Premiere: Nick Dittmeier & the Sawdusters offer "Two Faded Carnations" on delicate new track

Nick Dittmeier & the Sawdusters. Photo by Tyler Zoller.

Celebrated by Glide, Americana UK, and more, Southern Indiana's Nick Dittmeier & the Sawdusters finds a reprieve from loss with their new record All Damn Day due October 26th. Throughout the ten tracks, replete with deeply introspective character sketches of often forgotten people that balance hope and despair, songwriter and frontman Dittmeier put pen to paper as storyteller crafting narratives that are literate, vividly detailed, and astutely told.

Today, TDC is honored to premiere the exceptional "Two Faded Carnations" an affecting ballad carried by layered acoustic guitars, shuffling percussion, and Dittmeier's worn and weary vocals that find him delicately honoring his late partner in crime (pregnant with their daughter), who ultimately could not outrun their fast-paced lifestyle. 

"I bring two faded carnations
A pinch of baby's breath
Lay them there right by your stone
With a hand carved crucifix"

Dittmeier relays the story behind the song, "It’s about a couple who are involved in committing various crimes together and the female character becomes a causality of their break-neck lifestyle. 

I wrote this song in my car driving from Salem to Scottsburg in southern Indiana on a rural two-lane highway with my old dog, named Dogman, in the car. I used to drive 45 minutes away to an old school farm vet because she was getting old and he was always really good with her. Driving home, spring was in full force in Indiana and the rolling hills were in bloom with crops and wildflowers, so I wanted to relay some of that imagery in the lyrics. Southern Indiana has been hit really hard by the opioid epidemic, so you see stories in the news or on social media about people doing really desperate things because of their addictions. I wanted to write a song about desperation and the consequences that go along with it. People can get wrapped up in a certain lifestyle and think they’re invincible."

Listen to, and share, the track below. Then read on as Dittmeier answers his Essential 8 and talks about the album, his fave podcasts, touring, and more.

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Is there a story behind your album’s title, All Damn Day?
It's named after a song by the same title on the record.  I didn't write the song thinking it was going to be the title track, but it plays into our trajectory and the amount of time we put in to the band over the last three or so years. It's a 24/7 commitment. 

What’s the best advice you have ever gotten from another musician?
I played a gig last spring with Ron Block from Union Station. We were talking about touring and he told me just to make sure to have some sort of project on the road to devote a little time to everyday and that that time compounds and you gave have something really constructive. He was totally right, it's really hard to have good time management skills on tour.

What’s the best advice to give to a musician just starting out?
Whatever expectations or per-conceived notions of what you think this is need to go out the window. You need be ready to work and go out there and see if this fits in with how you wanna live you life and deliver your artwork to strangers. Also, your gonna be hauling a lot of gear.

Do you have any touring tips?
The biggest life saver for me on tour has been the SleepFan app. It's a free white noise app that has different fan sounds. There's never been a person or animal I haven't been able to tune out with that. Also, just because you're on tour doesn't mean you have to treat your body like shit. We definitely exercise, try to eat right and not drink too much. It's a marathon not a sprint and I figure I'll be at this for awhile so I gotta not die. 

How do you kill the long hours in the van?
I definitely hit up the library before every tour so I have stuff to read. Also podcasts have contributed very positively to my sanity. As Far as podcasts go I like "WTF with Marc Maron", "Time Suck with Dan Cummins", and "Heidi & Henry with Henry Rollins"

What do you love most about being on the road?
I love that everyday is there's a general framework to what needs to get done, but every day is different. You also cannot run from your artwork, you have to be focusing on it and improving daily. Obviously, getting to go to new places is great, but more times than not we aren't tourists and really don't get to take in the town. There are a lot of cities that I've been in multiple times but have no idea what they look like.

Favorite (or first) concert you have ever attended?
My Mom and Dad took me to see Lynyrd Skynyrd at Waterfront Park in Louisvile like 1997. We walked across the bridge to Kentucky from our house to the show, and I was so pumped. I saw some crazy stuff though, like a man with an arm nub light a joint in his nub. Side note that I didn't know until years later my current bassist, Bob Rutherford, played bass in the opening band. 

Have you met any of your heroes? If so, how did it go?
Anyone, with maybe the exception of one or two people, who I looked up to and shared the stage with were cool. I'm not going to to name names, but I just assume most of the these people were happy and somewhat secure with themselves. They understand how fortunate they were to be in their position and had worked  very hard to be there. My general understanding of people that weren't very enjoyable to be around is they were insecure with themselves and projected that on other people. 

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