Renowned singer-songwriter Jason Boland releases “Restless Spirits,”  the second single from his upcoming sci-fi country concept album The Light Saw Me, set for release on December 3 (Thirty Tigers) and produced by GRAMMY award-winner Shooter Jennings.  
“Restless Spirits” was originally written and performed by legendary Oklahoman Bob Childers, who served as mentor and inspiration for Jason Boland. It is fitting that on an album with great emotional depth, this would serve as the de facto emotional climax of the album, showcasing a softer side, with Boland’s rich baritone and the Stragglers’ heartbreakingly delicate instrumentation. 

Childers and Boland met at the legendary “Farm” — a Red Dirt country mecca in Boland’s hometown of Stillwater, OK where Childers, Garth Brooks, Jimmy LaFave and other musicians cut their teeth honing their craft, writing songs, and strumming guitars fire-side. 
On his tenth studio album, Boland takes the tradition and craft honed alongside the greats and adds a dash of sci-fi and gut-wrenching existentialism.  The Light Saw Me recounts the tale of a cowboy living in Texas in the late 1890s who is abducted by aliens and thrust into the future by a century, returning in the 1990s with no perception that any time has passed, searching for his wife who is no longer of this world. 

Tying the album together thematically, Boland uses “Restless Spirits” as a vehicle to showcase that we should have hope that love is a bond that is real, eternal, and still alive in the world and beyond. 

Drawing inspiration from podcasts including Desert Oracle Radio, this new album boldly attempts to simultaneously address existential questions, from the meaning of life to more personal reflections on love and loss. Beneath Bolands sensational sci-fi narrative lies an allegory. He explains, “the deeper meaning of the material is “meaning” itself. When faced with the stoic realities of our collective fate, love is the source of the power that can keep us going.”  

Producer Shooter Jennings says of this record,  “This album isn’t just another album from Jason & The Stragglers. It’s a magnum opus of the highest creative order, which in turn I take as a very serious honor to be able to be a part of its inception.”

He added, “Jason and the band were a delight and Jason’s vision from the album served as our lone star as we carried it from cradle to its proper spot on the mountain high. It’s one of the coolest sounding records I’ve heard in years, so I’m really excited to see what the future holds for The Light Saw Me.”

The Light Saw Me will be released on December 3 via Thirty Tigers. To know more about Jason Boland, go to his website here.