“Even though Iris DeMent admits she likes to work at her own pace when it comes to songwriting, 16 years is a long time. The songs themselves are as languorous as a hot summer afternoon, evoking DeMent’s early childhood in Arkansas. But her distinct voice – richer, more expressive and more reflective than ever – pulls you along through the entire album. In an era when we demand instant gratification from everything, DeMent’s new CD says a lot for taking your sweet time.” ~ Meredith Ochs, NPR’s “All Things Considered”
When it takes more than a decade to create a piece of art, people lose faith. They begin to believe that the book or the album or the film is not so much a masterpiece in the making as the delusional pursuit of a hobby.
But inspired art doesn’t always happen on schedule, and it’s the dedicated artist who plods along believing in herself long after the public has lost interest. And so it was with Iris DeMent, a folkish country signer who released her new album this fall. Sixteen years in the making, “Sing the Delta” has both surprised and delighted fans and music reviewers from Boston to Los Angeles.
“Some of these songs I’ve had around awhile, but I needed time to grow into them,” DeMent said. “I guess you could say I just wasn’t ready to deliver them in the way that they deserved. I’m glad I waited. It’s taught me to surrender … to trust the natural flow and order of things and not worry about it.”
It’s an instinct she’s learned to believe in ever since she first sat down to write her first songs at age 25 and found “Our Town” spilling out onto the page.
“It was like somebody walked right into that room and said, ‘There you have it, Iris.’ I knew then and there that I had gotten my calling,” she said. “I had always been taught in church that God, or spirit, if you will, calls us to a life work. I got mine that day. Whether I write one song a year or 10, it doesn’t matter.
“It’s a ‘knowing’ that I have that hasn’t left me since that day. That’s what I check in with and as long as that’s there, the rest of it doesn’t matter. The time it takes is just the time it takes.”
DeMent was born the youngest child of a large Pentecostal family in rural Arkansas, and later moved to Southern California. She grew up listening to traditional country and gospel music, which influenced her roots-folk sound.
Though she was 25 years old when she wrote her first song, it would take another five years for her to release her first album, “Infamous Angel.” Since her 1992 debut, DeMent has bloomed as a songwriter, finding her niche in folk and country, putting out four albums and performing with greats such as John Prine, Steve Earle, Emmylou Harris, and Merle Haggard.
Along the way, several of DeMent’s songs became cultural touchstones. “Let The Mystery Be” found its way to “MTV Unplugged” as a duet by David Byrne and Natalie Merchant. “Our Town” was played over the farewell scene in the series finale of “Northern Exposure.” She has also made frequent appearances on Garrison Keillor’s radio show “A Prairie Home Companion.” Most recently she recorded an album of gospel songs, “Lifeline,” which included her rendition of “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms,” which was later used in the closing credits of the Coen brothers’ film “True Grit.”
The Grammy award nominee is best known for her one-of-a-kind voice. She will be in Nevada City for one of three California performances on Saturday, Dec. 1. DeMent will be accompanied by Jason Wilber and David Jacques from John Prine’s band.
~ Jesse Locks contributed to this report
