September 12, 2023: Today, the Grammy-nominated trio Semisonic released “Out of the Dirt” from Little Bit of Sun, their first full length album in more than 20 years that will be released on November 3. The song was co-written by frontman Dan Wilson and Lori McKenna and features Jason Isbell on lead guitar. Listen/embed “Out of the Dirt” via YouTube.Pre-Order Little Bit of Sun.
About the song, Dan Wilson explains: “I wrote ‘Out of the Dirt’ with the amazing Lori McKenna. I told Lori I was hoping to make something with a stomping beat and a hypnotic, mesmerizing lyrical chant. The result was even more stomping and mesmeric than I had hoped. The track is pretty simple, just me on the piano, John on fretless bass and Jake on drums. As we were cutting the track, everyone agreed it needed some hot lead guitar. But instead of adding a guitar of my own later, we reached out to Jason Isbell to see if he wanted to throw down. The answer was yes (what a day!) and the results speak for themselves: Jason fucking rocks, as we already knew.”
“Out of the Dirt” follows the release of the album’s lead single “The Rope,” co-written with Amy Allen, that was praised by BrooklynVegan, NME, Paste Magazine, Rolling Stone, Stereogum and many more. Earlier this summer, Semisonic released two new songs “Grow Your Own” and the album’s title track “Little Bit Of Sun” as they embarked on their first national tour in decades.
The 12 song collection marks the band’s first full length album since 2001’s All About Chemistry and follows their critically-acclaimed 2020 EP You’re Not Alone. The songs walk a tightrope between raw energy and tender beauty, balancing power pop muscle with acoustic intimacy. Bassist John Munson and drummer Jacob Slichter’s performances are finely tuned to match, infusing Wilson’s bright, buoyant melodies with touches of melancholy and darkness that perpetually haunt the periphery.
The album also features My Morning Jacket’s Jim James who co-wrote and played guitar on “Beautiful Sky.”In addition to his work with Semisonic, Dan Wilson has remained an in-demand songwriter and producer, working on a uniquely diverse range of releases. His most recent work includes co-writing Jon Batiste’s “Butterfly,” co-writing and producing Claud’s new single “A Good Thing,” co-writing Chris Stapleton’s “White Horse,” and co-writing and producing Celine Dion’s “Love Again” from the film and soundtrack. Wilson also teamed up with Mitski for her first released co-write “The Only Heartbreaker” which hit #1 on Billboard’s AAA radio chart, worked with Taylor Swift on re-producing his co-writes on Red (Taylor’s Version), and collaborated with Leon Bridges, Tom Morello, Joy Oladokun, Cuco and many more.
Website – Facebook – Twitter – Instagram
