Jim James of My Morning Jacket will be releasing his first solo album, Regions of Light and Sound of God, on February 5, 2013. Get a free download of the new song “Know Til Now” by signing up for his mailing list here.

Exerpt from Pitchfork: “James plays every instrument and engineered the album himself. It was inspired primarily by Lynd Ward’s 1929 graphic novel God’s Man, which ‘chronicles an artist’s struggles with temptation and corruption, along with finding true love,’ according to a press release. ‘Some of the things happening in the book were happening to me in real life, in a very strange and painful, then a very beautiful way,’ James said in a press release.”

[audio:Know Til Now.mp3|titles=Know Til Now|artists=Jim James]
“Know Til Now” by Jim James

What the artist says about the record…

“I wanted to make a record full of the residuals—full of what’s left on the canvas after you strip it all off. I had parted ways with everything. My relationship with my management/agency was on the rocks, my personal life was a nightmare, and the song output was at an all time high. That’s when I decided to make a record for me. No pressure, no rules. I decided to be an artist again. No business, just art. That’s where A Banquet For Ghosts began. I gave everything I had to that record. Every note, every lyric, every imperfection – they’re all part of a bigger story. A story I need to tell.

So here I am. 29 years old and still climbing the ladder. Partially because I love it, partially because I’m addicted to it. I still tour in a van. I still rummage through the gummy worms at 4am fuel stops. I still look out the window for hours because I can’t sleep in a moving vehicle. I still miss home. And I still dream.” ~ MM BIO

[audio:Take What I Can Get.mp3|titles=Take What I Can Get|artists=Matthew Mayfield]
“Take What I Can Get” by Matthew Mayfield

To check out the video for “Take What I Can Get from the album Banquet For Ghosts, click here.