On Celebrate – produced by the band and recorded at High Street Studios in Bowling Green, Kentucky – they embody all this at the height of their powers. There’s happiness and heartache. Muscular hooks and raw soul. The life experiences of four men approaching forty (two of them parents), in one emotive, unpolished diamond of a record. Six commanding, stage-ready original tracks and an inspired cover of Simple Minds ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me) featuring Tyler Connolly (Theory Of A Deadman).’ BLACK STONE CHERRY are masters of taking a somber subject and flipping it on its head, creating a punchy, empowering rock song. “Any piece of art is a snapshot of that artist’s life,” singer/guitarist Chris Robertson reasons. “So I look at these songs as a culmination of everything we’ve lived since Screamin’ At The Sky.” “None of us are precious, because we’re all fighting on the same team,” Ben Wells says. “So John Fred might have a guitar riff, or me or Chris might have a drum beat. And Steve is our bass player, but he played slide on the last album, and there’s parts on the new stuff where he plays guitar. It was cool to think you could start the day without a song, and five hours later walk out with a demo.” Celebrate is an EP of contrasts. ‘I’m Fine’ is a dreamily woozy, Nirvana-laced grunge singalong. But it was the searing, mid-tempo heartache of ‘Deep’ that struck a really pertinent chord – with Ben in particular. Following long struggles with fertility issues, he and his wife suffered a miscarriage midway through the writing process. Two days later, he was channelling the experience into ‘Deep’. For a curveball, Celebrate is capped off with a strapping yet sensuous cover of Simple Minds classic ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me)’, featuring guest vocals from old Black Stone friend Tyler Connolly (Theory Of A Deadman). Immortalised in John Hughes’ seminal 1985 coming-of-age film The Breakfast Club, it turned out to be a surprisingly natural fit for BLACK STONE CHERRY. A happy pairing with the soulful gravel and sincerity of Chris’s vocals. “I love that song!” the frontman laughs. No one in BLACK STONE CHERRY takes what they have for granted, least of all their fans. They’ll play to thousands in an arena or festival field, followed by a 100-capacity pub, and put on the exact same show. You can feel it in Celebrate: the sense that their hearts are totally invested, their priorities clear. Time spent with loved ones. Supporting one another. Connecting with audiences. Music that makes you feel something. No polish, no faking it, just moments that matter. | 
