Son Volt is an American rock band formed in 1994 by

Jay Farrar Jay Farrar (born December 26, 1966) is an American songwriter and musician currently based in St. Louis. A member of two critically acclaimed music groups, Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt, he began his solo music career in 2001. Beyond his estab ...

after the breakup of

Uncle Tupelo Uncle Tupelo was an alternative country music group from Belleville, Illinois, active between 1987 and 1994. Jay Farrar, Jeff Tweedy, and Mike Heidorn formed the band after the lead singer of their previous band, The Primitives, left to atten ...

. The band's current line-up consists of Farrar (vocals, guitar), Andrew DuPlantis (bass guitar), John Horton (guitar), Mark Patterson (drums), and Mark Spencer (keyboard, steel guitar). In addition to playing

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial ...

, the band is considered a staple of the

alternative country Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...

rock movement of the 1990s. The band's sound also is rooted in

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers s ...

and Americana.

History

The group formed after the alternative country rock act

broke up due to tensions between Farrar and bandmate

Jeff Tweedy Jeffrey Scot Tweedy (born August 25, 1967) is an American musician, songwriter, author, and record producer best known as the singer and guitarist of the band Wilco. Tweedy, originally from Belleville, Illinois, started his music career in hi ...

. After Uncle Tupelo split, Tweedy formed the alternative rock act

Wilco Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently d ...

, while Farrar decided to form another act. While forming Son Volt, Farrar met Jim and Dave Boquist during the final Uncle Tupelo tour and teamed up with former Uncle Tupelo drummer Mike Heidorn to create the band. The group performed and recorded in the Minneapolis area in late 1994 and performed its first concert at the 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis on June 16, 1995. While half of the band was rooted in the Minneapolis area, Farrar and Heidorn lived in the St. Louis area, and the band used both cities as bases for its operations during the first couple of years.

Early Years, ''Trace'', ''Straightaways'', and ''Wide Swing Tremolo''

Son Volt's first album, '' Trace'', met with critical acclaim and topped many "best-of" lists in 1995, despite not being a large commercial success. The first track "Windfall" became very popular in the alt-country scene, while the band released "Drown" as a single which charted #10 on the mainstream rock charts and #25 on the modern rock charts. 1997's ''

Straightaways ''Straightaways'' is the second release of the band Son Volt. It was released on April 22, 1997. Track listing All songs written by Jay Farrar except where indicated. # "Caryatid Easy" - 4:43 # "Back into Your World" - 3:43 # "Picking Up the S ...

'' featured a more alternative rock sound, leading some music critics to give negative reviews, but strong and positive reviews came from outlets such as the

Orlando Sentinel The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company. The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by parent company, '' Tribune P ...

and the

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

. 1998's ''

Wide Swing Tremolo ''Wide Swing Tremolo'' is the third studio album by alternative country band Son Volt. It was released in 1998 on Warner Bros. Records. The album peaked at No. 93 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Production The album was recorded in Millstadt, Illino ...

'' continued in the same vein and received mostly positive reviews from music outlets. ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...

'' wrote that "many of the songs ... return to the power and purity of the band’s brilliant 1995 debut, ''Trace''.

Hiatus and Return

Farrar announced a hiatus from Son Volt after their 1999 tour. Beginning in 2001, Jay Farrar released several solo efforts that postponed further releases from Son Volt. Farrar reformed with the original members of Son Volt to record a song for a tribute album for

Alejandro Escovedo Alejandro Escovedo (born January 10, 1951) is an American rock musician, songwriter, and singer, who has been recording and touring since the late 1970s. His primary instrument is the guitar. He has played in various rock genres, including punk ...

. The sessions reportedly went so well that Farrar and the other band members intended to record once again in the autumn of 2004. Just prior to the sessions, however, Farrar and the other band members abruptly ended negotiations. Farrar formed a new version of the band with a different line-up and released an album on Transmit Sound/Sony Legacy, ''

Okemah and the Melody of Riot ''Okemah and the Melody of Riot'' is the fourth album by alt-country band Son Volt. It was released on October 5, 2005. Reception The album has a score of 72 out of 100 from Metacritic, indicating "generally favorable reviews". '' Trouser Pres ...

'', a folk-rock album based on protest music that had been influenced by

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspire ...

and

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

. in 2005. That same year also saw the release of '' A Retrospective: 1995-2000'', which gathered highlights from this era, along with previously unreleased recordings. 2006 saw the release of a live DVD, ''Six String Belief'', which was recorded at The Orange Peel in

Asheville, NC Asheville ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Buncombe County, North Carolina. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the state's 11th-most populous ci ...

Band Reformed and New Music

In 2007 the band returned to an alternative rock and alt-country sound and released a studio album called ''

The Search ''The Search'' is a 1948 American film directed by Fred Zinnemann that tells the story of a young Auschwitz survivor and his mother who search for each other across post-World War II Europe. It stars Montgomery Clift, Ivan Jandl, Jarmila Novotn ...

