Take a sneak peek at our new book trailer for our Record Store Day release The Blue Series: The Story Behind the Color, Volume I, Special Edition available only on RSD, April 22nd, 2017.

Third Man Books is excited to announce the The Blue Series: The Story Behind The Color, Volume One, a 282 page book detailing the story behind the Jack White-produced Blue Series 7" singles recorded in The Blue Room at Third Man Records. The special edition of the book, which is signed by the book's editor (and Third Man executive) Ben Blackwell, and includes a 7" (pressed on exclusive blue vinyl at Third Man Pressing in Detroit) with unreleased Blue Session tracks from First Aid Kit and Gibby Haynes, will be available on Record Store Day (Saturday, April 22) at Third Man Records storefronts and select record stores. The special edition has been limited to 500 copies. The standard edition of the book will be in bookstores on June 6, and will include the 7"on black vinyl. Both editions will include a foreword by award-winning Rolling Stone journalist David Fricke and a ten-song Blue Series sampler curated by the book's editor Ben Blackwell.

The book includes an extensive interview with Jack White covering the span of the series, the musicians involved, recording techniques, and the direct influence of the series over his own career, as well as exclusive interviews from Blue Series artists like Stephen Colbert, Dwight Yoakam, Courtney Barnett, Wanda Jackson, Insane Clown Posse, First Aid Kit, Dex Romweber, Lillie Mae, Ruby Amanfu and more. In these interviews, the artists describe their Blue Series recording experiences in a behind-the-scenes look at their own creative processes, as well as that of producer Jack White. The book also features unseen photos of the artists, including Jack White.

The Blue Series: The Story Behind The Color, Volume One documents the Series' behind-the-scenes stories, personalities, recording processes and inner workings, real-world promotion, and commercial reaction. Such in-depth and tell-all accounts are quite rare, both from White and Third Man, and should help contextualize what a truly unique and unparalleled collection of song and performance these singles comprise. Not to mention most were recorded with only 24 hours' notice.

Last week we geared you up for all the goods up for grabs on Record Store Day, and now we are pleased to share more details of the intangible enjoyment you have to look forward to this Saturday. 

We are very proud to host three astounding Nashville-based acts (one of whom was featured on our recent Luck Sessions partnership release) who have been busy embarking on nationwide tours and recording significant albums but are swinging by The Blue Room for afternoon sets.

Lilly Hiatt 12:00 

Rootsy singer/songwriter Lilly Hiatt had a lot to live up to when she chose to make music her career -- her father is John Hiatt, one of America’s leading songwriters since the ’70s. She made her recording debut in 2008, singing backing vocals on her father’s album Same Old Man, and she began playing out with her own band. In 2011, Lilly Hiatt & the Dropped Ponies struck a deal with Normaltown Records, a subsidiary of New West Records, and the following year they released their debut album, Let Down. After plenty of touring (including several dates opening for her father), Lilly returned in 2015 with her second album, Royal Blue.

Royal Blue, the second album by East Nashville firebrand Lilly Hiatt, is about the majesty of melancholy-or, as she explains it, “accepting the sadder aspects of life and finding some peace in them.” A dance between pedal steel and synths, the album examines the vagaries of love and commitment but steadfastly refuses to romanticize any notion of romance. 

This is, in other words, not a well-behaved singer-songwriter album. Instead, it’s feisty and rough-around-the-edges, full of humor and bite and attitude from a woman who proclaims, “I’d rather throw a punch than bat my eye.” Royal Blue hints at autobiography without sounding self-absorbed, as Lilly transforms a rough patch of life into smart, sturdy, sometimes even hilarious songs that don’t sit squarely in any one genre. Instead, Royal Blue reaches out boldly and playfully into many different sounds and styles: Austin folk rock, Pacific Northwest indie, pre-Oasis Britpop, New York punk ca. 1977. There are ’90s alt guitars and ’00 indie synths, some twang and some Neko Case and Kim Deal.

Steelism 12:45

Comprising guitarist Jeremy Fetzer, pedal steel player Spencer Cullum and backed by some of Nashville’s finest young musicians, Steelism blends an eclectic array of vintage and modern influences to create instrumental music that truly sounds like nothing else. Though Steelism is relatively new to the music scene, Cullum and Fetzer are not, having backed artists like Wanda Jackson, Johnny Fritz, Rayland Baxter and Andrew Combs. The two met while touring the U.K. with Nashville songstress Caitlin Rose, quickly bonding over their shared love for classic movie soundtrack composers like Ennio Morricone and ‘60s instrumental acts like Booker T. and the M.G.s, The Ventures and Pete Drake. Writing together between sound checks, the duo realized it was time for the sidemen to become frontmen, and Steelism was born.

