THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Steeldrivers celebrate their 20th anniversary with their seventh album Outrun — released on the iconic Sun Records. The Nashville bluegrass band simultaneously defy the traditions of the bluegrass genre and redefine it for generations to come, expertly weaving in rock, soul, blues and Americana to create that SteelDrivers sound.
Those already initiated with the two-decade-old, Grammy-winning quintet will know exactly what it means — the bluesy-leaning, stomp inducing, singular style that’s made fans of folks from Adele to Bill Murray to hundreds of thousands more fans across the globe for the past two decades. Between The SteelDrivers’ unique thump and chop of the rhythm section and seamless harmonies and vocal delivery, the Americana sum becomes greater than its bluegrass parts, an X factor that’s still present in Outrun.
Written by The SteelDrivers’ Tammy Rogers (fiddle) and Matt Dame (guitar) along with longtime co-writer Leslie Satcher, the title cut was penned just before recording sessions. “I happened to run into (Satcher) the weekend before we were scheduled to go into the studio and told her we didn’t have any ‘Leslie songs’ on the upcoming record,” says Rogers. “She made the time to get together and Outrun was written in about an hour and a half!” Mandolinist Brent Truitt calls it his favorite song from the new project, adding, “Outrun has all the elements that will likely elevate it to a SteelDrivers classic in short order.”
Part murder ballad, part getaway thriller, Outrun uses verse vignettes to tell its story while the song’s chorus is a universal lesson, or maybe just a warning:
“You can’t outrun the Mississippi River in a Shelby GT Ford
You can’t outrun the angels, you can’t outrun the lord
You can’t outrun a broken heart that gives in to a gun
And you can’t outrun the grim reaper once the deed is done.”
Beyond the ever-evolving musical nature of The SteelDrivers, another key element of Outrun is its underlying tribute to late founding member Mike Henderson. Although he passed away in 2023, his memory and presence are still profoundly felt by the group, onstage and in the studio. “I lovingly refer to Mike as the architect of the band,” Rogers says. “Because he’s the one in the beginning that called us all together. Everybody respected everybody else, and that’s what created our sound and what makes it so unique.”
Only Nashville could give birth to a band like The SteelDrivers; a group of seasoned veterans — each distinguished in his or her own right, each valued in the town’s commercial community — who are seizing an opportunity to follow their hearts to their souls’ reward. In doing so, they are braiding their bluegrass roots with new threads of their own design, bringing together country, soul, blues, and other contemporary influences to create an unapologetic hybrid that is old as the hills but fresh as the morning dew. This is new music with the old feeling. SteelDrivers fan Vince Gill describes the band’s fusion as simply “an incredible combination”
Specializing in a unique mix of what might be called bluegrass soul, The SteelDrivers have become one of the biggest names in progressive bluegrass after making their debut in 2005. While there’s a strong traditional streak in their sound, they bring a passion to their delivery that adds a distinctive flavor, and they’re not afraid of adding a forceful grit to the music.
The SteelDrivers have been nominated for four Grammys, and the Americana Music Association’s New Artist Of The Year. They were IBMA’s 2009 Emerging Artist of The Year. In 2015, The Muscle Shoals Recordings won the Grammy for Best Bluegrass Recording.”
