Hear Sister Hazel’s Uplifting New Single ‘Here With You’ [Exclusive Premiere]
Sister Hazel return with the third installment of their four-part EP series early next year, and Taste of Country has the exclusive premiere of the band's new single, "Here With You," today.
The lead track from their forthcoming EP Fire, out Feb. 8, frontman Ken Block explains that the uplifting song instantly jumped off the tape and lent itself to be the first new music they wanted to share with fans.
Block penned the tune with bandmate Andrew Copeland, Monty Powell and Anna Wilson during a writing trip in Utah. The song's idea came together while the four songwriters were discussing how people often miss the now because they're so caught up in either the past or the future.
"It's a declaration of no matter what's happened before, what lies ahead, I'm here with you now, and this is what matters," Block tells Taste of Country over the phone. "We're not going to worry about anything else."
One of Block's favorite lines in the song is, "The past is just an empty glass / The pain that I won't drink from anymore."
"That [idea] is an ownership of where you are, and refusing to let history dictate where you are, where you're going," he explains. "I can't control yesterday, I can't control tomorrow. So let's really pay attention right now. That's really hard to do, and I think we all struggle with that. That song really talks about that exercise of doing that together."
There are many lines heard throughout the song that leave an impact. Another suggests that hindsight is often 20/20. "There's a clear view in the rear view," Sister Hazel sing.
"I do believe that you can examine your life, but you can't define yourself by second-guessing the things that have happened in your life. I do think examining things is important, but it's only important if it is a catalyst for change," he reasons. "I think we look at things, and we try to listen and go, 'What moves me today?' That's where we were with this song when we made that decision."
"Here With You" is an introduction to the band's upcoming EP Fire, which includes seven tracks. The project will mark a return to the band's Southern and alternative rock roots, and Block says the seven songs blur genre lines. Hard to place into one genre, this is just one of the many reasons Sister Hazel has survived the test of time. A band for 25 years, Block says Sister Hazel are still passionate about putting out music for their fans and creating unique experiences.
"We pride ourselves on staying on the forefront of things. It can't just be about a song. It has to be about a community, a two-way relationship, " he explains. "Creating events like the Rock Boat, or Hazelnut Hang that we do every year, it's about creating fertile ground that we can grow together, be involved together, and reflect each other's lives back to each other."
He adds, "We still like creating music, and we think the next great song is right on the horizon. We've had tons of songs on the charts, records on the charts, but I still think the best song I'm ever going to write isn't here yet. This band, all of us write. What that allows us to do is, you approach it differently because it's someone else's perspective. That's a good way to allow yourself to evolve and keep growing."
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