Biography
Although Durand Jones never set out to lead a group, his work with the Indications has positioned him among the most forceful and singular voices in the soul revival of the 2010s and 2020s. Alongside a series of standalone singles, the singer and songwriter has joined his bandmates on three full-length releases: Durand Jones & the Indications in 2016, American Love Call in 2019, and Private Space in 2021. Outside those projects he has lent his voice or saxophone to an array of one-off sessions with other artists, and in 2023 he issued the intimate solo set Wait Til I Get Over.
Raised along the Mississippi River in Hillaryville, Louisiana, Jones began singing in childhood. A spontaneous appearance before his church choir left the congregation stunned, and his grandmother’s gift of an alto saxophone altered his musical path. After earning a Bachelor of Arts from Southeastern Louisiana University he moved north to Bloomington and enrolled in graduate studies at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. There he performed in a saxophone quartet and took the helm of the IU Soul Revue, which introduced him to drummer and vocalist Aaron Frazer, guitarist Blake Rhein, bassist Kyle Houpt, and keyboardist Justin Hubler—then performing together as Charlie Patton’s War. The five musicians formed Durand Jones & the Indications and began playing and recording in a style shaped by classic soul singles, obscure deep cuts, and present-day revival acts. Their first release, the 7-inch “Smile,” appeared on Colemine in 2015; the self-titled debut album followed in 2016. Soon afterward the band aligned with Dead Oceans, an imprint of Secretly Canadian, which reissued the debut and issued the subsequent LPs American Love Call and Private Space. During the same span Jones added saxophone, co-writing, or vocals to various outside recordings, among them Stone Foundation’s “Hold on to Love” and the Bamboos’ “If Not Now (Then When).”
Independent of the Indications, Jones unveiled his debut solo album, Wait Til I Get Over, on Dead Oceans in May 2023. The songs had accumulated across nine years, some of them predating the band’s first record, and drew directly from his Louisiana roots. He produced the sessions with Ben Lumsdaine and Drake Ritter; the core team was augmented by bassist Glenn Myers and keyboardist Matt Romy among others. Lead singles “Lord Have Mercy,” featuring Indications guitarist Kyle Houpt, and the breakup ballad “That Feeling” preceded the album.
Raised along the Mississippi River in Hillaryville, Louisiana, Jones began singing in childhood. A spontaneous appearance before his church choir left the congregation stunned, and his grandmother’s gift of an alto saxophone altered his musical path. After earning a Bachelor of Arts from Southeastern Louisiana University he moved north to Bloomington and enrolled in graduate studies at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. There he performed in a saxophone quartet and took the helm of the IU Soul Revue, which introduced him to drummer and vocalist Aaron Frazer, guitarist Blake Rhein, bassist Kyle Houpt, and keyboardist Justin Hubler—then performing together as Charlie Patton’s War. The five musicians formed Durand Jones & the Indications and began playing and recording in a style shaped by classic soul singles, obscure deep cuts, and present-day revival acts. Their first release, the 7-inch “Smile,” appeared on Colemine in 2015; the self-titled debut album followed in 2016. Soon afterward the band aligned with Dead Oceans, an imprint of Secretly Canadian, which reissued the debut and issued the subsequent LPs American Love Call and Private Space. During the same span Jones added saxophone, co-writing, or vocals to various outside recordings, among them Stone Foundation’s “Hold on to Love” and the Bamboos’ “If Not Now (Then When).”
Independent of the Indications, Jones unveiled his debut solo album, Wait Til I Get Over, on Dead Oceans in May 2023. The songs had accumulated across nine years, some of them predating the band’s first record, and drew directly from his Louisiana roots. He produced the sessions with Ben Lumsdaine and Drake Ritter; the core team was augmented by bassist Glenn Myers and keyboardist Matt Romy among others. Lead singles “Lord Have Mercy,” featuring Indications guitarist Kyle Houpt, and the breakup ballad “That Feeling” preceded the album.
Albums
Singles
