Eric Church has never been one to do things the ordinary way, and his upcoming tour is proof. The North Carolina native reveals his Free the Machine Tour, kicking off on September 12, will have one uncommon addition: an orchestra! The tour is in support of Church’s Evangeline vs. the Machine album, out now.
“We’ll have an orchestra with us on stage and they’re going to be playing not only Evangeline vs. The Machine, but they’re going to join all our other songs,” Church tells Country Now.
“So the show will start in a big way, orchestra-wise,” he continues. “And then we’ll move into an OG world, which is kind of the band and Joanna [Cotten], and then I’ll probably end up ending it acoustic. So we’ll do the whole thing big to small, which people have never seen us do it that way.”
Church goes on to say he doesn’t keep the same setlist night after night, so each show might be different. But his Evangeline vs. The Machine is meant to be listened to from start to finish, telling a story in a way that only Church can tell.
“It’s track one to track eight,” says the singer. “There are no breaks. It just takes you for 38 minutes at that moment in time and it’s not done a lot these days.”
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Included on Evangeline vs. The Machine is his current Top 30 single, “Hands of Time.” Church wrote the song with Scooter Carusoe, about his own journey and evolution with each passing year.
“As I get older, as the gray hair comes out, I’m always looking for ways to make myself feel younger,” the 48-year-old maintains. “Music does that for me. I can hear a song even now, I remember where I was at 18, 20 or 25, and that’s what the song is about. It’s about being able to handle the ‘Hands of Time’ with music.”
When Evangeline vs. The Machine was released, Church stood by his desire to make entire projects, and not just stream-worthy singles.
“I believe in that time-tested tradition of making records that live and breathe as one piece of art,” Church says. “An album is the ultimate creative expression, and the way we consume art now just takes the edges off that creativity. It’s built to confine it, to choke it out.”
“And with this record, it’s really my way of fighting for the creative spirit, that spirit of ‘Evangeline,'” he adds. “Because I know that where we are in the world, it probably shouldn’t exist. But it does. It can live here. It can run free here.”
Evangeline vs. The Machine also includes “Darkest Hour,” a song Church penned by himself, donating all of the proceeds to those continuing to recover from the devastating Hurricane Helene last year.
See a track list for Evangeline vs. The Machine below. Find “Hands of Time” and all of Church’s music and upcoming shows at EricChurch.com.
Evangeline vs. The Machine Track List:
1. Hands Of Time (Eric Church, Scooter Carusoe)
2. Bleed On Paper (Tucker Beathard, Casey Beathard, Monty Criswell)
3. Johnny (Eric Church, Luke Laird, Brett Warren)
4. Storm In Their Blood (Eric Church)
5. Darkest Hour (Eric Church)
6. Evangeline (Eric Church, Luke Laird, Barry Dean)
7. Rocket’s White Lincoln (Eric Church)
8. Clap Hands (Tom Waits)