Song · Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit
“Death Wish” by Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit
From the album Weathervanes (2023)
“Death Wish” by Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit appears on 8 radio countdowns from 7 stations between 2023 and 2025. It was first released in 2023 on the album Weathervanes. Its best result is #10 on the 90.9 The Bridge Top 90 Songs of 2023. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #51 indie & aaa song of 2023, #6,458 indie & aaa song of all time and #309 of the '20s.
Watch
Video from YouTube (Jason Isbell). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube
"Death Wish" turned up in June 2023 on Weathervanes, the 2023 album from Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit, and Isbell kept the controls himself as producer, with Matt Pence adding extra production. He wrote it alone, words and music, and sings the lead, but the arrangement is a whole-band affair: Isbell stacks acoustic, baritone, electric and slide guitars against Sadler Vaden's electric and 12-string, Jimbo Hart holds down the bass, and Chad Gamble works the kit and the congas.
Derry deBorja is the quiet MVP, moving between piano, tack piano, organ, synth and accordion, while Amanda Shires saws away on fiddle and Morgan O'Shaughnessey brings strings. Shires, Vaden and deBorja all pile onto the harmonies too. Sylvia Massy and Ian Rickard mixed it, and all that texture never turns to mud.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.
RockLists rankings
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 68 | KXT Dallas–Fort Worth, TX | KXT Top 91 Songs of 2023 | 91 |
| 2023 | 14 | The Current Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN | The Current Top 89 Songs of 2023 | 89 |
| 2023 | 31 | WFUV New York, NY | WFUV Top 90 Songs of 2023 | 90 |
| 2023 | 10 | 90.9 The Bridge Kansas City, MO | 90.9 The Bridge Top 90 Songs of 2023 | 90 |
| 2023 | 180 | Lightning 100 Nashville, TN | Lightning 100 Top 200 Songs of 2023 | 200 |
| 2023 | 39 | WXPN Philadelphia, PA | WXPN Top 100 Most Played Songs of 2023 | 100 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1181 | WYEP | WYEP Countdown to Fall 2023 | 1229 |
| 2025 | 659 | The Current | 893 Essential Songs of The Current: 2005 to Now | 893 |
Comments
Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Death Wish" by Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.