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\n\tThe Band of Heathens<\/a> have passed the two-decade mark as an independent roots-rock group and insist that their longevity is all due to never having a plan. From the outset, the band has gone where the vibes take them. \u201cThere\u2019s been no road map,\u201d Gordy Quist says. \u201cIt\u2019s just been following what feels right.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe Austin five-piece built around co-founders Quist and Ed Jurdi dropped a brand-new album, Country Sides<\/em>, in February. It marks their first studio album since 2023\u2019s Simple Things<\/em> and their first project overall since the Hayes & The Heathens <\/em>collaboration with Hayes Carll<\/a> in 2024.<\/p>\n \n\tCountry Sides<\/em> is an 11-track LP that showcases the Heathens\u2019 range in melody and lyrics, drawing on sounds and styles that defined their two decades as a hard-driving Americana<\/a> outfit.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cA trusted friend that\u2019s known the band a long time said to me that it feels like a greatest hits record without being a greatest hits record,\u201d Jurdi tells Rolling Stone<\/em>. \u201cThe emotional tenor of it covers the whole history of the band through the songs.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tIt\u2019s a project the Heathens self-produced in Quist\u2019s studio, the Finishing School \u2014 the same space where Quist produced Carll\u2019s We\u2019re Only Human<\/em> last year and where they recorded Hayes & The Heathens<\/em>. Like all their albums, they released it independently.<\/p>\n \n\tThe songs on Country Sides<\/em> skew introspective and reflect the Heathens\u2019 evolution from a side project to a career, racking up a platinum-certified single (2011\u2019s cover of \u201cHurricane,\u201d first cut by Levon Helm in 1980)\u00a0along the way.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIt was kind of a career retrospective, in a weird way,\u201d Quist says. \u201cWe didn\u2019t set out to, literally, write a record about that. But a lot of the emotional content mirrors our 20-year journey from being young and inspired \u2014 hit the road at all costs and do 250 shows a year starting out, and finding a little bit of success as an independent band. Then realizing how hard it is and wondering how to keep digging for inspiration, and finally ending up in a good spot.\u201d<\/p>\n