Eric Church performs at the "Totally Country Show" at the Greased Lightning Riverfront Daytime Stages Friday, June 6 in Downtown Nashville during the 2008 CMA Music Festival. Photographer: Theresa Montgomery / CMA
Jan. 14, 2009 — Hot off an appearance at the inaugural ball for North Carolina’s governor, Eric Church is ready to hit the road this March with a packed itinerary to promote his sophomore album, Carolina.
Slated for a March 24 release, the CD is entirely written or co-written by Eric and produced, once again, by Jay Joyce, who oversaw the sessions for Eric’s debut release, Sinners Like Me. That first disc was well regarded by critics — including writers with Rolling Stone and The New York Times — and it yielded a Top 15 hit with "How ‘Bout You." But Eric purposely tried not to copy that album in making Carolina.
"Sinners Like Me changed my life," he says. "But you can’t make the same record again. I wanted Carolina to go to some different places. The first album was more aggressive and moody. This one is more diverse, more musical and a little brighter. I hope people can at least hear that we’re still taking chances."
To underscore that attitude, he’s named his concert schedule the Young & Wild Tour. It kicks off March 12 in Evansville, Ind., and crams 37 shows into the subsequent two months, ending with a May 16 date in Melbourne, Fla. He’ll apparently be at home in Nashville the day of Carolina’s release. No show is slated March 24, and he plays the Music City club The Cannery the following night.