Photo: ED JURDI AND GORDY QUIST, Band of Heathens, by Alyssa Gafkjen
The Band Of Heathens, the Austin-based, fiercely independent rock and roll group led by dual lead vocalists and band songwriters Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist, today announced the release of Simple Things, their ninth studio album, to be released March 17 on their own label BOH Records. Pre-order here.The Band Of Heathens will also tour the U.S., with dates including Nashville’s Basement East, alongside a hometown residency at C-Boys in Austin. Plus, the band will play a special album release show during SXSW on March 15, see further details below.
From day one, The Band of Heathens have remained proudly, fiercely independent—turning down label offers, maintaining complete ownership of their catalog, building their audience one show at a time. From their humble roots as a rag tag local bar band – where they first formed in the early 2000s when Quist and Jurdi were among four songwriters playing regular weekly sets at the late, lamented club Momo’s – to award winning, streaming giant status (they have amassed 300 Million plus streams across their catalog), The Band Of Heathens are true to their name as outliers to the traditional music industry model of success.
“Stormy Weather” is an uplifting and joyful Southern Rock tune with an irresistible beat and outstanding vocals. Dual lead singers and Telecaster slingers Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist are sweet, down, and profound in all they do. They’re as good a two-guitar team as they are on vocals and that’s saying something. This live-in-the-studio performance makes the whole band look like stars and will set your bones to shaking. If a mix of the Dead, Little Feat, and The Allman Brothers sounds like a winner to you, that’s because it is. You’re going to love this song!
“Stormy Weather”
Stream “Story Weather” Here
Pre-order the album Simple Things Here
“I see a lot of artists out there screaming, ‘Hey, we’re outlaws, we’re independent!’ says Quist, adding “and they’re signed to a major label and live completely within that model. We’ve been the ultimate indie band for 17 years.”
Simple Things is a musical, geographic and thematic return, back to the greasy rooted rock and heartland pop which they became known and loved for, when they broke out in the mid 2000s, landing the attention of Rolling Stone Magazine and making their debut on TV shows including Austin City Limits.
Though the members of The Band of Heathens now live scattered across the country, it was their return to Austin, to write, and eventually record the album, which was so crucial to continuing their progression and keeping the band alive.
First they launched “Good Time Supper Club”, a Patreon fueled live video series offering fans the chance to watch the band work and to participate in the creative process. What started as an act of pandemic career triage serendipitously encouraged a creative shift, with the band including their fanbase in their return to the roots rock instincts that initially launched the band out of Austin.
Fans’ input was clearly an important catalyst in making their finest work to date. Another example of the heights The Band of Heathens can achieve with only themselves (and their fans) to lead the charge.
“Many times in the past, we’d take a song and stretch to make it into something else sonically, because that’s exciting and fun to do in the studio,” says Quist. Adding, “This time around, we tried to use some restraint and embraced our first instincts, trusting the songs.”
Their expensive sounding self-produced set was recorded in their hometown of Austin, in the hi fidelity studio, named The Finishing School, which was founded by the band’s close friend and sometimes producer George Reiff. Quist took over the studio after Reiff passed away in 2017, and upgraded with a 1972 Studer console; rebuilt golden ratio rooms designed by friend and famed producer/acoustician Mark Neill; and a batch of vintage mics from the band Queen’s studio, Mountain Studios, that have all been used on records by Queen, David Bowie, the Rolling Stones, and AC/DC.
The songs also reflect a return to the kind of “Dad Wisdom” one gains from months at home with families and friends during a pandemic. It is a confident, assured statement from a group finding its place in the world amid uncertain and troubled times, offering us the next step in the chain of the evolution of rock and roll classicism, thoughtful dad rock is just what the world didn’t know it needed.
Employing their artful song craft to musings on the mutual exclusivity of time and money or appreciating the things that matter and letting go of the things that don’t, is perhaps their greatest moment as a band yet.
Jurdi best succinctly concludes, “We’ve realized it’s us, it’s our families, and it’s our fans, and that’s really all that matters.”
Simple Things tracklist:
1 Don’t Let The Darkness
2 Heartless Year
3 I Got The Time
4 Simple Things
5 Long Lost Son
6 Stormy Weather
7 Single In The Same Summer
8 Damaged Goods
9 The Good Doctor
10 All That Remains
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Loved the article. Well-written, interesting and informative. The description of the band as a combination of the Dead, Little Feat and the Allman Brothers is perfect. Really enjoyed the video!
Great Rock n Roll band! I bet that they would be great live.
Great article about them.