When Justin Moore set out to record his new album, he envisioned a more traditional sounding album with a 90’s country flavor to it, and that’s what he delivers with Late Nights and Longnecks, which will be available this Friday. Justin explains, “I think just being 12 years into this now, when we wrote all these songs I said, ‘Let’s just not worry about three minutes and you know we need this type of song or we need that type song.’ You know, there have been times in the past where I go, ‘Man we really need a tempo or we really need a ballad,’ or whatever. And you have to be cognizant of those things but I didn’t really care on this album.”
Rather than chasing a formula or hit songs, Justin says, “I just kind of was like, ‘Let’s just write the best songs we can write and then go from there.’ And I feel like we did that.”
One thing people who have heard the album have noticed is that Justin seems to be singing with confidence and a bit of swagger. “From the standpoint of being confident or whatever you want to say in the studio,” says Justin, “I think just doing this so long, obviously the more experience you have with the anything you get better at it or you should. If you don’t you need to get into some other business. But for whatever reason I’m singing better than I’ve ever sang, live and studio stuff, and I don’t know what to attribute that to. I don’t know. Maybe it’s confidence.”
As a young artist every decision and every song seems critical, like it could make or break your career, and while there’s still more Justin would love to accomplish in his career, he says, “I really feel blessed that I’ve accomplished all that I’ve accomplished and am content. If it ended tomorrow, I’m content. So, I think it’s more of a relaxation than a confidence… The pressure’s off to me now. I want this to last another 10, 20 years, whatever… And I think maybe that what you interpreted to be swagger was maybe just a more relaxed me in the studio.”
One way Justin and his producers captured the authentic 90’s country sound on Late Nights and Longnecks is by enlisting the studio musicians who actually played on a lot of the 90’s country hits that influenced Justin and his career. When his producer made the suggestion to bring them in, Justin thought it was a brilliant idea. “These guys know what they’re doing. They did it,” says Justin. “All these songs that I talk about that influenced this album, they played on ‘em. So it was a lot of fun for me. It really was. It was an enjoyable experience. I was proud to have the opportunity to say I worked with them. It’s something I’ll remember forever.”
Late Nights and Longnecks features Justin’s latest single, “The Ones That Didn’t Make it Back Home,” which is sitting in the top ten on the charts.
Justin Moore – freedom to write :42
“Obviously there are reasons why we record certain songs and certain albums, and I think just being 12 years into this now, when we wrote all these songs I said, ‘Let’s just not worry about three minutes and you know we need this type of song or we need that type song.’ You know, there have been times in the past where I go, ‘Man we really need a tempo or we really need a ballad,’ or whatever. And you have to be cognizant of those things but I didn’t really care on this album. I just kind of was like, ‘Let’s just write the best songs we can write and then go from there.’ And I feel like we did that. And every artist will also tell you every single album is the best they’ve ever put out, me included. But I genuinely believe that with this album. I truly do.”
Justin Moore – more relaxed in studio :57
“From the standpoint of being confident or whatever you want to say in the studio, I think just doing this so long, obviously the more experience you have with the anything you get better at it or you should. If you don’t you need to get into some other business. But for whatever reason I’m singing better than I’ve ever sang, live and studio stuff, and I don’t know what to attribute that to. I don’t know. Maybe it’s confidence. I really feel blessed that I’ve accomplished all that I’ve accomplished and am content. If it ended tomorrow, I’m content. So, I think it’s more of a relaxation than a confidence. You know, when you’re first getting into it and you’re worried about having this hit or this show or how many albums you sell or all of those things, they do weigh on you. And the pressure’s off to me now. I want this to last another 10, 20 years, whatever. But if it don’t, it’s cool too. And I think maybe that what you interpreted to be swagger was maybe just a more relaxed me in the studio.”
Justin Moore – working with 90’s musicians :44
“When we talked about doing the most traditional album we could do, obviously you can write the songs but that has to translate into the studio as well. We were talking about do we use the same guys that we’ve always used, which are great and we love ‘em. But my producer came up with the idea – he goes, ‘Why don’t we get some of those guys who played on all that 90’s stuff that you’re talking about. I thought, man, that’s a great idea. We don’t have to explain to the guys we use. These guys know what they’re doing. They did it. All these songs that I talk about that influenced this album, they played on ‘em. So it was a lot of fun for me. It really was. It was an enjoyable experience. I was proud to have the opportunity to say I worked with them. It’s something I’ll remember forever.”