Son Volt Reunites and Returns to Studio

With frontman/songwriter Jay Farrar at the helm, Son Volt will begin recording its fourth full-length album at the end of September. The band also plans to hit the road for a tour in late February/early March 2005.

Following a five-year hiatus (with the exception of the April 2004 recording of "Sometimes" for the Alejandro Escovedo tribute album) multi-instrumentalist Dave Boquist, bassist Jim Boquist and drummer Mike Heidorn will reconvene at Farrar's St. Louis studio.

"It felt like we hit the ground running when we recorded Al's song for Por Vida," Farrar says of the session for the Escovedo tribute. "Five years seemed like five days at that point. It proved that more recording and performing as Son Volt is something that should happen."

As the band reconnects, a unique glimpse inside the Son Volt sessions will be offered. Beginning Oct. 1, a webcam will be placed in the studio to capture a day of pre-production and 16 days of recording. Once up-and-running, the webcam can be accessed at www.jayfarrar.net/webcam and will feature streaming photos that refresh every 5 seconds.

Farrar formed Son Volt in 1994 after the dissolution of Uncle Tupelo, while his bandmate Jeff Tweedy went on to form Wilco. From the mid-to-late '90s, Farrar's outift released Trace, Straightaways and Wide Swing Tremolo, blending traditional American music forms with poetic imagery and straight-ahead rock.

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