Though the two grew up on different continents (Cullum hails from Essex, England; Fetzer from Canton, OH), Cullum and Fetzer were cut from the same musical cloth, as becomes immediately evident whenever they take the stage. Their debut EP The Intoxicating Sounds of Pedal Steel and Guitar was met with critical acclaim, with American Songwriter’s Sean Maloney calling Steelism “instantly recognizable – surf, country, blues, all steeped in soul and heavy on the grooves – but astoundingly outside the contemporary vernacular.”

The duo’s full-length debut 615 to FAME was released in North America via Single Lock Records (founded by Ben Tanner of the Alabama Shakes, John Paul White of The Civil Wars and Will Trapp) in Setember 2014 and in the UK / Europe by Names Records in February 2015. Half recorded at Muscle Shoals’ historic FAME Studios, where Wilson Pickett, Aretha Franklin and Otis Redding all tracked hits, 615 to FAME was produced by Fetzer and Cullum with co-production from Ben Tanner, and contributions from longtime Nashville-based collaborators Jon Radford (drums) and Michael Rinne (bass). Featuring 10 original instrumentals and one cover, 615 to FAME announced Steelism as one of Nashville’s most exciting new acts and the album received a great deal of press love, most notably from NPR.

Their follow up to 615 to FAME is expected to be released later this year.

Adia Victoria 1:30

Adia Victoria is establishing a fresh reference point on the musical landscape. From blood-born howls to idiosyncratic phrasing, she is the big red dot saying You Are Here. The Nashville-based artist travels the lands of rock, afro punk, and country, squarely situated in the continent of the Blues.

Victoria spent the last few years writing, recording, touring and performing, while entrenched in the infamous artist R&R world - restaurants and retail work. Day jobs at a laundry list of Nashville "it" and not so "it" spots gave the musician lots of people watching time as well as the mental and emotional space to marinate in her art.

Produced by Roger Moutenot (Yo La Tengo, Sleater Kinney) and the artist herself, recorded at Nashville, Tennessee's Haptown Studios, Beyond the Bloodhounds features the indelible lyrics, voice, and guitar solos of Adia Victoria along with a band of talented musicians including Tiffany Minton (Drums), Alex Caress (keys), Mason Hickman (guitar), and Jason Harris (bass). She recalls, "the studio is a Music City treasure. It used to be a car repair shop. You walk in and there are no windows. It's dark and moody. It feels like walking into the mind."

Rolling Stone Magazine featured Adia Victoria as one of "10 New Artists You Need to Know." The Village Voice called her an "eerie, intriguing songwriter," with "bone chilling guitar riffs and lyrics topped with candid scorn. Vogue highlighted the recording artist as one of "5 Beauties Who Answer to Afropunk's Rebellious Call."

Also in Nashville...

Matchless Coffee Co. will be out front bright 'n' early to fix you up with your caffeinated buzz before doors open at 10am. Their addicting coffee sodas and delicious icy beverages are just what the doctored ordered to get you prepped for a full day of treasure seeking. 

Las Paletas will venture over with their frozen treats just in time to deliver your afternoon refresher between 12-4pm. 

We will be keeping the grill hot on our back patio all day long starting with breakfast sandwiches in the morning and switching to hot dogs for lunch. In addition, we'll be tending the bar with Bloody Marys, mimosas, and our tiki-inspired cocktail, "The Blue Series Swizzle," a nod to our new Third Man Books release!

Meanwhile in Detroit...

Eliza Godfrey 2:30

From a distant land on the weird side of the Hamtramcky skate park, Eliza, Detroit's best kept secret and next rising star will be playing a rare daytime show. Beautiful, psych/post-Ye-Ye/On The Beach Era Neil Young singing accompanied by electric guitar and vice versa.

 

Prude Boys 3:30

Quennton Thornbury and Caroline Myrick began singing together in the summer of 2013. What started as an aimless writing project, however, quickly evolved into Prude Boys. The duo worked with a rotating cast of drummers as they began to cut their teeth playing the local circuit. During the next two years, the pair continued to grind, self-releasing two eps (Lost Boys 2013, and Family Style Glamour 2015) as well as a three-part serial of singles on cassette. In addition to their recordings and local gigs the band began to play out across the state and began more ambitious touring through the South and East Coast of America.

The trio is currently gearing up to release their latest work “The Outlaw” b/w “Plague My Dreams” on Cass Records with Detroitʼs own Ben Blackwell. The trio also plans to get back into the studio with Derek Stanton of Molten Sound to keep cutting the new work. Prude Boys will continue to expand upon their touring routes, constantly adding more dates in new towns. Most importantly Thornbury and Myrick continue to write, and the trio works tirelessly to arrange the new material, always working behind the songs.

Mexican Knives 4:30

Mexican Knives sounds like if Mazzy Star was watching Siouxsie Sioux and the Banshees make-out with Echo and The Bunnymen in John Dwyer’s living room.