Black Ribbons
Encyclopedia
Black Ribbons is a concept album
by Shooter Jennings
with his band Hierophant
. The album features dialogue written by horror author Stephen King
, who also narrates the album. The album was released on March 2, 2010.
The first single, "Wake Up", was released on December 22, 2009.
" and Jennings himself has compared it to Nine Inch Nails
. He also said it would be a concept album
, stating "The whole album is kind of this big concept record about truth, and about the importance of love and two people connecting. It’s masqueraded as this kind of futuristic story that goes on with this guy. As a whole, I believe it is something that is a really cool piece of art."
The website bloody-disgusting.com said of the album's style, "Musically, Black Ribbons is a mind-blowing opus that completely obliterates genre distinctions. On this unprecedented work, twanging dobro
s coexist with Nintendo
chipset
s; brutally assaultive passages alternate with moments of unabashed tenderness, and surreal Floydian
soundscapes float above smoking slabs of whiskey-soaked southern soul
. It's an electrifying thrill ride across a dense, dark and gloriously decadent musical landscape."
The alternative country
website No Depression
compared the first single "Wake Up" to The Steve Miller Band
Jennings also stated that Alex Jones and David Icke
were major influences on the album and debuted the song "Wake Up" on Jones' radio show. Also on the show he revealed that there would be songs about eugenics
and the Bohemian Club
. Jennings told Jones that, "The album is rooted in what we're about. Truth and waking up. We want to promote something that will awaken some people...I studied the Masons, books on the occult, the terminology. Brought me to be a completely different person". He also spoke about the New World Order (conspiracy theory).
He later told Billboard
, "I've always been drawn to the darker side of things. When I was doing this record, I was reading a lot on everything, from past civilizations to government conspiracies
to UFOs to the brief history of time to books on the occult. I was soaking up this dark counterculture
of the world. We're in a very grim time. So I needed to paint the grim picture to let the colors of the positive message of the record shine."
Jennings told the Washington Post, "I think the whole thing is a metaphor for how hard it's been to get my voice heard. Whether it's a success or not, at the end of the day I know that I didn't play by anyone's expectations. This is the anti-expectations album."
Jennings and the band were going to perform the album live during a release party at the Viper Room
in Los Angeles
on March 3, 2010 but they had to cancel it due to a scheduling conflict.
plays a major role in the album. According to the Associated Press
, "King is the voice of Will O' The Wisp, a radio talk-show host being phased out by government censorship. He spends his last hour on the air delivering a diatribe about the decline of America, and playing the music of an important band — which happens to be Jennings' new band, Hierophant.".
Jennings also said King rewrote portions of the narration, saying "“He took what I'd done, doctored it and made it his own. He threw in some awesome lines. That made me feel vindicated for any frustration I'd felt. It told me I really was on the right path."
King said, "It's a tremendously spooky idea. He sent me a draft, and it was just about perfect. I altered a few things and expanded some of it, but he knew exactly what he wanted. . . . To me, it was brilliant, the way the talk and the music weave in and out."
King is a fan of Jennings and even mentioned him in his novel Lisey's Story
.
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
by Shooter Jennings
Shooter Jennings
Waylon Albright "Shooter" Jennings is an American singer-songwriter active in the country music and Southern rock genres as well as making his first foray into psychedelic rock in 2009...
with his band Hierophant
Hierophant
A hierophant is a person who brings religious congregants into the presence of that which is deemed holy. The word comes from Ancient Greece, where it was constructed from the combination of ta hiera, "the holy," and phainein, "to show." In Attica it was the title of the chief priest at the...
. The album features dialogue written by horror author Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
, who also narrates the album. The album was released on March 2, 2010.
The first single, "Wake Up", was released on December 22, 2009.
Overview
It has been described as "The Allman Brothers meets Pink FloydPink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
" and Jennings himself has compared it to Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
. He also said it would be a concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
, stating "The whole album is kind of this big concept record about truth, and about the importance of love and two people connecting. It’s masqueraded as this kind of futuristic story that goes on with this guy. As a whole, I believe it is something that is a really cool piece of art."
The website bloody-disgusting.com said of the album's style, "Musically, Black Ribbons is a mind-blowing opus that completely obliterates genre distinctions. On this unprecedented work, twanging dobro
Dobro
Dobro is a registered trademark, now owned by Gibson Guitar Corporation and used for a particular design of resonator guitar.The name has a long and involved history, interwoven with that of the resonator guitar...
s coexist with Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
chipset
Chipset
A chipset, PC chipset, or chip set refers to a group of integrated circuits, or chips, that are designed to work together. They are usually marketed as a single product.- Computers :...
s; brutally assaultive passages alternate with moments of unabashed tenderness, and surreal Floydian
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
soundscapes float above smoking slabs of whiskey-soaked southern soul
Southern soul
Southern soul is a type of soul music that emerged from the Southern United States. The music originated from a combination of styles, including blues , country, early rock and roll, and a strong gospel influence that emanated from the sounds of Southern African-American churches. The focus of the...
