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Acclaimed singer, songwriter, and musician Jay Buchanan, frontman of the Grammy-nominated rock group Rival Sons, debuts his new gospel-infused song, “True Black,” today. Listen HERE and watch the visualizer HERE.
The track is the latest unveiled from Buchanan’s anticipated debut solo album, Weapons of Beauty, out February 6 on Sacred Tongue Records via Thirty Tigers. The album will be available in a variety of formats, including limited-edition autographed color vinyl and CD, exclusively through Sacred Tongue / Second Sun. Pre-save/pre-order HERE.
“Paint my casket true black, and for all I might have cost you, I hope to earn it back,” Buchanan sings, embracing (in his own words) “a gospel drenched American gothic.” Buchanan’s rust-worn vocals in the opening of True Black welcome the seeker into his big top revival tent, where the atmosphere is equal parts old testament and oldest profession.
”As I walk side by side, With the wicked and the righteous,” Buchanan sings “I do wonder to which one of them, I truly belong.”
The song is a ragged confessional, the singer self-aware and reckoning with the burdens placed on those closest to him. With congregation piano and holy ghost hellfire rhythm, you’re pulled out of your seat to dance with him all the way from perdition to pentecost.
Buchanan comments: “True Black is such a contrast to Caroline, it’s a burner for sure. Time to get up!!”
ABOUT WEAPONS OF BEAUTY 🌹
While the album Weapons Of Beauty marks Buchanan’s return to his storyteller roots, his voice remains his signature instrument: powerful, earthen, and expressive, a gritty echo of his native California mountains.
Produced by longtime collaborator and multi-GRAMMY Award-winner Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Jason Isbell) and written in the solitude of an underground bunker deep in the Mojave Desert, Weapons of Beauty is the result of months of reflection and experimentation—an unfiltered 10-song collection that captures Buchanan’s raw vocals and lived-in storytelling.
Cobb shares, “I think this record is like seeing into the heart of Jay, no filter, no noise, just pure raw emotion.”
The first track shared from the album “Caroline” was released Buchanan last year and accompanied by a video filmed down an abandoned gold mine near where Jay wrote the album. Watch the official music video HERE.
“As music continues to be choked out by technology, I wanted to draw pictures in the dirt,” Buchanan reflects. “This approach is right with me and I’ve just come to a point where there is no longer a choice. Weapons Of Beauty is the sound of these plates shifting within me, too loud to ignore. Surprisingly, I’ve never known a vulnerability to feel so empowering.”
The album was recorded at Dave Cobb’s studio in Savannah, Georgia, with a small ensemble of Nashville’s finest — Chris Powell (drums), Leroy Powell (pedal steel guitar), Brian Allen (bass), J.D. Simo (guitar), and Philip Towns (keys). Buchanan also enlisted longtime friend and acclaimed American realist painter Jeremy Lipking to create the album’s striking cover, a romantic counterpart to the music’s love of the American landscape. Visionary film maker Scott Cooper (who directed Buchanan in Deliver Me From Nowhere, the recent Springsteen biopic movie) thoughtfully sequenced the record, deftly weaving its songs into a narrative arc that plays like a film.
“If my version of God were the craft itself,” Buchanan reflects, “then this album might be my prayer.”
With Weapons of Beauty, Jay Buchanan delivers not just a solo debut, but a revelation — a shimmering, soul-worn testament to a life dedicated to song.
ABOUT JAY BUCHANAN
Jay Buchanan is an American singer, songwriter, and musician best known as the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of Grammy-nominated rock band Rival Sons. Born in San Bernardino, California, and raised between the High Desert and the mountain town of Wrightwood, Buchanan developed an early connection to wilderness and music that continues to shape his artistic voice.
Since joining Rival Sons in 2008, he has released multiple acclaimed albums including Pressure & Time (2011), Great Western Valkyrie (2014), and Feral Roots (2019), the latter earning two Grammy nominations. Buchanan has collaborated with Massive Attack, Barry Gibb, Jason Isbell, The Bloody Beetroots, The Blind Boys of Alabama, and Kaleo, and Weapons of Beauty marks his tenth recording with producer Dave Cobb.
Most recently, Buchanan appeared in Scott Cooper’s film Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere, performing as the frontman of the Stone Pony house band. He contributes vocals on three songs to the soundtrack: “Lucille,” “Boom Boom,” and “I Put a Spell on You.”
ABOUT RIVAL SONS
California-based, double GRAMMY®-nominated rock band Rival Sons tap into something timeless — a sense of mystery, swagger, and uncompromising devotion to rock ‘n’ roll. Their catalogue includes the landmark albums Pressure & Time (2011), Great Western Valkyrie (2014), and Feral Roots (2019), which earned nominations for Best Rock Album and Best Rock Performance.
Hand-picked by Black Sabbath for their final tour and chosen this year by Guns N’ Roses for their 2025 European stadium run, Rival Sons have shared stages with The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Aerosmith, Metallica, and Lenny Kravitz, and appeared on major television shows from Letterman to Jools Holland.
As Ozzy Osbourne put it:
“It’s so refreshing to see a band coming up with such a great vibe… you see 500 bands and you see one and you go ‘fck, they’re good.”
🌹Weapons Of Beauty album artwork by Jeremy Lipking
ALBUM TRACKLIST:
Caroline
High And Lonesome
True Black
Tumbleweeds
Shower of Roses
Deep Swimming
Sway
The Great Divide
Dance Me to the End of Love
Weapons of Beauty
WEAPONS OF BEAUTY – OUT FEBRUARY 6, 2026
Country Music People Magazine: 4 / 5 “This is a glorious release”
Released on Sacred Tongue Records via Thirty Tigers
Pre-order HERE: https://30tgrs.ffm.to/weaponsofbeauty
Formats:
- CD – 4-panel Digipak with 8-panel poster
- Standard Vinyl – Black LP, Gatefold Jacket with Gold Foil + Printed Inner Sleeve
D2C Exclusive (Sacred Tongue / Second Sun)
Available from weaponsofbeauty.com includes limited autographed photo with D2C coloured vinyl and CD while supplies last.
LP in “Mojave” Marble Vinyl, Gatefold Jacket with Gold Foil, plus exclusive merch
Follow Jay Buchanan
Instagram / TikTok: @jaythebirdthatsings
X: @jaythebirdsings
Facebook: facebook.com/jaybuchananrivalsons
Website: weaponsofbeauty.com
Photos by The Cult Of Rifo
