The Roadhouse on KEXP Presents: Sarah Shook & The Disarmers w. Small Paul - A Tractor 30th Anniversary Show

Its obvious listening to Sarah Shook and the Disarmers clear-eyed, biting, and unafraid songs that integrity is the most important thing to the Chapel Hill, North Carolina, country-punk outfit. A lot of artists are in this industry for fame, recognition, and money but those things dont mean anything to me, says bandleader River Shook. Songwriting is it for me. Its the only real healthy coping mechanism Ive ever had. Its life-saving. I dont care about any superficial things when Im making a record. On their resonant fourth album Revelations, produced by Shook and out March 29 via Thirty Tigers, these raw and resilient tracks come first. Throughout, Shooks deft storytelling documents regular people getting by and keeping on, all presented without filter or pretension.In 2022, Shook was remarkably productive. They released two albums: debut solo indie rock record Cruel Liars under the moniker Mightmare (Kill Rock Stars) and a third Disarmers full-length called Nightroamer (Thirty Tigers). Compared to every Disarmers record before that, which captured the in-the-room energy of the band with live recorded songs, the latter LP was instead more of a product of the studio with meticulous tracking sessions and an outside producer. While that effort was well-received, Shook believed the songs on Revelations deserved a more direct approach. Since the Disarmers started in 2015, our strength has always been in our live performance, says Shook. To me, an album should capture the essence of a band. With this new set of songs that are all super special to me, I didnt trust anybody else to capture the songs and decide how to best serve each song. Shook, who honed their production skills with their Mightmare LP and Izzy Ryders debut record, confidently took the reins during a blistering recording session, capturing 10 songs in two days.For Shook, it was paramount the recordings match the bands tangible live ferocity because these songs boast their most immediate lyrics yet. All of my writing is autobiographical, and I write everything based on my observations and experiences, says Shook. But there was something about Revelations that felt more personal to me. I unlocked this level of honesty with myself and an ability to be more objective about the things I struggle with daily. Take the title track, which finds Shook singing about the precariousness of navigating mental health under capitalism. Over a rollicking, twang-hued arrangement, they sing, Black cloud followin me around, little storm in my head / Some days I levitate off the ground, some days I cant get outta bed. The track doesnt preach or romanticize. Instead, its galvanizing and relatable.