Weyant, who created the album's artwork: "I’m trying to come into all of these songs, all these stories, with as much gratitude as I can have. And I’m trying to shape that, sit across the table with the version of myself that I’m not necessarily the most comfortable with and shape that into something that can bring a listener some joy."

Review (No Depression) : For an artist to get in the studio and record an entire set in just a few days on a single acoustic guitar, one might assume the music is calling with some urgency. But for Jason Isbell’s latest solo outing Foxes in the Snow, there’s a slow and steady focus across its spare 11 tracks. It’s no salacious breakup album (though some might have been anticipating it following his 2024 divorce from longtime partner Amanda Shires), but it’s got heartbreak seeping from every pore. Still, somehow, it listens like a respite, a return to something starkly simple, reminiscent of Isbell’s foundational, 2013 breakthrough Southeastern. For Isbell, it’s always been about the songs, but without his backing band the 400 Unit, the emphasis here is very much on pristine songcraft and excellent picking. Recorded as leanly as possible at New York City’s iconic Electric Lady Studios, Foxes in the Snow is all clean production and no frills. The warmth of Isbell’s guitar and the heft of his rasp are all the tools he needs to deliver devastatingly sad stunners like “True Believer” and “Good While it Lasted.” These are hearty, adult breakup songs. Any bit of spite feels truly earned and the lessons are the kind you can only really learn when you’ve gotten some life experience under your belt. There’s also bitterness baked in, but it isn’t all-consuming. There’s room for maturity, maybe even friendship and peaceful coexistence. A particularly piercing moment comes with “Gravelweed,” an accountability ode Isbell belts from deep in the gut. “I’m sorry the love songs all mean different things today,” he sings between nods to the challenges of sobriety during a breakup and the pain of outgrowing someone. “Wind Behind the Rain” closes the album with a quiet force, more nostalgic than regretful as it looks to an uncertain future where the one you once loved never really leaves you. Sweet glimmers of hope find their way through the cracks on Foxes in the Snow, most notably with “Don’t Be Tough,” a meticulous and hard-won collection of reminders to maintain the balance between gentleness and discipline. Lighter fare like being kind to waiters and napping when you’re tired intermingle with the tougher stuff. “Don’t forget the shit you went through,” he sings, “Let love knock you on your ass.”