. It's an electrifying thrill ride across a dense, dark and gloriously decadent musical landscape."
The alternative country
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
website No Depression
No Depression
No Depression may refer to:* No Depression , a bi-monthly roots and Americana music magazine and now a music website.* "No Depression in Heaven", a 1936 song popularized by the Carter Family...
compared the first single "Wake Up" to The Steve Miller Band
Jennings also stated that Alex Jones and David Icke
David Icke
David Vaughan Icke is an English writer and public speaker, best known for his views on what he calls "who and what is really controlling the world." Describing himself as the most controversial speaker in the world, he has written 18 books explaining his position, and has attracted a substantial...
were major influences on the album and debuted the song "Wake Up" on Jones' radio show. Also on the show he revealed that there would be songs about eugenics
Eugenics
Eugenics is the "applied science or the bio-social movement which advocates the use of practices aimed at improving the genetic composition of a population", usually referring to human populations. The origins of the concept of eugenics began with certain interpretations of Mendelian inheritance,...
and the Bohemian Club
Bohemian Club
The Bohemian Club is a private men's club in San Francisco, California, United States.Its clubhouse is located at 624 Taylor Street in San Francisco...
. Jennings told Jones that, "The album is rooted in what we're about. Truth and waking up. We want to promote something that will awaken some people...I studied the Masons, books on the occult, the terminology. Brought me to be a completely different person". He also spoke about the New World Order (conspiracy theory).
He later told Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
, "I've always been drawn to the darker side of things. When I was doing this record, I was reading a lot on everything, from past civilizations to government conspiracies
Conspiracy (political)
In a political sense, conspiracy refers to a group of persons united in the goal of usurping or overthrowing an established political power. Typically, the final goal is to gain power through a revolutionary coup d'état or through assassination....
to UFOs to the brief history of time to books on the occult. I was soaking up this dark counterculture
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...
of the world. We're in a very grim time. So I needed to paint the grim picture to let the colors of the positive message of the record shine."
Jennings told the Washington Post, "I think the whole thing is a metaphor for how hard it's been to get my voice heard. Whether it's a success or not, at the end of the day I know that I didn't play by anyone's expectations. This is the anti-expectations album."
Jennings and the band were going to perform the album live during a release party at the Viper Room
Viper Room
The Viper Room is a nightclub located on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California. It was opened in 1993 and was partly owned by actor Johnny Depp until 2004. The club became known for being a hangout of Hollywood elite, and was the site where actor River Phoenix died of a drug overdose on...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
on March 3, 2010 but they had to cancel it due to a scheduling conflict.
Concept
The album is set in the near future and is a broadcast by fictional disc jockey "Will 'o the Wisp" during his last night on the air before the U.S. Government takes control of the airwaves. He has vowed to play the one band the American government does not want him to play.Stephen King
In February 2009, it was announced that writer Stephen KingStephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
plays a major role in the album. According to the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, "King is the voice of Will O' The Wisp, a radio talk-show host being phased out by government censorship. He spends his last hour on the air delivering a diatribe about the decline of America, and playing the music of an important band — which happens to be Jennings' new band, Hierophant.".
Jennings also said King rewrote portions of the narration, saying "“He took what I'd done, doctored it and made it his own. He threw in some awesome lines. That made me feel vindicated for any frustration I'd felt. It told me I really was on the right path."
King said, "It's a tremendously spooky idea. He sent me a draft, and it was just about perfect. I altered a few things and expanded some of it, but he knew exactly what he wanted. . . . To me, it was brilliant, the way the talk and the music weave in and out."
King is a fan of Jennings and even mentioned him in his novel Lisey's Story
Lisey's Story
Lisey's Story is a novel by Stephen King combining the elements of psychological horror and romance. It was released on October 24, 2006, and was nominated for the World Fantasy Award in 2007.-Plot:...
.
Track listing
Singles
The track "Wake Up" was released as a digital single on December 22, 2009 with the following track listing:- 1. Wake Up
- 2. Wake Up (Pig Flu mix)
Credits
- Shooter Jennings- vocals, guitar, piano, drums, programming
- Dave Cobb- producer, bass, guitar, keyboards, programmings
- Ted Russell Kamp- acoustic guitar, bass, keyboards
- Bryan Keeling- drums
- Bobby Emmett- Hammond organ
- Jonathan Wilson- guitar
- Robby Turner- acoustic guitar, dobro
- Danny Coakley- background vocals, clapping, stomping
- Jessi ColterJessi ColterJessi Colter is an American country music artist who is best known for her collaboration with her husband, country singer and songwriter Waylon Jennings and for her 1975 country-pop crossover hit "I'm Not Lisa"....
- backing vocals - Jennifer Davis- backing vocals
- Stephen KingStephen KingStephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
- Will 'o the Wisp (narrator) - Mike Sportes - "Hierophant" drawing
Chart performance
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 133 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Independent Albums | 16 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Rock Albums | 34 |