“No Hard Feelings” by The Avett Brothers

The Avett Brothers, True Sadness </em

Known for their honest, plaintive lyrics, The Avett Brothers released “No Hard Feelings” in 2016 on their ninth album, “True Sadness.” The song immediately launches into the need to address any residual resentment before departing this world:

When my body won’t hold me anymore
And it finally lets me free
Will I be ready?

The brothers advocate reaching deep into our hearts to find love and forgiveness for those who’ve wronged us, as well as seeking forgiveness from those we’ve hurt.

When the jealousy fades away
And it’s ash and dust for cash and lust
And it’s just hallelujah
And love in thoughts and love in the words
Love in the songs they sing in the church
And no hard feelings

Seth and Scott Avett have been playing music together for most of their lives. The siblings, who hail from Concord, North Carolina, pair vocal harmonies with their banjo and guitar skills, while additional band members accompany them on the piano, cello, fiddle, drums or upright bass.

Art Imitates Life with “No Hard Feelings”

The album cover for “True Sadness”

The Avett Brothers don’t shy away from addressing life’s challenges, and the result is a moving look at what it means to be human. “True Sadness” followed Seth Avett’s divorce and, in addition to “No Hard Feelings,” includes songs such as “Victims of Life” and “Divorce Separation Blues.”

In an open letter to fans prior to the album’s release, Seth Avett summarized the circumstances that have made the band what it is today. “Lessons were learned, forgotten, repeated,” he writes. “The concepts of marriage, as well as divorce, became realities. Babies were born. Homes were built. We saw loved ones fight cancer in seemingly every form imaginable. We saw this battle won and lost — souls victorious in either outcome. We allowed these concepts to take root in our lives, and when they would allow it, we wrote songs with and for them.”

While the letter doesn’t peg “No Hard Feelings” as one of these songs, its message is clear — that reaching a place of forgiveness is essential to dying peacefully, with a sense of wholeness.

Under the curving sky
I’m finally learning why
It matters for me and you
To say it and mean it too
For life and its loveliness
And all of its ugliness
Good as its been to me
I have no enemies

“Somewhere along the way,” Seth Avett writes of the album, “the line between music and life faded. The change was imperceptible at first. Then, when we weren’t paying attention, it evaporated altogether.”

The band has since produced its tenth album, “Closer Than Together,” released on Oct. 4.

You can watch The Avett Brothers perform “No Hard Feelings” live on A Prairie Home Companion in the video below.