Drive-By Truckers have announced today’s premiere of “Every Single Storied Flameout,” the latest track from their upcoming 14th studio album, Welcome 2 Club XIII, due via ATO Records on Friday, June 3. Pre-orders are available now. The spirited, horn-blasted “Every Single Storied Flameout” sees founding member/vocalist/guitarist Mike Cooley looking back at his younger years with unsparing self-reflection and a bit of rambling wisdom.
“I wrote that song when my son was turning 16 and going through a rough patch for a bit,” Cooley says. “Luckily, he’s turned it around and he’s doing great now, but it was a tough time for a while. Part of my way of dealing with it was to take ownership of the example I might’ve set, in the hope of leading him out of it.”
Welcome 2 Club XIII also includes the swinging centerpiece, “Welcome 2 Club XIII.” The track – which pays homage to the Muscle Shoals honky-tonk where founding members Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley got their start – is joined by an official music video streaming now via YouTube.
Arriving as Drive-By Truckers enter its 26th year, Welcome 2 Club XIII marks a sharp departure from the trenchant commentary of The Unraveling and The New OK (both released in 2020). Produced by longtime Drive-By Truckers collaborator David Barbe and mainly recorded at his studio in Athens, GA, Welcome 2 Club XIII took shape over the course of three frenetic days in summer 2021 – a doubly extraordinary feat considering that the band had no prior intentions of making a new album. Featuring background vocals from the likes of Margo Price, R.E.M.’s Mike Mills, and Mississippi-bred singer/songwriter Schaefer Llana, Welcome 2 Club XIII was recorded live with most songs cut in one or two takes, fully harnessing Drive-By Truckers’ freewheeling energy. The new songs see the band – whose lineup also includes keyboardist/guitarist Jay Gonzalez, bassist Matt Patton, and drummer Brad Morgan – looking back on their formative years with both deadpan pragmatism and profound tenderness, instilling each song with the kind of lived-in detail that invites bittersweet reminiscence of your own misspent youth.
“Cooley and I have been playing together for 37 years now,” Hood says. “That first band might have failed miserably on a commercial level, but I’m really proud of what we did back then. It had a lot to do with who we ended up becoming.”
Drive-By Truckers are currently celebrating Welcome 2 Club XIII with a marathon live schedule, including top-billed festival dates, and North American, European, and UK headline tours. For complete details and ticket information, please visit www.drivebytruckers.com/shows.
DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS LIVE 2022
MAY
12 – Memphis, TN – Soundstage at Graceland
13 – Natchez, MS – Mudbug Music Festival *
14 – Huntsville, AL – The First Waltz *
24 – Helsinki, Finland – Tavastia Club †
26 – Stockholm, Sweden – Berns †
27 – Oslo, Norway – Rockefeller †
28 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Amager Bio †
29 – Aarhus, Denmark – Train †
31 – Hamburg, Germany – Markthalle †
JUNE
1 – Berlin, Germany – Kesselhaus †
2 – Koln, Germany – Kantine †
3 – Antwerp, Belgium – De Roma †
5 – Raalte, Netherlands – Ribs & Blues *
6 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso †
7 – Brighton, UK – Chalk †
8 – London, UK – O2 Forum †
9 – Leeds, UK – Leeds University Stylus †
11 – Dublin, Ireland – Vicar Street †
12 – Glasgow, UK – SWG3 TV Studio †
14 – Tilburg, Netherlands – 013 (Jupiler Zaal) †
15 – Paris, France – La Maroquinerie †
17 – Mendizabala, Vitoria-Gasteiz – Azkena Rock Festival *
19 – Eridge Park, UK – Black Deer Festival *
JULY
14 – Breckenridge, CO – Riverwalk Center
15 – Denver, CO – Levitt Pavilion
16 – Kansas City, MO – Knuckleheads
19 – Omaha, NE – Falconwood Park
20 – Minneapolis, MN – Utepils Brewing
22 – Des Moines, IA – Hoyt Sherman Place
23 – Dayton, OH – Dayton Masonic Center
24 – Kalamazoo, MI – Bell’s Beer Garden
27 – Fort Wayne, IN – The Clyde Theatre
29 -S t. Louis, MO – Open Highway Music Festival *
30 – Maryville, TN – The Shed
31 – Wilmington, NC – Greenfield Lake Amphitheater
AUGUST
2 – Virginia Beach, VA – Elevation 27
4 – Deerfield, MA – Tree House Brewing Company
5 – Buffalo, NY – Town Ballroom
8 – Patchogue, NY – Patchogue Theatre
10 – Isle of Palms, SC – The Windjammer
11 – Isle of Palms, SC – The Windjammer
12 – Charlotte, NC – Neighborhood Theatre
13 – Pelham, TN – The Caverns
SEPTEMBER
17 -Louisville, KY -Bourbon & Beyond *
* Festival Appearance
† w/Special Guest Jerry Joseph