By the time this article hits the press, Justin Townes Earle would have entered rehab after being involved in an assault while under the influence of alcohol and illegal drugs and resisting arrest, which resulted to his one-night stint in the slammer.  He would have also pulled the plug off his current tour by now which would have had him perform all across the US and across the pond in the UK from today till mid-November.

Before JTE got in the middle of a public brawl in Indy that got him arrested, the Wall Street Journal’s “Speakeasy” blog talked to the young musician about his craft, his life, his new album and his harsh words for the new brand of country music from the home of country music itself and his birthplace, Nashville.

With regards to his life in Nashville living in the shadow of his father, famed musician Steve Earle, there was always the pressure of becoming as successful as or even more successful than your parents, and then there were some who were just waiting for you to mess up and fail.  “They wanted to see if I was going to come out, for lack of a better term, and be a Julian Lennon. Unfortunately, a lot of sons and daughters of established musicians can’t live up to their famous parents and then they concentrate on it after that. That will destroy any career,” he said.

The younger Earle did steer away from the sounds his father was more known for.  Instead, he concentrated on inspirations and sounds he was both interested and knowledgeable about.  “I don’t know anything about farming. I’m a city kid. I grew up next door to a housing project. I think it makes a difference to write about things that you know and that are actually close to your heart. You have to be as honest as you possibly can as a writer.”  He may not be a farm boy despite being raised in Nashville, but he sure has some blues and traditional country sounds going for him for starters.

“Harlem River Blues”, which was released ten days ago, is the combination of JTE’s experiences in his new found home in Brooklyn and his Nashville roots.  Even with musical foundations solidly built on country & western and classic folk tunes, Earle tried to create a whole new sound that was his by mixing up things a bit and adding a funky soul flavor to the record.

“We were going for a big gospel sound. The concept basically spans from the Carter Family to the Staples Singers,” JTE said.  The soul/gospel/country album was produced by Alabama-bred musician Jason Isbell, a good friend of Earle’s who then recorded the entire set in Music Row’s House of David which according to the singer, also influenced the soulfulness and feel-good vibe of the album to a certain extent.

As with any artist, with a new album comes a new tour schedule, but JTE is no stranger or an amateur to touring.  “It is basically all I’ve done. I’ve been on the road since I was 14 years old. I still love going on the road, but I don’t like doing it like I used to. I’m at the very beginning of a six-week run right now and I’m not very happy about it. I like to do two weeks and then go home for a week off and then go out for two more weeks,” he said.  Well it looks like he won’t have to worry about going back home for a week or two in the middle of a tour as he has now checked himself into rehab with his album tour on hold.  Earle has been suffering from substance abuse problems from a very early age, so when asked by the WSJ blog on how he intends to keep it together while on tour, “I definitely don’t keep it together,” was his response.  He surely doesn’t, especially after that infamous Indianapolis incident.

As a true blue son of Nashville, it was inevitable to ask him about his thoughts on the ever-growing country music springing from his hometown.  “Nashville every day of the week cranks the biggest pieces of dog s*** records that have ever been made. I’m practically embarrassed to be from Nashville because of that. The only reason I am embarrassed about being from Nashville is the s*** songwriting, s*** records and s*** singers who are making a million dollars,” were his harsh and brutal thoughts.

According to Earle, most Nashville musicians treat music as no longer a craft but more of a business venture.  The art and passion for penning and composing well thought songs – regardless of genre – has been taken for granted, and most musicians no longer treat their listeners as audiences worthy of great sounding music with equally profound words, but simply as consumers who would “just take what they get,” as Earle puts it.

Justin Townes Earle’s “Harlem River Nights” is now out in stores.  The album peaked at no.47 in the US charts and no.9 in the US Indie charts.  The album is released by Bloodhound Records.

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