Brothers Osborne Explain Why They Recorded ‘Port Saint Joe’ in a Beach House

Brothers Osborne’s Port Saint Joe album is out! The ten-song project was recorded in the small Florida town the record is named after, after Brothers Osborne went to Port Saint Joe to write for their new set of tunes with producer Jay Joyce, unaware of how influenced they would be by the beachside hideaway.

“The studio wasn’t a studio. It was a house,” John Osborne explains. “I mean, the place was not in any way, shape or form built for recording, which made it even cooler. That was the best part about it, so we just set up in the living room. The drums set up near the fireplace. The ceiling was kind of vaulted so we got some pretty cool room sounds. And the kitchen was all there in one spot and Jay had his brother come down and he was cooking food for us. So, literally as we were tracking drums, guitar, bass, we’re all in this room together.”

Brothers Osborne, which also includes sibling TJ Osborne, found a new kind of creative freedom by not recording Port Saint Joe the typical way, in a Nashville studio.

“If you solo some tracks, you can actually hear him cooking, like spoons banging and pots banging on the stove,” continues John. “So, it was cool. We were over there jamming and we look over and he’s just over there playing air guitar and making food. This is not how you’re supposed to do it. We were in Nashville where there’s like a million dollar studio everywhere you look. It’s the mecca for recording, and we decided to scrap that whole thing and just go down to a beach house that is not meant for recording at all and just have fun. I think it was the right move.”

Brothers Osborne found inspiration by their unconventional environment, which is reflected in Port Saint Joe.

“It made no sense other than it being an awesome place to record,” TJ admits. “There was just sand everywhere. It got all in his beer, and we were in this house that was not made for recording at all, which was kind of part of the charm. There was a lot of bleed and none of the doors had any foam or any isolation to them. It was really, really cool. It kind of felt like when you are playing music at home and you just love that jamming. You’re just sitting on your couch playing music, and I felt like that’s kind of what we captured.”

Purchase Port Saint Joe on Amazon and iTunes.

Photo Credit: Instagram/brothersosborne