Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit – “If We Were Vampires”

Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit – “If We Were Vampires”

Jason Isbell, the great roots-rock singer-songwriter and former Drive-By Trucker, and his band the 400 Unit are going to release their new album The Nashville Sound next month, and you should be excited. The LP follows Isbell’s truly gorgeous 2015 LP Something More Than Free, and it’s more of a rocker than Isbell’s last couple of albums. We’ve posted the early tracks “Hope The High Road” and “Cumberland Gap.” But the album’s highlight might be its quietest, most tender song. “If We Were Vampires” is a soft, acoustic love song about feeling sad that, because of the limits of human biology, you’re not going to get to spend forever with the person you love. Isbell’s wife Amanda Shires sings backup, which adds a lot. I’m not going to lie: When I saw Isbell play this one live a couple of weeks ago, I got pretty misty. Listen to it below, via NPR.

The Nashville Sound is out 6/16 on Isbell’s own Southeastern Records.

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