Home News Cait Stoddard July 30th, 2026 - 7:00 PMToday, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Valerie June has announced that her new EP, Brighter Blue, will be out on September 11, through Concord and the artist has releases the lead single, “Smokestack,” which reinterprets the blues classics, “Smokestack Lightning” and “In the Pines.” In addition to “Smokestack,” June interprets “I’ll Fly Away” and “Trouble In Mind,” the latter of which features Sam Amidon on fiddle, banjo and backing vocals. These songs mark a return to June’s early work weaving blues, folk, gospel, rock, and grunge that June honors tradition, while pushing into new territory. Since Howlin’ Wolf’s landmark 1956 recording, it has been embraced by generations of artists across blues, rock, folk, psychedelia, and grunge. Inspired by that tradition of reinvention, I gathered a blazing electric band to forge our own path through the song.