Hammer Down

The SteelDrivers are back! The three time Grammy® nominated bluegrass-meets-soul band has threaded the roots of bluegrass music with the distinctive threads of their own design, bringing together country and soul to create their own unapologetic hybrid of new music with the old feeling. Hammer Down, their third release on Rounder Records, is set for release February 5, 2013 (International release dates vary).

The SteelDrivers brand of bluegrass intense, dark, poetic, and inescapably human is a refreshing reminder of the timeless power of string band music, and is captured perfectly on the new Hammer Down. The band has gone through a few changes since they first hit the national scene in 2008 with their self-titled debut, but their songs and sound remain fresh and powerful.

The SteelDrivers are banjo player Richard Bailey, bass/vocalist Mike Fleming, guitar/vocalist Gary Nichols, fiddler/vocalist Tammy Rogers and mandolinist Brent Truitt. Produced by Luke Wooton, Hammer Down is a collection of 10 new tunes from original members Chris Stapleton and Mike Henderson, as well as Rogers and Nichols. The set also includes the songs I ll Be There and Cry No Mississippi that Nichols co-wrote with John Paul White one-half of the band The Civil Wars.

The English pop star Adele was so smitten with the band that she began performing their song, If It Hadn't Been For Love, in her live performances. Throughout 2013, The SteelDrivers will be touring nationwide at clubs and festivals.