Steve Earle & The Dukes will release new album Ghosts of West Virginia on 22nd May via New West Records.

The album centres on the Upper Big Branch coal mine explosion that killed twenty-nine men in that state in 2010, making it one of the worst mining disasters in American history. Investigations revealed hundreds of safety violations, as well as attempts to cover them up, and the mine’s owners were forced to pay more than $200 million in criminal liabilities.

First taste comes with the bluesy stomp and hypnotic country drone of Devil Put the Coal in the Ground.

Listen here.