Good luck figuring out Sturgill Simpson’s next move. The man is utterly unpredictable, and I think that’s a good thing. After sharing seven LPs under most of his own name (he dropped the “John”), he rebranded as Johnny Blue Skies on the excellent Passage du Desir nearly two years ago. Then, just last month, he promised that his next record, Mutiny After Midnight, would be a physical-only release. It got earmarked with a March 20 release, but now it’s available in full on Simpson’s YouTube channel for “the real ones,” as he wrote on his Instagram story. Like I said: utterly unpredictable.
The decision comes just days after Simpson shipped out vinyl copies of Mutiny After Midnight to random record stores across the country but wouldn’t tell anybody where. It became something of a treasure hunt, and copies of the LP wound up on eBay within hours. Simpson has been spending a lot of time online these days, posting memes on his Instagram account daily and riffing on his own resentment toward the music industry. In turn, this album’s rollout has been anything but conventional, and now he’s beaten any and all leakers to the punch.
A review is to come, but I can say that Mutiny After Midnight is great. I’ll need to hear it a few more times before I decide where exactly it lands in Simpson’s near-perfect catalogue (it’s definitely up there). He promised us a dance record, and he and his new band, The Dark Clouds, more than delivered on that promise. These songs are horny, politically-charged, and downright groovy. Some early highlights include “Don’t Let Go,” “Stay On That,” “Everyone Is Welcome,” and “Ain’t That A Bitch.” In fact, “Stay On That” is absolutely delirious. You’ll want to look out for that boogie on Side A. Listen to Mutiny After Midnight below.
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