Black Country Communion: New Album and Gigs - Interview

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Posted 2017-09-16 by Andy Coleman ⇒ follow

Fri 22 Sep 2017 - Thu 04 Jan 2018

The new Black Country Communion album is released on September 22, 2017, and it's a Rock Monster with sledgehammer guitar riffs, impassioned vocals and powerhouse drums, courtesy of Jason Bonham, son of Led Zeppelin's John.

The spirit of Led Zeppelin is all over the record as songs are allowed to develop into twisting and turning entities, resulting in some tracks clocking in at the eight-minute mark.

Hopefully, some of the tracks from BCC IV will get a live outing when singer and bass player Glenn Hughes , guitarist and vocalist Joe Bonamassa , keyboardist Derek Sherinian and drummer Jason Bonham perform at Wolverhampton Civic Hall on January 2, 2018, and London Hammersmith Apollo on January 4, 2018. (Preview here )

In the meantime, lyricist Glenn Hughes explains the stories behind the songs he wrote with Joe Bonamassa for the album.

Collide

I had written the riff to this song in the morning of the first day of writing BCC IV. Joe came over and I played him the riff, and we finished the song before lunch. I had a feeling that Collide would set the pace for the record.

Over My Head

This was a song I had written after a session with Joe. It was kind of like One Last Soul, from our debut album, where I had written a song and was unsure if it would fit our style simply because it was more mainstream. One Last Soul definitely clicked with rock fans and got a lot of radio airplay. Over My Head is in the same ballpark; big groove and memorable chorus. I can hear it on the radio.

The Last Song For My Resting Place

Joe wrote both the music and lyrics for this track. He had two parts to the song: the intro and outro where the track is suited with a mandolin and fiddle. The middle part is heavy and dramatic and dark. I absolutely love Joe's vocal on this song. A tale of the Titanic going down into the deep, and a violin that would perish alongside its many fateful passengers.

Sway

A swagger riff leads the way on this track. We changed the groove when Jason suggested it should have a Smooth Criminal Michael Jackson vibe. This was how Jason's dad, John, would have approached it in Led Zep. I'm mesmerised by the beat in the verse, and when it hits the chorus it's full-on Classic Rock. Once again, the vocal is carrying the message.

The Cove

Joe captured the mood brilliantly on this song. I'm still shaking my head in astonishment. I wanted to write a song about my love for dolphins. Each year thousands of these beautiful souls are murdered by hunters in the coastal town of Taiji in Japan. They are driven into the Killing Cove and brutally slaughtered. I have been working with Ric O'Barry from the Dolphin Project for four years and told him I had written a song about this senseless and horrific scenario, which has been happening for decades, for BCC IV. The Dolphin Project has changed my life, and to my dying day I will be of service to be a protector of all inhabitants that live in the sea.

The Crow

It was time to get up out of our chairs in the writing session and stand up to find a pulse for this rock song. All push and pull, sounding like our song Black Country from BCC 1. I wanted to reference the Crow, who watches over our band.

Wanderlust

Hats off to Joe for bringing this idea into the session with an insane verse groove. Love Derek's grand piano lead into the last verse. I wanted to take the chorus to a very melodic Abbey Road vocal vibe. I've always been a wanderer, always returning, coming home with a sense of lessons learned and never leaving my spiritual path.

Love Remains

I wrote this song for my dad on the flight back to the UK for his memorial service. When I went to record it, my mom had also just passed away. So I sang it for the both of them. I was installed with a greater sense of gratitude. I used a mid-falsetto vocal on the chorus to add sensitivity to the melody that I had written. The content is quite simple. When the last breath is taken, only love remains.

Awake

A song about living forever. A song for the loyal. A song for the evergreen. I wanted to ramp up the chorus and relive the long nights of freedom.

When The Morning Comes

The feeling I had with this song was I had woken up from a dream and walked down the hill through the field to be by the water at my home. Most of my work involves themes of coming home to be by the sea. The last song on this album finds me in a safe place, almost like the ending of the Wizard of Oz, surrounded by Joe, Jason, Derek and our producer Kevin Shirley. Our brotherhood - long may we continue.