Chris Shiflett's New Solo Album Out 4/14; Title Track Premieres at Rolling Stone

By: Feb. 01, 2017
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West Coast Town, the new solo album from acclaimed musician, songwriter and performer Chris Shiflett, will be released April 14 on SideOneDummy Records. In advance of the release, Rolling Stone is premiering the title track today, praising, "....flawlessly blends blue-collar country punk with a catchy Bakersfield bounce. Borrowing the rowdy swagger of Prison Bound-era Social Distortion and the SoCal sheen of Buck Owens and Dwight Yoakam, Shiflett crafts a sound that is both geographically grounded and wholly his own." Additionally, the world radio premiere of the song will take place at 5pm ET today with Mojo Nixon on SiriusXM's Outlaw Country, Channel 60.

Working with Grammy Award-winning producer Dave Cobb and Grammy Award-winning engineer/mixer Matt Ross-Spang, the 10-track album was recorded at Nashville's historic RCA Studio A during the summer of 2016. In addition to Shiflett on electric guitar and Cobb on acoustic guitar and percussion, the album features an all-star collection of studio musicians, including Robby Turner (Waylon Jennings, Chris Stapleton) on pedal steel, Chris Powell (Brent Cobb, Jamey Johnson) on drums and percussion, Adam Gardner (Southern Family) on bass and Michael Webb (Southern Family) on keyboards.

Of making the album, Shiflett comments, "After being a fan of Dave Cobb's work for years, recording with him and his crew was everything I'd hoped it would be. His input on and arrangements of my songs took them into places I wouldn't have imagined. Plus the speed that he creates at was inspiring."

In celebration of the album release, Shiflett will embark on a series of special shows this spring, including dates in L.A., New York and Nashville. The performances will feature special opening guest Brian Whelan, who co-wrote four songs from the new album. See below for complete details.

West Coast Town is Shiflett's third solo album and follow's 2013's All Hat and No Cattle, which features covers of nine classic honky-tonk songs by artists such as Don Rich, Waylon Jennings, Faron Young, Buck Owens and Merle Haggard. Of the album, American Songwriter asserts, "The guitar sounds are predictably killer, but Shiflett really lets loose on the vocals," while Paste Magazine praises, "Shiflett's vocal performances are nearly always impressive and interesting, and he never tries too hard to imitate or stray away from the styles of the original artists; rather, he is able to appropriately insert himself into these songs in a way that feels quite natural."

Born in Santa Barbara and now based in Los Angeles, Shiflett is widely known as the guitarist for Foo Fighters as well as for his previous work with Dead Peasants and Me First and the Gimme Gimmes. In addition to music, Shiflett is the creator and host of the weekly podcast, "Walking the Floor with Chris Shiflett," which features one-on-one interviews with a wide range of musical guests, writers, athletes, and artists. Past guests include Merle Haggard, Dwight Yoakam, Mike Ness, Steve Earle, John Doe, Sturgill Simpson, Mickey Raphael and more.

WEST COAST TOWN TRACK LIST
1. Sticks & Stones (Chris Shiflett)
2. West Coast Town (Chris Shiflett)
3. Goodnight Little Rock (Chris Shiflett)
4. Room 102 (Chris Shiflett, Brian Whelan)
5. The Girl's Already Gone (Chris Shiflett)
6. Blow Out The Candles (Chris Shiflett, Brian Whelan)
7. I'm Still Drunk (Chris Shiflett)
8. Cherry (Chris Shiflett)
9. Tonight's Not Over (Chris Shiflett, Brian Whelan)
10. Still Better Days (Chris Shiflett, Brian Whelan)
CHRIS SHIFLETT TOUR DATES
March 21-Portland, OR-Hawthorne Lounge*
March 22-Seattle, WA-Sunset Tavern*
March 24-Spokane, WA-The Big Dipper*
March 26-Missoula, MT-Missoula Winery*
March 27-Bozeman, MT-The Eagles Ballroom*
March 28-Ketchum, ID-Whiskey Jacques*
March 30-Pioneertown, CA-Pappy and Harriets Pioneertown Palace*
March 31-Flagstaff, AZ-Museum Club*
April 2-Los Angeles, CA-RESIDENT*
April 3-San Diego, CA-Casbah*
April 6-New York, NY-Rockwood Music Hall, Stage 2*
April 9-Nashville, TN-The High Watt*
*with special guest Brian Whelan

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