For the past fifteen years, The Hooten Hallers have been crisscrossing the country as inveterate road warriors, bringing their peculiar vision of Americana–a fiery rock and roll fever dream birthed in Missouri’s fertile musical heartland.  Set for release in September, the band’s new album Back In Business Again, the trio has shared the single “Cat Scrap” along with an accompanying video.

“This is a boogie song about the exploits of my indoor-outdoor cat named Willy,” explains John Randall.  “My house is located next to an empty lot where a lot of cats congregate and they often make a ruckus at night when they are out on patrol. This was a fun co-write with Andy about Willy’s interactions with Mark-Sam, the haggard street cat with a heart of gold who plays the role of the mentor, and their battle with the Blonde Bastard who is extremely aggressive. We got Ryan Koenig into the studio to play harmonica on this one.”

As for the video, the band said, “This video comes from the mind of our friend Dr. Jessica Adkins. We love her stop motion work and she was a natural choice for Cat Scrap since it is a story-based song about John’s neighborhood cats. It’s made with construction paper and glue, the old-fashioned way.”

The Hooten Hallers have always been musical colliders, smashing together everything from pre-war jazz to Chicago blues with jaunts around New Orleans and garage rock explorations with hints of anti-racist punk and Oi!. Produced by bassist Dominic Davis (Jack White, Greensky Bluegrass), Back In Business Again takes a match to The Hooten Hallers’ fuse and explodes the renegade power trio to the edge and back again, one vigorous, swinging, perfectly peculiar song at a time. With tinges of madness, there’s an abundance of hope with the ten tracks.  The vivid drums, infernal growl, swirling guitars, and the stylish baritone and bass saxophones augment a collective sound that blares sweet, modern blues that push the envelope.  The Midwest ensemble doesn’t forget where they have come from and where they are headed-a vibe that truly can’t be matched.

Pre-order Back In Business Again here.

Photo Courtesy: Charles Bruce III