TAPROOT: New Album Title Announced

Bassist Phil Lipscomb of the Ann Arbor, Michigan hard rock band TAPROOT has issued the following update:

"As you are all aware, we have been working extremely hard and are in the final stages of finishing up our new album. All of the recording is finished, the album is getting mixed as we speak, and we're all very excited to move into the next phases of our careers.

"We put a great amount of time and energy into this record, our blood, sweat and tears...this is the culmination of a band that's been together for ten years...and looking to continue on for another ten. We have been lucky enough to have developed a solid fan base of true music lovers from all over the world, people that appreciate our hard work and know that we are grateful for them in return. You guys have allowed us to travel to some amazing places, meet a wide range of people, and see places most people only get to read about in books. Through all of this, we remain the same down-to-earth guys from Michigan that started this adventure ten years ago.

"We began recording demos in 1997 at Woodshed studios in Ferndale, MI. The songs on this record are the first recordings we've done back in Michigan since we were signed in 2000, and this is the first record we wrote and recorded in its entirety in our home state. It's been more of a fun process than a business concern for the first time in a long time, which has been nice and lifting to the material and to us. It's got some really great songs that we think all of our fans will really relate to and love, and it also has a first for us — a female singer singing on one of the songs called 'It's Natural'.

"The coming months will bring many exciting things from TAPROOT, from new videos on YouTube to a release date for the new album, but for now we are pleased to announce the title of our new album: 'Our Long Road Home'. The title is a unique and expressive tribute to our newly found collective freedom of creativity as a band, with no strings attached. It's a tribute to the casual and comfortable settings of being at home with friends and family — a place we love to be."

TAPROOT's follow-up to 2005's "Blue-Sky Research" was reportedly produced by Tim Patalan.

The new album will be the band's first since parting with Atlantic Records in June 2006. They're also reportedly working on a DVD, but there's no word as to when that will see the light of day.

TAPROOT, which formed in 1997, is perhaps best known for its 2002 album, "Welcome". It included the hit singles "Poem" and "Welcome".

TAPROOT's "Calling" video (taken from "Blue-Sky Research"):