''. The Americana- and folk-influenced album ''

American Central Dust ''American Central Dust'' is the sixth studio album by the band Son Volt. It was released July 7, 2009. Reception The album has a score of 63 out of 100 from Metacritic, indicating "generally favorable reviews". ''Mojo'' gave the album four sta ...

'' followed, released by Rounder Records on July 7, 2009. Their next project was a Bakersfield Sound influenced album aptly named ''

Honky Tonk A honky-tonk (also called honkatonk, honkey-tonk, or tonk) is both a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons and the style of music played in such establishments. It can also refer to the type of piano ( tack piano) ...

'', which was released March 5, 2013 also by Rounder Records. A large scale tour followed the release of the album. On February 17, 2017, the band released '' Notes of Blue'' on Farrar's label, Transmit Sound.

''Union'' and ''Electro Melodier''

The band's ninth studio album, ''Union'', was released on March 28, 2019 on Farrar's Transmit Music label and distributed by Thirty Tigers Records. The album consisted of songs that were highly critical of the election of US President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

and his administration. Many of the songs were commentaries on middle-class economics, freedom of the press, and immigration. Son Volt's tenth album, ''Electro Melodier'', was released on July 30, 2021. In early summer 2021, guitarist Chris Frame announced that he would be leaving the band to pursue other interests and was replaced by former

Bottle Rockets A bottle is a narrow-necked container made of an impermeable material (such as glass, plastic or aluminium) in various shapes and sizes that stores and transports liquids. Its mouth, at the bottling line, can be sealed with an internal stop ...

guitarist John Horton.

Musical style

Son Volt's music ranges from quiet folk ballads reminiscent of ''

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan ''The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan'' is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on May 27, 1963 by Columbia Records. Whereas his self-titled debut album ''Bob Dylan'' had contained only two original songs, this album ...

'', to heartland rock in the spirit of

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Fu ...

with

Crazy Horse Crazy Horse ( lkt, Tȟašúŋke Witkó, italic=no, , ; 1840 – September 5, 1877) was a Lakota war leader of the Oglala band in the 19th century. He took up arms against the United States federal government to fight against encroachment by w ...

. The band's sound features a heavy alternative rock sound in many places, all while basing their music in mostly an Americana style. Reviews refer to the band as

pioneers, a "staple in the ALT-Country Scene" or "a cult favorite", with their music "spanning a few musical niches", but based in Americana.

Members

Current members

(guitar,

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica in ...

, piano, vocals), formerly of

* Mark Patterson (drums) * John Horton (guitar), formerly of

the Bottle Rockets The Bottle Rockets were an American rock band formed in Festus, Missouri in 1992, and was based in St. Louis, Missouri. Its founding members were Brian Henneman (guitar, vocals), Mark Ortmann (drums), Tom Parr (1992–2002, guitar, vocals) and To ...

* Mark Spencer (keyboards, steel guitar, bass), formerly of

Blood Oranges The Blood Oranges were an American alternative country band that formed in the late 1980s. The founding members were Jim Ryan (acoustic and electric mandolin, guitar, and vocals), Bob Kendall (bass guitar) then replaced by Liz Wood (later Liz ...

* Andrew DuPlantis (bass guitar)

Former members

Mike Heidorn Mike Heidorn, born 1967 in Belleville, Illinois, is the former drummer and founding member of alternative country bands Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt. Heidorn also played with the Uncle Tupelo precursors the Primitives (or ) and the one-off band Coff ...

(drums), formerly of

(original member of Son Volt) * Dave Boquist (banjo,

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, the ...

, guitar,

lap steel The lap steel guitar, also known as a Hawaiian guitar, is a type of steel guitar without pedals that is typically played with the instrument in a horizontal position across the performer's lap. Unlike the usual manner of playing a traditional a ...

) (original member of Son Volt) * Jim Boquist (bass guitar, backing vocals) (original member of Son Volt) * Eric Heywood (

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of ...

pedal steel The pedal steel guitar is a console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all steel guitars, it can ...

) * Brad Rice (guitar on ''Okemah and the Melody of Riot'', ''The Search'') * Derry deBorja (keyboards on ''The Search'') * Chris Masterson (guitar on ''American Central Dust'') * Gary Hunt (guitar, mandolin, steel guitar on ''Honky Tonk'') * Dave Bryson (

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...

on ''Okemah and the Melody of Riot'', ''The Search'', ''American Central Dust'', ''Honky Tonk'') * Jason Kardong (

on ''Notes of Blue'') * Jacob Edwards (drums on ''Notes of Blue'') * Chris Frame (guitar on ''Union'', ''Electro Melodier'')

Discography

Albums

Compilations

* '' A Retrospective: 1995-2000'' (2005), Warner Bros. Records/Rhino

Singles

* "Drown" (1995) #10 US Mainstream Rock Tracks, #25 US Modern Rock Tracks

Music videos

References

External links

Son Volt's Site
at The Wheel's Still In Spin *Features and CD reviews o
Son Volt at the Country Standard Time web site
* {{Authority control American country rock groups American alternative country groups American alternative rock groups Musical groups established in 1994 Musical groups from St. Louis Warner Records artists Rounder Records artists