Things have changed for Steven Collins.
Steven Collins of Deadman
Three years ago, the Dallas-raised frontman for the band Deadman was living in McGregor, Texas, with his wife and bandmate Sherilyn. The couple was running a recording studio and enjoying critical acclaim for the haunting, rootsy folk of its second CD, Our Eternal Ghosts.
Today, the 35-year-old singer/songwriter lives in a two-story house in Austin. He still has his studio; he still has Deadman. But he doesn't have Sherilyn. And while he won't talk much about their split, new album Severe Mercy says enough.
Mercy, released last week to online music stores, is filled with stark, melodic stories of heartbreak and loss.
Collins says these songs will serve as a sonic link between what Deadman was when Sherilyn was involved and what it'll be with a new lineup of musicians he's found to work on the next album. Here's more.
Hunter Hauk Q: Why the move to Austin?
A: When Sherilyn left, I just decided to come down here to a town where a bunch of people were making music.
Q: Not to get too personal, but how has making music in general changed for you since Sherilyn left?
A: Well, it's changed a lot. I can't say too much publicly about it, but she decided she needed to go and do something else. I still had a bunch of material that worked under the name Deadman, so I wanted to keep going.
Q: And you said this new album was put together over the span of a few years?
A: Yeah. I started the writing process after the last tour, and had some options in terms of a label. And there were good reactions from people. But the process ended up taking a long time, and the label wanted a single or whatever. I was still writing just to see what I came up with. And the record business was going through massive changes. We realized that selling CDs is not really the future. So I just kept making music, and looked up one day and realized I had 40 songs.
Q: Did you do all the demos by yourself?
A: A lot of friends and clients came by and helped. It was like making a record and not knowing I was doing it.
Q: How did the record end up sounding so cohesive, then?
A: I had written a bunch of songs like the new ones before, but our producers on previous records would gravitate toward a certain sound. This time, I just worked thematically. I didn't have a style in mind, but it turned out to sort of build on what we've already done.
Q: I'm guessing your working theme was personal loss?
A: The whole theme of the record is grief and coming to terms with it. Grief isn't forever it's a part of life. Not a popular one, but it does make you stronger. The record is named after the book A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken, which is about someone who loses a person they love and has to find a way to move on. I chose these songs based on those ideas.
Q: You're always inspired by literature and art. What were some other works that served the songs?
A: I know on "It's a Long Road," I was inspired by the Robert Frost poems about traveling. There's the "two roads" one, and then there's the "woods are lovely, dark and deep" one. What I liked was that you're always in the middle of the journey, and there's a sense of mystery. I wanted to put that into it. The title of "Malice Toward None" actually comes from the Gettysburg Address. The idea of living with malice toward none just seemed like a cool concept.
Q: But one that's hard to achieve ...
A: Hard to achieve, definitely.
Q: You've said that this new album is a way of getting to what Deadman will sound like on its next album. What did you mean by that?
A: Where we're headed now is a record about healing. Severe Mercy is very somber, and this next record is kind of a party. [Laughs.] The whole sound and the band that Deadman is becoming is a bunch of guys that know how to play in bars well and swagger a bit. I'm gonna leave behind what I've done before and head for something that has some fun in it, but still has some power. Find out how to get Severe Mercy at deadmanonline.com. The band plays Dallas next on Sept. 13 at Club Dada.
