“When I hold back, I’m no good. I’d rather be good sometimes than holding back all the time,” Janis Joplin once said. And no one takes this statement to heart more than Brittany Howard of the Alabama Shakes. By the sound of her heartbreakingly soulful voice, it’s clear to her audiences that this gifted musician never holds back.
Since the beginning of her career, Brittany Howard has been compared to strong soulful women like Joplin and, at the young age of 26, that's a great compliment. Her band of equally talented musicians certainly gives her the opportunity to offer the same timeless soulfulness of Joplin to the ears of her listeners.
The foundation of the Athens, Alabama based band was built on the high school friendship of Howard and the band’s bassist, Zac Cockrell. Once these two musicians started collaborating, they added friends Heath Fogg and Steve Johnson to their roster and formed the earliest version of their band, The Shakes, changing their name to The Alabama Shakes before the 2012 release of their first album, “Boys and Girls.”
“Boys and Girls” awarded the band with world-wide recognition for its collection of original southern rock mixed with a deliciously large dose of soul, along with two Grammy nominations and a live performance by Howard at the 2013 Grammys award show.
The band’s second and latest album, “Sound and Color,” released earlier this year, has brought the band even more attention.
“We took time to write this record, and I’m really glad we did,” says Howard on the development of “Sound and Color.” “This record is full of genre-bending songs. It’s even harder now when people ask, ‘What kind of band are you?’ I have no clue.”
And when discussing the development of the band over the course of writing two albums, Heath Fogg explains, “Everybody has really advanced on their instruments. Brittany’s vocals have gotten so much stronger; she’s able to do more things than she ever knew she could.”
You can be impressed by Brittany Howard’s vocal capabilities and be completely moved by the talented Alabama Shakes at Iroquois Amphitheater the night of Thursday, July 30th. Details about the show can be found on the venue’s website. For more information on the soulful Alabama Shakes, visit the band’s website.
Photo courtesy of Alabama Shakes
