Photo by Shervin Lainez

Today, The Wood Brothers released “Line Those Pockets,” the second single off their upcoming album, Heart Is The Hero, set to release on April 14 via Honey Jar/Thirty Tigers. The song was shared with an accompanying lyric video that furthers the song’s message, “Everybody’s just trying to be happy/ Line those pockets with grace.”

The song, which follows their first taste of the album “Pilgrim,” was written by all three members of The Wood Brothers – Oliver and Chris Wood and Jano Rix–and, like the rest of the LP, was recorded directly to 16-track tape.

“Like other songs on Heart Is The Hero, this one alludes to our common struggles and the hope that comes from connection and self-awareness. Nobody escapes the human condition, but the greatest relief might come in the form of helping others who are burdened rather than ourselves,” shared Chris Wood in a press release. “We had these lyrics around for awhile without a musical home, but then Jano presented an idea that created the right tone and brought the song to life. My part was influenced by the great Cuban bass players Cachao Lopez and Orlando “Cachaito” Lopez. It’s an influence I normally don’t use with The Wood Brothers but it worked for the song, so we leaned into it.” 

“‘Line Those Pockets’ started out as a very campy folk song, almost tongue in cheek, but then Jano—who plays keys and drums simultaneously—came up with a piano groove and slow heavy backbeat that gave the music an ethereal space somehow making the lyrics more compelling and dreamy,” Oliver Wood added. “Jano’s piano part was ambiguous enough that Chris and I had different interpretations of the harmony. So everyone’s separate visions came together in the finished song. It feels like a bit of an outlier on this record, but the themes of connection, compassion and paying attention fit right in.”

“Line Those Pockets” arrives within a short break in The Wood Brothers’ touring schedule, after a run through Northeast and Southeast this past weekend. The band will get back on the road in April with shows throughout the Mountain States, the Great Plains, and Texas followed in May by a 20-date summer tour in the Midwest and Northeast with Shovels & Rope.

Pre-save/pre-order Heart Is The Hero on vinyl, CD and digital formats here.

Listen to “Line Those Pockets” below.