When Michael Trent of Shovels & Rope was first introduced to music back in middle school, it felt like he was being let in on a secret.
“My childhood friend’s older brother knew all the cool bands,” explains Trent on the phone from Houston. “Bands like Jane’s Addiction, Nine Inch Nails, Violent Femmes and underground bands. It felt like something I wasn’t supposed to be doing, and it felt like I was being let in on a secret. It was the first time I truly felt something, and deep down I felt connected to these bands and the sound. I was being let into a world that a lot of my middle school friends didn’t know what it was.”
It’s no secret that Shovels & Rope — the band that Trent co-leads with his wife Cary Ann Hearst — is far from the grungy sounds of Jane’s Addiction or Nine Inch Nails (a Shovels & Rope cover would be great, though). However, the duo’s energy and volume on stage matches an arena show put on by those bigger bands.
And on Saturday the twosome from Charleston will make the Social feel like the Kia Center, bringing with them songs from their latest record, Something Is Working Above My Head.
After two decades in music, Shovels & Rope are less concerned about where they are pigeonholed genre-wise, and more interested in living up to values they set forth as a band: playing loud and giving their all to every song.
“We are one of these bands that are always changing a little bit,” says Trent. “Early on when we got thrown into the lump of being an Americana band it was kind of jarring to us because we are trying to do something different and we don’t see ourselves that way. We have always tried to make really dynamic shows and be the loudest band and fill up the biggest stage in these rooms.”
One of those songs that fills up a room is “Colorado River,” one of the rockier songs on the new record. Trent imagined the song like a movie but the movie he imagined is more The Monkey and less Paddington in Peru.
“It starts out feeling like a wholesome camping trip,” adds Hearst. “It devolves into something so dark. It is really fun to play and I love the dark tale. This one has a lot of scenic references that I see in my own mind, and I hope the audiences paint the picture.”
There are more wholesome songs on the record too, like “Love Song From a Dog.” Trent got inspiration from the song when he visited a market in New York City.
“We were up in New York to play a show at Carnegie Hall and we were there to play one song,” remembers Trent. “We ended up walking around in a market and I found this book of dog poems and it was people writing about their dogs. It was really sweet, funny and weird. I had an idea of writing a song about a human from a dog’s point of view.”
Dogs have an approval rating that mirrors ice cream, Santa Claus and Friday afternoons, and songs about dogs poll well if you’re counting Shovels & Rope shows. Despite that near universal approval of dogs, Trent was hesitant to put out the song at first. “I made a demo of the song and sent it to Cary,” says Trent. “I sent it to her and was like ‘What do you think?’ and I didn’t think it was all that great.”
“I never got back to him,” Hearst laughs. “We are a lot more confident in it now.”
Something Working Above My Head does have songs about not feeling confident in life, and the song “I’d Be Lying” explores that topic.
“‘I’d Be Lying’ was born out of being in a sort of grown-up world where the pressures of life can temporarily break you,” explains Hearst. “We have a bit onstage where we talk about, ‘This song is about a midlife crisis, but not ours because we are waiting for ours to happen and I hope you are enjoying yours.'”
Shovels & Rope may not be going through a midlife crisis, but they have been thinking more and more about what they have to offer to the world.
“I’ve been thinking about that a lot as an adult parent,” says Hearst. “We offer the world that we are two good people who are ready to get in there and help build a society that is empathetic and responsible. … As our songwriting matures we are speaking to things that are beyond the mortal coil, and that is a good thing about being older.”
Hearst and Trent bring their two children on tour with them, and it allows their children to also learn their place in the world and learn about what they have to offer to the world.
“The other day we were in Dallas and we were grabbing food and most people were speaking Spanish,” says Trent. “Our child was like, ‘Why is everyone speaking a different language?’ And it was a good way to open up a conversation about why and how it is important to be inclusive, be kind, learn empathy, and learn other people’s languages.”
Their children also have clear eyes on what Orlando has to offer to the world, but before any trip to a theme park, Shovels & Rope has to rock out at The Social. The band have a long history with the venue and are looking forward to returning to the City Beautiful.
“We have always had a fun time going to Orlando and to The Social. We played there with Butch Walker a long time ago. Michael and I have always found a lot of people in Orlando come see us. I’m grateful we get to come in the winter to escape the arctic touring world and to get somewhere with reasonable temperatures,” says Hearst. “We might get in trouble this time because our kids are old enough to know about Disney World.”
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This article appears in Mar 5-11, 2025.