“Obviously our love of music goes deeper than Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Allman Brothers – who we love dearly – but we never really decided we’re going to fly this flag. We’re just a rock’n’roll band from Georgia.”
As for being hailed as the future of Southern rock, Starr’s as indifferent to the title as he is to those who call Blackberry Smoke revivalists. For him, the band’s ethos is to live and let live. This focus on the music underpinned Blackberry Smoke’s transition from their grittier early work to the sound of the 2015 studio album, Holding All the Roses.
“The fans that appreciate our music, if they get something from that then great. We are that band, but we’re not revivalists or a throwback band or anything like. We’re just five guys playing our music. For instance, we wouldn’t make a very good punk band.”
Holding All the Roses is a uniquely formed album that came out this time last year. Blackberry Smoke’s recording style has historically been an attempt to capture the band’s live sound, from the southern bar feel of their 2004 debut Bad Luck Ain’t No Crime to the band’s 2012 breakthrough The Whippoorwill. However, Starr says Holding All the Roses was made for headphone listening, and producer Brendan O’Brien helped push the band in this direction.
“He and I agreed that The Whippoorwill, our previous album, was just us playing live and it was under-produced. We love it of course, but we’d just made that record and we don’t like to repeat ourselves. We always record together; playing live, if you will, while recording. But you can try in vain for years trying to capture real, live energy in the studio. It’s nigh impossible, you know? I think we started to understand it’s two completely different things.”
Blackberry Smoke actually cut their teeth as a live band. Starr believes the band’s ability to reinforce their fanbase around the world through touring has played an integral part in their 16-year longevity.
“Play in front of as many people as possible,” he says. “Unless you have a huge radio hit in your pocket, I would say playing every club from west coast to east coast is the plan. When we started Blackberry Smoke we bought a van and a trailer and loaded up our ramshackle gear pretty much constantly. That’ll drive you kind of crazy, when you’re not making much money and everybody wants to go home. But then you find your rhythm and get in to it. [But] keeping a van together is quite a challenge.”
The success ofthe band’s last two albums has allowed Blackberry Smoke to tour around the world, reaching the European circuit and now Australia. When asked about why Southern rock and Americana are so favourably received in Australia, Starr says it’s to do with the instinctual significance the music has with the middle classes.
“I think that kind of music resonates with so many people because it’s so honest. It comes from the blues, jazz and hillbilly country music; those kinds of music resonate. It hits people where they live. It’s nostalgic, not only musically but it reminds people of the good times and bad times and home.”
Speaking of nostalgia, Starr sees the internet as a changing force in kids’ appreciation for music. Starr believes his own children’s relationship with music is too ephemeral; there’s no tension and release anymore.
“We all turn into our dads at some point. I was trying to explain to my oldest son, that I would spend months searching for some record or cassette that wouldn’t be readily available the way music is today. Once I finally found it after searching record stores, modern pop stores, flea markets, whatever, the wait to get home was thrilling. Instant gratification is the name of the game these days and I think there was something to be said for the anticipation of finding something you’d really yearned for.”
Regardless of the changing of the tides, Blackberry Smoke’s future direction remains a point of curiosity. Starr sees the vocal-driven, stylistically diverse country feel of Holding All the Roses to be a sign of maturity. “Writing songs for me now, I’ve got a pretty good idea what the songs are going to sound like as they’re being written.”
As for Bluesfest, Starr’s looking forward to the visit. “I hope we can make a lot of new fans. I know that Byron Bay festival is full of great music and I’m looking forward to checking out the bands that are there and just checking out Australia.”
BY SHAUN COWE
