Do you have any more songs like "My Strange Nation" that are waiting to be written?
I don't know that they're going to be political in nature, but the next project looks to be an unusual gospel album in that most gospel albums are monolithic; they are uniformly pious and positive about the church and God and the benevolence of said God. The next album is going to have some bluegrass elements like the Carter family or the Stanley Brothers, but it will express doubt and even deep mistrust of the church and of religion and the state. I describe myself as an evangelical agnostic.
This next album will deal with those topics that I think are of unique concern to Americans. I don't anticipate touring Holland with this record. I think that this will be a uniquely American undertaking - to embrace faith and also express mistrust of it. I think that it's the prerogative of every American to go to any church for one hour and be able to leave without having to sign up for a committee.
As a liberal person of faith I find that the Church in America is very difficult to be associated with. It's too black and white.
Yes. Can I ask what flavor of church do you attend?
I grew up United Methodist. My father is a conservative United Methodist pastor. That influenced a lot of my upbringing. Then I went to a Mennonite college and I started looking at their social justice approach to theology, and it has influenced a lot of my personal beliefs. I ended up back at a liberal United Methodist church simply because I just can't throw off that part of myself. It's too ingrained into who I am.
This is fascinating, Anna, because this is exactly the kind of conversation I want to be having with my next record. Now I want to buy you coffee and draw you out for a half hour. This is how I want to stir the pot. These are the kinds of things that are fascinating to me. Stories come up like yours where there is this deep feeling of affection for the church but also deep ambivalence about it. I was just out in Kansas and I played this show in Moundridge.
There are these Mennonites out there who belong to the Mennonite Church who are socially conscious progressive liberals. They're horrified at what has happened too their church. They're like, "This is unrecognizable to me. What has happened to my church? I understood my church to have this tradition of engaging and working for change instead of retreating into the past or some outdated idea of how we ought to be." Fascinating! This is fascinating! Everything that you just mentioned - yes! Help me! You! You have three songs to write all by yourself, Anna, I'm telling you.
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