Alabama Shakes End 11-Year Hiatus With New Album Sparked by Brewery Favor

Alabama Shakes is back with its first album in 11 years, and the unlikely catalyst was a craft brewery in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Singer-guitarist Brittany Howard was taking a break after her 2024 solo album 'What Now' when Bo Hicks, co-founder of Druid City Brewing Company, reached out. The brewery was struggling after COVID-19, and Hicks asked Howard to play a fundraiser to support the business and a local food pantry.

Howard agreed without hesitation. Hicks had supported the band in its early days, feeding members and giving them a place to stay before they achieved fame. She then called bandmates Heath Fogg and Zac Cockrell to see if they wanted to rehearse old songs for the gig. They said yes.

"So that's what we did, and it felt pretty nice," Howard said. "Then we were like, 'Well, should we do this again? Should we do more? This was nice.' And it did snowball after that."

That snowball became 'I Must Be Dreaming,' an 11-track album releasing this month. The record blends love songs with sharp social commentary, a mix Howard says emerged naturally.

"I did approach this differently, and I found that I did have kind of surprising things to say," she said. "Things in me that I didn't know were quite there."

One track, 'Tied To You,' captures the nervous anticipation before confessing love. Another, 'Garden,' reimagines a love song with a mischievous edge. "When I think of love, it is kind of like a garden," Howard explained. "You've got to put work into it, and don't start it if you're not going to take care of it."

The album also reflects Howard's observations on the current moment. "I do feel hopeful because people are waking up to the world around them," she said. "And the lies that have been told to them to keep people in line, doing what the powers want them to do. And it's all changing now."

For Howard, the album's creation felt almost fated. "Watching these songs transform into a full album was just remarkable," she said. "Everything around this group to me feels a little bit miraculous. I'm just very excited to share our work with everybody."