Fiddler Amanda Shires brings newest songs to Petaluma's Mystic Theater

Some writers have studios. Others, like James Joyce, had special writing sheds. But for singer-songwriter-fiddler-extraordinaire Amanda Shires, most of the songs on “To the Sunset,” her latest album, came together in a clothes closet.

The album represents Shires’ first as a mom, and, to get away from the chaos of her toddler, she embraced a different process, doing most of her writing in the only place she could find peace and quiet.

“In that small space, with all the isolation and focus, the songs I was writing were telling me what they wanted to be and what they wanted to sound like,” said Shires. She noted that she bought a bunch of blue painter’s tape and taped up lyrics to the walls. “With my feelings lined up on the walls, I got comfortable with the songs real quick.”

Shires brings her fiddle and a closet full of new songs to Petaluma’s Mystic Theatre & Music Hall on Sunday.

In many ways, the current tour highlights a coming of age for 36-year-old Shires. It is her first tour since she earned her MFA in creative writing, and the first since she won the Emerging Artist of the Year Award at the 2017 Americana Music Honors & Awards.

The “To the Sunset” tour also is the first for which she has her own tour bus - after more than 20 years of driving herself to shows.

“[Having my own bus] was a dream I never admitted to myself, partly because I’ve always thought that if I said my dreams out loud there was a chance they might not ever happen,” Shires confessed during a July telephone interview with The Press Democrat. “Now instead of driving, I get to relax with the band. It’s an amazing thing.”

The album - her fifth since 2005 - came out earlier this month and shows a newfound maturity.

From a music perspective, Shires experimented with effects pedals, distorting her fiddle’s sound in new and interesting ways. From a lyrical perspective, the Texas native went short and sweet: Though all 10 songs run less than 40 minutes total, they convey strength, independence and confidence.

“Parking Lot Pirouette,” for instance, tells the tale of a woman’s decision to pursue a love affair, while “Charms” offers a self-doubting-but-realistic perspective on motherhood. “Break out the Champagne,” the most rousing of the bunch, celebrates a friend’s break-up by spotlighting all the disappointing things about the relationship. Then there’s “Take on the Dark,” which essentially implores listeners to choose love over self-pity.

After discussing the messages in these songs, Shires stopped short of acknowledging that she has achieved a new place in her life, but admitted the songs represent a step forward.

“In my mind there’s always a box of problems, and if the problems change from year to year, that means you’re on track,” she explained. “When I think about this year versus last year, I feel like I’m in a new place, with a whole new set of problems. So that must be progression.”

As for her makeshift writing room-“really a tiny Americana closet, not one of those big and cavernous Kardashian closets”- Shires declined to say whether she’d return when it’s time to write again. While her husband, fellow musician Jason Isbell, undoubtedly would respect her privacy, there’s no guarantee that their marker-crazed almost-3-year-old would follow his lead.

“Writing is like music and parenting and life,” she quipped. “You find a way to make it work.”

Matt Villano is a writer and editor based in Healdsburg. His regular “Humanity First” column in The Healdsburg Tribune focuses on good people doing great things in the community.