Nashville-based Texas native and four-time GRAMMY winning musician Sarah Jarosz releases her triumphant new album Polaroid Lovers today. For this record, the highly decorated artist finds herself at the apex of change, as she left her adopted home of NYC and returned to the South. The geographic shake-up of leaving her long-time home led to a sonic shake-up as well for Polaroid Lovers. For the first time in her career she opened herself up to collaborators, leading to writing sessions with Daniel Tashian, Ruston Kelly, and Natalie Hemby. The results are a more electric and urgent sound that never sacrifices Jarosz’s gorgeous and unparalleled voice.
Following the previously released “Jealous Moon,” “Columbus & 89th,” and “When The Lights Go Out,” Jarosz shares another video today for the album’s focus track “Runaway Train.” Of the song she says, “I had been itching to write a raucous, fun, upbeat country banger that would be fun to play live. Jon Randall helped me do just that. This song just poured out of us one day and is all about the wild, exciting (sometimes chaotic) over the top joy at the beginning of a relationship.”
Sarah Jarosz will kick off a run of North American shows next week in celebration ofPolaroid Lovers, and many of the dates are either sold-out or have issued low ticket warnings. The nearly 50-date tour will begin on February 1, 2024 in Washington, DC and run through the beginning of June. See below to find a show near you and get your tixHERE. For a taste of what to expect live from Sarah Jarosz and her band, watch their performance on CBS Saturday Morning: Saturday Sessions HERE.
Polaroid Lovers, the seventh album from Sarah Jarosz, finds the highly decorated songwriter at the apex of change. The geographic shake-up of leaving her long-time home led to a sonic shake-up as well for Polaroid Lovers. For the first time in her career she opened herself up to collaborators, leading to writing sessions with Daniel Tashian, Ruston Kelly, and Natalie Hemby. The creative reorganization of her writing process evolved to include a much richer and more electric sound in the studio, and being in Nashville meant access to a world of hotshot players. She tapped guitarist Rob McNelley (Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood), Tom Bukovac (Tom Petty, Vince Gill) on guitar and organ, her husband- bassist Jeff Picker (Nickel Creek), and drummer Fred Eltringham (Sheryl Crow, Lucinda Williams) for the album recording. Tashian took the helm as producer and the whole album was laid down at the legendary Sound Emporium.
As it goes with all change, Jarosz’s major life events had her feeling contemplative. While sitting on the precipice of adulthood, Polaroid Lovers finds her reflecting on past loves, childhood dreams, the places she lived, and all the versions of herself that she’s been. Although the listener experiences the sonic shift forward, the album’s subject matter is a photo album of the past. Jarosz has never sounded more assured. Polaroid Lovers is filled with the kind of confidence that comes from hard-won life experiences and the conviction of someone who truly knows herself.
Sarah Jarosz released her debut album at the age of 18 and was immediately nominated for her first GRAMMY. Raised in Texas, she began playing mandolin at age 10 and soon after guitar and banjo. To date, she has released six studio albums and has netted ten GRAMMY nominations and four wins. In 2018, she joined Sara Watkins of Nickel Creek and Aoife O’Donovan to form the supergroup I’m With Her. The group released their debut album See You Around, and won duo/group of the year at the Americana Awards. Their song, “Call My Name” won the GRAMMY for Best American Roots song.
Polaroid Lovers is available for pre-order today digitally and on vinyl with gray, lavender, orange and green splatter variants. Indie retailers will also have a special blue and green splatter vinyl. For more information visit https://store.sarahjarosz.com/
