Pay Attention, Stop Listening To Yourself: The Wood Brothers

Easing up, letting things come to you, and practicing being present is a recurring theme in recent episodes of this series, and that mindset is on full display once again in this episode on The Wood Brothers. I sat with Oliver Wood, Chris Wood and Jano Rix backstage at the 2025 Earl Scruggs Music Festival, ahead of their Friday night headlining set at the award-winning event. It was one of the most jovial and insightful conversations I have had in quite a while, and we covered a lot of ground, ranging from the band’s sonic evolution and their penchant for improvisation and letting their subconscious steer the way in the studio and on stage, to their perspective on bluegrass and banjo icon Earl Scruggs, to Chris Wood’s British Columbia farmstead and Jano Rix’ salsa dancing. All that and more, including excerpts of songs from their ninth album, Puff Of Smoke, awaits you here. <figure class=" sqs-block-image-figure intrinsic " > The Wood Brothers performing at the Earl Scruggs Music Festival in Tryon, NC 08-29-25 (photo: Scotty Robertson) Pay Attention, Stop Listening To Yourself: The Wood Brothers Joe Kendrick Songs heard in this episode:“Puff Of Smoke” by The Wood Brothers, from Puff Of Smoke“Slow Rise (to the middle)” by The Wood Brothers, from Puff Of Smoke, excerpt“The Trick” by The Wood Brothers, from Puff Of Smoke, excerpt“Witness” by The Wood Brothers, from Puff Of SmokeThanks for visiting! We hope you can help spread awareness of what we are doing. It is as easy as telling a friend and following this podcast on your platform of choice. You can find us on Apple here, Spotify here and YouTube here — hundreds more episodes await, filled with artists you may know by name, or musicians and bands that are ready to become your next favorites.You can follow us on social media: @southstories on Instagram, at Southern Songs and Stories on Facebook, and now on Substack here, where you can read the scripts of these podcasts, and get updates on what we are doing and planning in our quest to explore and celebrate the unfolding history and culture of music rooted in the American South, and going beyond to the styles and artists that it inspired and informed.&nbsp;- Joe Kendrick