Jim White vs. The Packway Handle Band

It’s not a wrestling match nor is it a no-holds-barred cage fighting event. Instead, Southern gothic singer/songwriter Jim White has teamed with The Packway Handle Band for an album and tour.

Due out Jan. 27 on Yep Roc Records, Take It Like A Man was originally conceived as a Packway Handle Band project with White producing.  That is, before the band learned that White had a collection of bluegrass-inspired songs for the world to hear. 

White describes the record as “a synthesis between their zany bluegrass sound and my long-suffering, implosive-depressive novelist view of the South.”  He adds that the project fulfilled his “conniving goal to become a happy bluegrass man.”

Packway Handle Band members were fans of White before Take It Like A Man, having been introduced to his music by a Texas DJ at the 2006 Burning Man gathering in the Nevada desert and through the “Searching For The Wrong-Eyed Jesus” BBC documentary inspired by his debut album.

Then White tapped the band for his 2013 album Some Bright Mourning,  and a friendship was born.  Now, with the new record coming out near the end of this month, both sides of the relationship are ready to hit the road as Jim White vs. The Packway Handle Band.  Here are the dates:

Jan. 30 – Waverly, Ala., Standard Deluxe
Jan. 31 – Athens, Ga., The Melting Point
Feb. 5 – Decatur, Ga., Eddie’s Attic
Feb. 6 – Decatur, Ga., Eddie’s Attic
Feb. 7 – Nashville, Tenn., High Watt
Feb. 14 – Birmingham, Ala., WorkPlay Theatre
Feb. 19 – Asheville, N.C., Isis Restaurant & Music Hall
Feb. 20 – Charlotte, N.C., Visulite Theatre
Feb. 21 – Chattanooga, Tenn., Barking Legs Theatre
March 14 – Macon, Ga., Cox Capitol Theatre
May 1 – Tampa, Fla., Cuban Club (WMNF Tropical Heatwave)
May 17 – Kennesaw, Ga., KSU Sports And Entertainment Park (Shaky Boots Music Festival)

Check with your venue of choice regarding onsales.  For more info, visit JimWhitevsPHB.com.