Patterson Hood didn’t set out to create a self-portrait with his latest solo record, Exploding Trees and Airplane Screams, but the songs he’d collected since his last solo release in 2012 (Heat Lightning Rumbles in the Distance) turned out to be a song cycle spanning his life.
“The timeframe for these songs is 1970 to 1994, but it wasn’t planned out like that,” Hood tells PopMatters. “I didn’t realize how autobiographical it was until it was being sequenced. The timeline [of the songs on the record] is distinctive. It travels backward.
“The first shot, or song, takes place at the end of the chronology. It’s kind of like The Godfather Part II. I have done so many concept records; it just comes out that way. Everything I know came from a movie or record. Maybe that’s just part of my weirdo tendencies,” Hood laughed.
However, this is not a sentimental journey. “This record is my history, but it’s not a nostalgic record. It’s more about what aspects of things that happened to me in my youth I carry and how that relates to who I am now,” Hood noted.
While Patterson Hood’s day job is leading one of the best American rock groups of the past 25 years, his solo records have been outlets for other sides of his creativity as a songwriter. “This one has songs that I needed to go into differently. I could have done them with the band, which would have been great. I would see them on a record, and then they would never get played on the road. The way the shows and the rooms are, quieter songs tend not to get played at Drive-By Truckers shows,” he explained.
There’s also the matter of time. “I remember once thinking I had an infinite number of albums left in me, but I don’t feel that anymore. I feel like time and gravity are creeping up. Tying things together means something different to me now. Physically and mentally, I am as okay as I am. Time seems very finite now,” he said.
Some songs on Exploding Trees and Airplane Screams have been around for years. Others were written during lockdown and demoed in Hood’s attic to keep him busy when touring wasn’t an option. He was also finally able to collaborate with the Decemberists‘ Chris Funk. They played some solo shows together but hadn’t collaborated on a project.
“I wanted to make a record of those songs and to collaborate with all these friends. Several of these songs were written or composed on piano. I loved analog synths as a kid, so it was fun to have those on the record. Same for the strings and woodwinds. This record was also about me learning to open up some new directions as a writer,” he noted.
Funk made Patterson Hood stretch himself, including playing piano on the record. “Chris was a great collaborative voice every step of the way. We have a chemistry that’s different, and I wanted to explore that. I was terrified about playing piano, but it worked out. It just poured out when it was time. I am thankful I did it,” he said.
One of the highlights of Exploding Trees and Airplane Screams is the closer, “Pinocchio”, and Hood has been obsessed with the film since childhood. “My grandma and uncle took me to see it over and over. Obsessing over things is just who I am. I memorized it. For the longest time, it was this and the Beatles. I have applied that all-consuming obsession to my work. It might be why I spent six years writing Southern Rock Opera,” he laughed.
However, as is often the case when a parent has a cherished film, sharing that film with Hood’s children doesn’t go as planned. “They hated it,” he laughed. “For a long time, I collected Pinocchio stuff. I had a piggy bank that was a life-size head. When the kids were little, I had the piggy bank sitting on a speaker, and the kids kept turning the bank toward the wall. They were traumatized by it.”
With the personal nature of these songs, there is the matter of people recognizing themselves in Patterson Hood’s lyrics. “I have had some awkward and uncomfortable situations arise. I don’t feel good about it. I stand by what I write and try not to be mean-spirited. My aim is to humanize. The subject of the Drive-By Truckers song ‘Used to be a Cop’ still had some position of authority and power at the time it came out. And I got a letter from Buford’s [Pusser, subject of multiple songs on the Drive-By Truckers classic The Dirty South] daughter. She was very unhappy.
“Another time, I ran into a character of one of my more infamous songs at a show, and a server came up with a shot of whiskey and a note requesting to play the song. Everybody needs to be immortalized in a song,” he said. There are limits, though. “But, I will not use my kids as fodder. I am public enough to have to be careful about the kids out there, and Drive-By Truckers can be a little controversial,” he added.
In recent years, Patterson Hood has been increasingly vocal about his political views, alienating some former fans in the process, but that didn’t bother him at all. “I have always been into politics. Even when not on the surface, my work is always political. If I don’t use my voice responsibly, no one will listen to me, anyway,” he noted. “Without the Affordable Care Act, my family would go bankrupt. We would not survive without insurance. Without the ability to waive pre-existing conditions, we weren’t insurable.”
Hood is bemused by the current state of affairs. “Where is everybody? Why aren’t more people speaking out? Rock bands have been noticeably quiet. Where is the Clash when you need them? Hip-hop was born from social unrest, but even that isn’t being addressed on the level I would expect. People need to be out there. I am not kissing any rings,” he said.
He continued, “The Dems need to not be kissing ass in the meantime. They still need to be on record as opposing these things. MAGA is not conservative. There is nothing conservative about the money policies of MAGA. Musk cares about power, not money, and Trump would not have won without him, and I would love to be wrong. When I talk about politics, I don’t like being right. Heather Cox Richardson is one of my favorites. People like her spur the hope that I have. She’s in the trenches and trying to speak the truth,” he said.
While the 23rd anniversary is a unique one to celebrate, last year, Drive by Truckers spent much of the year on the road performing Southern Rock Opera and a selection of their more political material every night to their fans. “When Southern Rock Opera turned 20, we were out on the road coming out of lockdown. We didn’t really have time to acknowledge it, so we decided to celebrate the shit out of it last year because of the election. We could address the aspects of this thing that are even more timely. Let’s talk about George Wallace right now,” he said.
These anniversaries also allow Patterson Hood to revisit and optimize the Truckers’ discography. “I always wanted to remaster SRO. Greg Calbi, who worked on it [the remaster], was great because he just wanted to bring out what’s best in the songs, and the deluxe version really shows off Wes Freed’s art. He was the visual part of our band.” They plan to do something similar with Decoration Day and they released a deluxe version of The Dirty South in 2023.
After a quick break from touring with Drive-By Truckers, Patterson Hood will bring Exploding Trees and Airplane Screams to the people. The touring band includes Lydia Loveless, multi-instrumentalist Ben Hackett, as well as Truckers Jay Gonzalez and Brad Morgan. He is excited to share these songs in more intimate settings. “It will be fun. I’m going to try to play piano on some songs. The show will lean into the new record, some of my other solo songs, and a little Drive-By Truckers,” he said.
He hopes that the distinctive sound of Exploding Trees and Airplane Screams will draw a mix of the faithful and some new fans. “I just want to make a good record and go out and play it. There is an audience that will like it. Hopefully, some people who aren’t even big Drive-By Truckers fans will get into it.”
