Sturgill Simpson Releases New Album ‘Mutiny After Midnight’ Early

Sturgill Simpson’s new album has arrived two weeks early, and you can actually listen to it online. 

Over the weekend, the country innovator’s latest record as Johnny Blue Skies, Mutiny After Midnight, appeared in full on YouTube. The LP was previously scheduled to drop March 13, and was supposed to only be available on vinyl, CD, and cassette. As it stands, YouTube is the only place the album is available digitally, and it hasn’t been released to any other streaming services. 

Mutiny After Midnight marks Simpson’s ninth studio album and second under his Johnny Blue Skies moniker, following 2024’s celebrated Passage du Desir. The album was recorded at Dan Auerbach’s Easy Eye Studio in Nashville, with Simpson producing and his Johnny Blue Skies backing band, the Dark Clouds, providing accompaniment. 

When the album was announced last month, Simpson explained that many of the songs were written on the spot, and the band’s goal was to “make a dance record.” He added, “ I wrote words to what is happening in the world and my life in real time, and played with a group of musicians I deeply love and respect. Together, we made an album that is very fun and will hopefully offer some relief from darkness in the world.”

Mutiny After Midnight also marks a return for Simpson to Atlantic Records, the label that released his landmark 2016 LP, A Sailor’s Guide to Earth. While his 2019 record, Sound & Fury, was released on Elektra (another Warner Music subsidiary, like Atlantic), his last several releases have all been through his own High Top Mountain Records. (Mutiny After Midnight is a joint release between High Top and Atlantic.)