When Rival Sons lead singer Jay Buchanan sings, "You want that rock and roll" in their latest single, "Sugar On The Bone," you'd better believe he means it. The critically acclaimed group have been bringing rock and roll to the poeple for the better part of a decade, delivering consistently solid rock records and empassioned live performances with all the raw relentless rumble of a musical power engine just getting started.
Coming off an appearance at Bonnaroo last weekend and performing "Too Bad" on "The Late Late Show with James Corden" last month, the band is gearing up for a co-headlining tour with legendary hard-rock heroes Stone Temple Pilots later this fall. We caught up with Buchanan for an update, and we are pleased to premiere Rival Sons' new music video for "Sugar On The Bone," right here on GRAMMY.com. Turn up loud and take a look:
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Created by Swedish photographer/cinematographer Patrik Skoglow, the video chronicles the band on tour in Oslo, Stockholm and Copenhagen, Denmark over a stretch of a days. "We’ve worked with [Patrik] over the years, so having him around was as natural as anything," Buchanan told us about the video. "Post-tour, he edited it all together and that’s what you see. On stage we can come off pretty serious because up there it’s knife in one hand and the heart in the other, but this video shows a more lighthearted side and I like that about it."
It's fitting that their new video focuses on life on stage and on the road, as Buchanan describes how much the band's live show means—and has always meant—to them as a band.
"Rival Sons has always been and will always be a live band. The studio is great and all but when it comes to playing those songs live, that’s where the danger is and that’s where I want to live," he said. "People say the audience needs entertainment, and they do; but what the audience really wants is a crucifixion, they want something more vivid and dangerous than the safe bets most of them have made in their lives and we don’t f**k around up there I can tell you that much. Our job is to walk that high wire for them without a net and we do."
"Sugar On The Bone" comes from Rival Sons' latest album, Feral Roots, which was produced by Nashville super-producer Dave Cobb. "We’ve done all seven of our records with Cobb, it’s definitely a family affair at this point," said Buchanan. "He and I even wrote one together, 'Shooting Stars.' and it’s one of my favorite tracks. Dave makes the whole thing seem effortless, like a good livingroom hang or a family reunion …only less awkward."
Feral Roots has a deliberate and distinctive sound right out of the gate, fresh and modern, but with a foot in the familiar. Some of that spirit may have been informed and infused by where the album was wrtten and recorded.
"We tracked the great majority at RCA Studio A, four tracks down in Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, one track at Ocean Way Nashville, and I did a lot of writing and cut some vocals at ITW with Cobb," said Buchanan. "Spending time in these legendary studios just reminds you that you’re standing on the shoulders of the giants that came before you."
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">All shows with <a href="https://twitter.com/STPBand?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@STPBand</a> are now on sale. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NCW?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NCW</a> find $20 tickets to all these shows through May 7. <a href="https://t.co/tH4piMJaK7">https://t.co/tH4piMJaK7</a> <a href="https://t.co/hyaZZrOPhv">pic.twitter.com/hyaZZrOPhv</a></p>— Rival Sons (@rivalsons) <a href="https://twitter.com/rivalsons/status/1124434675076935681?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 3, 2019</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Enjoy the exclusive premiere of Rival Sons' new video for "Sugar On The Bone" above, and catch Rival Sons live in a city near you this summer. The band is playing a run of European dates and festivals in June and July before returning to North America for their STP co-headlning U.S. tour in September and October, then heading abroad for more European dates through the end of November. For a full list of dates and ticket info, visit the band's website.
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