Jars Of Clay Release New Album ‘Inland’ On Their Own Record Label Gray Matters

GRAMMY and Dove Awards winning band Jars Of Clay are preparing to release their 11th studio album, ‘Inland,’ on their own label imprint Gray Matters with distribution through Tone Tree. Produced by Tucker Martine (My Morning Jacket, Beth Orton, The Decemberists) and mixed by Beau Sorenson and Jacquire King, ‘Inland’ is available today for pre-order at iTunes and Amazon.com, and will be available on 27th August 2013.

It’s been nearly 20 years since Dan Haseltine, Steve Mason, Charlie Lowell and Matthew Odmark released their debut ‘Frail’. Students at the time, Jars Of Clay once again harness the youthful ambition and uninhibited creativity of their beginnings for Inland, while cultivating a mature sound with embellishments of violin, horns and ambient melodies that attests two decades of experience.

“These are songs for the ordinary days – when life is weighty and uncertain,” reflects Matthew Odmark. “It is this middle space that we have inhabited over the years.  It’s where you and I do the gritty work of actually living.”

With the title track recently featured exclusively as RollingStone.com’s free “Daily Download,” the music on Inland has a rich cinematic quality, marked by Lowell’s lush keyboard melodies, Odmark’s strong acoustic rhythm guitar and Mason’s serpentine bass lines. The album’s first single and upcoming video, ‘After The Fight,’ featuring the atmospheric guitar textures of Adrian Belew, has a low-key swagger that brings to mind the intergalactic art rock of Bowie and Peter Murphy. “We asked Adrian Belew if he’d come in and work his magic,” explains Haseltine. “He produced two songs on our first record, but we were too intimidated to let him play guitar. This time he added his big, wild, twanging guitar sound, the reverse solos and all the other effects he’s famous for.”

Following years on labels, ‘Inland’ marks Jars Of Clay’s first independent release, “We’ve had enough experience with record labels working a project because they have to,” says Haseltine. “Everyone we work with loves the record and wants to help us build something as a band with a big creative vision.”

Part of that creative vision is to shatter some of the preconceived notions built over the years by label marketing strategies. “It took a long time to strip away every voice that wasn’t ours to make Inland,” explains Haseltine. “For me, it’s always been about a great song. We want to connect with people who love music for music. That’s why created our own label.”

Jars Of Clay is currently on tour, playing new music from ‘Inland’ and fan favoUrites spanning the band’s repertoire that includes 16 No. 1 songs.  The tour also features special guests The Last Bison supporting in August and Brooke Waggoner and Kye Kye supporting in September on select dates. Visit the Jars Of Clay website for tour dates.