The Chris Robinson Brotherhood have released an official video for "Behold The Seer." It's the opening track from the band's new studio album, 'Barefoot In The Head,' out this Friday, July 21 on Silver Arrow Records. The video, which was premiered by Rolling Stone alongside an in-depth interview with Robinson about the latest recording, was directed by longtime CRB collaborator Matthew Mendenhall. The footage was shot at The CRB's own two day festival, dubbed Freaks For The Festival, held this past April in Big Sur, CA.
A ten-track, self-produced effort, 'Barefoot In The Head' marks the third collection of new material in only two years time from The CRB. For the fourth year in a row, they'll play over 120 shows with a 60-plus show, cross-country U.S. tour running from August through December to support the new release. Robinson and The CRB's Neal Casal will also appear for five acoustic duo sets at independent record stores.
"They say the only people who know true freedom are musicians and gangsters," Chris Robinson says with a laugh. "And Bob Dylan said to live outside the law you must be honest. We're living in these anxiety-filled times, in an era of 'no truth,' but what our music represents is this truly honest way of communicating with people, and that's a really freeing thing."
If 'Barefoot In The Head' is any indication, freedom suits the Chris Robinson Brotherhood well. The band is in the midst of one of their most prolific periods to date, with a slew of studio and live records coming out amidst a rigorous tour schedule that only seems to fuel their fire even further. 'Barefoot In The Head' finds the band pushing boundaries and breaking new ground with more joy and wonder than ever before. The album showcases the continued growth of Robinson's songwriting partnership with his bandmates (guitarist Neal Casal, drummer Tony Leone, keyboardist Adam MacDougall, and bassist Jeff Hill), while reveling in the kind of playful adventurousness that can only come from five artists tuned in to the same sonic wavelength.
The album opens with the Americana funk of "Behold The Seer," which sounds like something of a mission statement for the CRB as Robinson sings, "If you want to keep your engine humming / Keep your eyes wide ahead and don't look back." On the dreamy "She Shares My Blanket," Robinson crafts cinematic scenes from a winter love affair in the mountains, while elegant pedal steel added by special guest Barry Sless on "Blonde Light Of Day" casts a warm, romantic haze and "Blue Star Woman" sounds like T-Rex dressed in overalls living on a West Coast commune. Throughout the album, Robinson and the band deftly intertwine country, blues and psychedelia, even channeling freewheeling 60s' folk on "Hark The Herald Hermit Speaks," a breakneck stream of consciousness that blurs the lines between fantasy and reality. On the English psych inspired "Glow," which Robinson calls "one of the most special things I've ever done in the studio," The CRB are joined by the celebrated sarodist Alam Khan (son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan).
"The music that we make, the concerts that we play, it's this world we've created for ourselves and our people," explains Robinson. "We want everybody to understand that no matter where you are in your life that you can always be barefoot in your head. There's always this other place you can go. Is that place it real? That’s your decision to make, what you're going to let be real to you."
That may ultimately be the true definition of freedom: not what's bestowed upon you by others, but rather what you bestow upon yourself. For the CRB, that means the ability to follow their muse unfettered by expectation or preconceptions, the ability to measure their success purely in terms of artistic fulfillment and the bonds of brotherhood.
"After six years of solid touring with this band, we can still roll into Fayetteville, AR on a Tuesday night and have the most fun of any musical thing I've ever been a part of," says Robinson. "We don't have the weight of responsibility or nostalgia, which means we're in the very psychedelic situation of getting to be totally honest and create everything in the moment. That's freedom."
Chris Robinson Brotherhood Tour Dates
August 5 - Petaluma, CA - Petaluma Music Festival
August 9 - Wilmington, NC - Greenfield Lake Amphitheatre
August 10 - Asheville, NC - The Orange Peel
August 11 - Virginia Beach, VA - Shaka's
August 12 - Charlottesville, VA - Jefferson Theatre
August 13 - Annapolis, MD - Rams Head On Stage
August 15 - Portsmouth, NH - The Music Hall
August 17 - Manunuck, RI - Ocean Mist (sold out)
August 18 - Asbury Park, NJ - Stone Pony Summerstage **
August 19 - Boston, MA - House of Blues **
August 20 - Holyoke, MA - Gateway City Arts
August 22 - Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Small's Theatre
August 23 - State College, PA - The State Theatre
August 24 - Ithaca, NY - The Haunt
August 25 - Woodstock, NY - Bearsville Theater
August 26 - Washington, DC - The 9:30 Club
September 7 - Pompano Beach, FL - Pompano Beach Amphitheater *
September 8 - St. Augustine, FL - St. Augustine Amphitheater *
September 9 - St. Petersburg, FL - Jannus Landing *
September 10 - Orlando, FL - The Social
September 12 - Pensacola, FL - Vinyl Music Hall
September 14 - Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
September 15 - Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
September 16 - Macon, GA - Cox Capitol Theatre
September 17 - New Orleans, LA - The Civic Theatre
September 19 - Chattanooga, TN - Revelry Room
September 21 - Oxford, MS - The Lyric Oxford
September 22 - Charlotte, NC - Neighborhood Theatre
September 23 - Louisville, KY - Bourbon & Beyond Festival
September 24 - Knoxville, TN - Bijou Theatre
September 26 - Greensboro, NC - The Blind Tiger
September 28 - Charleston, SC - Charleston Music Hall
September 29 - Raleigh, NC - Lincoln Theatre
September 30 - Raleigh, NC - Lincoln Theatre
October 1 - Nashville, TN - Third & Lindsley
October 3 - Augusta, GA - Sky City
October 5 - Norfolk, CT - Infinity Hall
October 6 - Ardmore, PA - Ardmore Music Hall
October 7 - Ardmore, PA - Ardmore Music Hall
October 27 - Placerville, CA - Hangtown Music Festival
October 29 - Santa Barbara, CA - Lobero Theatre
October 31 - Englewood, CO - Gothic Theatre
November 2 - Westbury, NY - The Space at Westbury
November 3 - Port Chester, NY - Capitol Theatre
November 4 - Hartford, CT - Infinity Hall
November 5 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
November 7 - Portland, ME - Port City Music Hall
November 9 - Providence, RI - Columbus Theatre
November 10 - Niagara, NY - Seneca Niagara Casino & Resort
November 11 - Cleveland, OH - House of Blues
November 12 - Grand Rapids, MI - The Intersection
November 14 - Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall
November 16 - Minneapolis, MN - Fine Line Music Cafe
November 17 - Milwaukee, WI - Turner Hall Ballroom
November 18 - Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall
November 19 - Madison, WI - Barrymore Theatre
December 2 - Portland, OR - Revolution Hall
December 3 - Seattle, WA - The Neptune Theatre
December 5 - Santa Cruz, CA - Historic Cocoanut Grove Ballroom
December 7 - Las Vegas, NV - Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas
December 8 - San Diego, CA - House of Blues San Diego
December 9 - Los Angeles, CA - The Fonda Theatre
December 10 - San Luis Obispo, CA - Fremont Theatre
December 12 - Sacramento, CA - Ace of Spades
* w/ Blackberry Smoke
** w/ Donavon Frankenreiter
Chris Robinson & Neal Casal
Acoustic In-Store Performances
July 31 - Hollywood, CA - Amoeba Records
August 1 - Seattle, WA - Silver Platters
August 2 - Portland, OR - Music Millennium
August 4 - Berkeley, CA - Amoeba Records
August 14 - New York, NY - Turntable Lab
