One of the most acclaimed singer-songwriters of his generation, Jason Isbell has built his legacy upon truth. He’s a Southern man who speaks his mind, through rawly composed Americana music and deeply personal documentaries like Max’s Running With Their Eyes Closed, which underscored Isbell’s marital struggles and addiction battles during his days with Southern rock band Drive-By Truckers.
Ahead of his July 16 Encore Theater performance, Isbell chatted with the Weekly from his Nashville home, about June LP Weathervanes, taking a stand on social media and much more.
Why did you opt to produce Weathervanes yourself, rather than bring on longtime producer Dave Cobb again? I hadn’t produced any of my own albums in a decade or so before this one. I felt like I could finally go in and be egoless in there, because it’s really easy as a producer to go in and think that you need to prove something. When I got sober 11 years ago, turning over production of the albums to Dave was, for me, a big part of letting go of control and thinking, “I’ll just do what I’m responsible for.” A decade on, I felt comfortable with my ability to stay out of my own way. When I was writing these songs, I felt we could do a good job of making people feel the same way they feel at one of our live shows. I think we pulled that off.
This album really allows your band, The 400 Unit, to show off its musicianship. Was there something different happening between you guys when you recorded it? We had a lot of fun, and we really took the time to figure out how each individual person contributed to the songs. In the past, we’ve been committed to delivering the song in the best possible way and doing it rather quickly. This time, we had a little bit more time to stretch it out. It was a very loose approach. My production strategy is really just to get the right people in the room and then don’t screw it up. I don’t know that I could have done this with any other group of musicians.
Weathervanes throws you into the deep end from the opening track “Death Wish,” which explores dealing with a partner’s mental illness. These are vulnerable topics people might not expect your typical Alabama man to touch. I like being the type of person that subverts the stereotypes about where I grew up. I’ve always naturally written about things like that. Starting off with “Death Wish” … was almost like a litmus test for the rest of the record. If you can handle the depth of this topic, then the rest of the record might feel like a bit of a relief. And sonically, it made for a good leadoff, because it’s cinematic. It really puts the listener in the right place to receive the rest of the information on the album.
I like to encourage people to try to be open about how they feel. Since I’ve had a kid … I have been reminded of the fact that we all get along better when we’re able to talk about exactly what it is that we’re feeling. That’s something I try to encourage in myself.
How did you begin that process with yourself? I had good people around me who cared a lot about me from early on. And for that reason, I’m very grateful, but I also think a lot of those people didn’t have the tools that they needed. Therapy wasn’t a thing. Nobody went to a psychiatrist or a psychologist when I was growing up. That part of it, I had to find on my own. But I was raised in a very loving place by people who cared a lot about me. They just didn’t necessarily know how to access that part of their emotional life.
I think that’s the case for a lot of people in America. A lot of us are really looking for some kind of an answer, and sometimes the answers don’t even start to come until you figure out what questions to ask.
You subvert a lot of stereotypes on your social media, where you speak up about gun reform and LGBTQ rights. Have your stances polarized your fanbase at all? Does it matter? I see it like weeding a garden. If you’re vocal and you let people know where you stand … people who have a fundamental issue with you speaking your mind, they’re going to stop coming to shows. That is a positive development, in my opinion.
If you have some sort of issue with me believing the things I believe, you’re probably not going to fit in well with the audience we’re trying to cultivate. I want the place to be safe, I want it to be fun and I want people to feel at least a bit free when they’re at these shows. A good way to work toward that is for me to be as vocal as I can. If enough of us are talking about the same issues at the same time, sometimes that can change people’s minds.
You made headlines for organizing the Love Rising Tennessee concert for LGBTQ rights recently. How was it to seeing so many rally around that cause? It was a great night. It was in response to anti-LGBTQ legislation and the drag ban, as they call it in Tennessee and a lot of other states. On one level, we were protesting that legislation, and on another level, we were celebrating the fact that we all existed and we all could get together somewhere as big as an arena and fill the place up. Everybody felt like they belonged there. To me, you have to have that dual purpose—the purpose of changing things, and then in case that doesn’t work out, you have to be able to celebrate the fact that you can all be together, feel safe and celebrate your own identity.
Boygenius’ Julien Baker, with whom you’ve collaborated, was also there. How does it make you feel to see Baker now thriving in a supergroup? It makes me so excited, because [Baker’s] somebody who’s worked so hard for a long time, not just as a musician, but as an activist and a good friend. I remember once we had a political rally downtown, and we were signing people up to vote. I performed, Sheryl Crow performed and a bunch of other folks. I saw Julien there as I was walking into the venue, and I was like, “Are you playing today?’ She said, ‘No, I’m signing people up to vote.” That’s the kind of person she is. She’ll do whatever needs to be done, at whatever level, and it makes me super-happy to see them having that success. Phoebe [Bridgers] and Lucy [Dacus], too—I think a lot of both of them. The record is fantastic. It’s a really positive thing all the way around.
Killers of the Flower Moon, a Martin Scorsese film you’re in, releases this year. Did working on that influence any parts of Weathervanes? I think it did. [Scorsese] was not afraid to collaborate with the people around him. I was really impressed by that, because I had expected that I would either never see him or that he would be a dictator out there. He didn’t go to make that movie as though he was the greatest film director in the world. He went out there like a guy who was trying to tell a story. That was really impactful for me, because I got back in the studio and thought, “You don’t have to be precious about the fact that you’re the leader. Just do the best work, listen to everybody around you and take their concerns seriously.”
Sounds like you both had a relatable experience. It was wild. Somebody at that level, who’s been that good and that well known for that long, I didn’t expect him to be quite as motivated still and as diligent. It was beautiful. You can tell he loves making movies at his age now as much as he ever has.
Is that your plan with music? It’s not the kind of job I think I have to retire from. I like it more now than I did when I was a teenager. I don’t see that ever stopping. I was playing guitar before I talked to you on the phone, and that’s what I’ll be doing when I hang up.
Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit With Deer Tick. July 16, 8 p.m., $55-$155. Encore Theatre, ticketmaster.com.
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