Mark Morton has been with Lamb of God since the band formed at Virginia Commonwealth University in 1994. His blisteringly fast and monolithic riffs are the backbone of the group’s iconic sound. However, Morton has recently shown a different side of himself to fans. Recent releases like “The Needle and the Spoon” and “Hell & Back” exhibited a blend of blues and Southern rock. Today, he announced his forthcoming solo album Without the Pain with the new single “Brother” featuring country singer Cody Johnson.
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Morton surprised fans last October when he teamed up with Neil Fallon of Clutch to cover Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “The Needle and the Spoon.” Then, he shared “Hell & Back” featuring Jaren Johnston of The Cadillac Three last month. “Brother” marks the third collaborative single from the forthcoming project with what may be his biggest sonic departure yet.
Mark Morton Discusses “Brother”
Mark Morton wrote “Brother” with Cody Jinks and Travis Denning. However, he had the idea long before he traveled to Music City for the writing session. “On a long bus ride somewhere in the middle of a Lamb of God tour, I scribbled some lyrics down in my notebook,” he recalled. “Sometime after, having paired them with a simple chord progression, I presented my idea to Cody Jinks and Travis Denning during a writing session in Nashville. Three hours later, we walked out with ‘Brother,’” he added.
“Brother,” Morton said, “is a deeply personal song that speaks directly to the theme of family separation and estrangement. I have learned through observation and my own lived experience that it is a universal and all-too-common phenomenon.” About the writing process, he added, “We all poured a lot of ourselves into this song and I’m grateful to Cody for singing with me. I hope you’ll enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed making it.”
Without the Pain Tracklist and Information
Mark Morton will release Without the Pain, his sophomore solo album on April 11 via Snake Farm. Fans can pre-order or pre-save a copy of the record today.
Tracklist
- “Hell & Back” featuring Jaren Johnston of The Cadillac Three (Mark Morton, Jaren Johnston, Josh Wilbur)
- “Brother” featuring Cody Jinks (Morton, Cody Jinks, Travis Denning)
- “Without the Pain” featuring Matt James of Blacktop Mojo (Morton, Johnston, Wilbur)
- “Kite String” featuring Travis Denning (Morton, Denning)
- “Come December” featuring Charlie Starr of Blackberry Smoke, Jason Isbell (Morton, Charlie Gray, Matt Connor)
- “Dust” featuring Cody Jinks, Grace Bowers (Morton, Johnston, Jinks)
- “Forever in the Light” feat Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown (Morton, Tyler Bryant, Caleb Crosby)
- “Nocturnal Sun” featuring Troy Sanders, Jared James Nichols (Morton, Wilbur)
- “The Needle and the Spoon” featuring Neil Fallon of Clutch (Allen Collins, Ronald W. Vanzant)
- “Home” featuring Travis Denning (Morton, Denning, Wilbur)
Featured Image by Steve Thorne/Redferns
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