Drive-By Truckers Have Had It With Your “Thoughts and Prayers” in New Video

Alternative country artists Drive-By-Truckers have released a new track and lyric video titled “Thoughts and Prayers,” named after a popular catch-phrase used among gun control supporters, as a sarcastic response to legislators who refuse to pass any gun control reforms. This latest track will be featured on the band’s album The Unraveling, which will come out at the end of the month.

“Thoughts and Prayers” is a fairly straight ahead country track, with an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar, a piano and drums performing to a typical chord progression, speeding up at the end. The lyrics are a scathing critique of gun violence which occurs in the United States, with lyrics such as  “Stick it up your ass with your useless thoughts and prayers,” criticizing certain politicians. The video shows the song’s lyrics on top of images of activists.

This latest album is a follow-up from American Band, the group’s most political record, which discusses gun violence and racial inequalities in the US. This latest project will feature a similar political theme, however it will focus it on a more personal perspective.

“While a quick glance might imply that we’re picking up where 2016’s American Band album left off, the differences are as telling as the similarities,” band member Patterson Hood explained. “If the last one was a warning shot hinting at a coming storm, this one was written in the wreckage and aftermath. I’ve always said that all of our records are political but I’ve also said that ‘politics is personal’. With that in mind, this album is especially personal.”