Hank Williams used to dream about getting out of this world alive.

His grandson will settle for getting out of a record deal.

“In about five months, I’ll be done with Curb Records,” twangs Hank Williams III down the line from his rented house in east Nashville, Tenn. “It’s almost over. I’m really looking forward to that.”

No wonder. Williams’ 12-year relationship with label owner Mike Curb has been adversarial to say the least. Almost from the day he signed with Curb — reportedly to help pay off $60,000 in overdue child support — they have repeatedly clashed in private, in public and in court over the singer-guitarist’s refusal to play by Nashville rules.

But with his just-released seventh album Rebel Within — a mix of classic honky-tonk and country, spiked with dashes of blistering metal — the 37-year-old Williams has finally fulfilled his contractual obligations. Between auditioning new drummers for his upcoming Canadian tour with Assjack, III shot the breeze about his famous forebears, bailing out his basement and his Curb-free future.

Did you get hit by the flood?

It was all around me. But I was lucky enough that the place I rent is up on a hill. So I had to get rid of maybe 200 buckets of water from the basement. A flooded basement ain’t nothing compared to what happened. But it was pretty intense.

Do you have a lot of historic stuff from your dad and grandfather?

I’ve only acquired a few things of my grandfather. I have two guns, a tie, a fishing lure, one of his old money clips and some letters. I’ve never got to hold or play any of his instruments. As far as my dad, I got a guitar that Johnny cash gave him back in the day. The belt buckle marks on the back are Johnny’s. That’s probably the coolest instrument I have.

You’ve been feuding with Curb forever. What’s the crux of the problem?

They don’t respect what I have to offer. I’ve had Mike Curb look me in the eye and say, ‘I don’t know how to market you.’ It’s not their thing. What I offer is more rebellious, outlaw kind of music. But I’m giving them three chances with the music I do. You’ve got the country market, you’ve got the hillbilly side, and you’ve got the hardcore metal. If you look at everybody else on their roster, nobody comes close to drawing the kind of diverse audience I have and crossing all those barriers.

Given that this is your last album, it seems very gentlemanly of you not to turn in a half-baked effort.

Yeah, I could have given them a bad record. I am kind of immature in a lot of things I do. But it’s a halfway-decent one. We had a good batch of songs that everyone can possibly relate to. I did that for the fans. I always treat ’em with as much respect as possible. That’s why we do the longest shows for the cheapest tickets.

What’s the live show like now?

Still the same. The first hour and a half is country. The middle ground, the hillbilly sound, is about an hour. Then we switch drummers, and finish the night rocking with Assjack. It’s a three-hour show that covers a lot of ground. And it takes a lot out of me. The hardest part is trying to maintain my voice. I’ve had to tame it down a little bit. I have to sing with Assjack a little more instead of screaming. Once I hit my 30s, I had to re-evaluate how I was going to maintain the voice.

Are you already making plans for your next album?

I do have a plan. But unfortunately, I can’t discuss it. I’m still under contract for a few months, so every little thing can be used against me. They can claim to own this and that. So all creative freedoms are on hold until that time is up. But I can tell you I’ll be coming out of the gate pretty strong with some friends. That’s the best way to put it.

Are you looking for a new label? What would you want from a record company?

Basically, I just want to be able to play with other musicians without going through lawyers. And I want to be able to sell my own music at my shows, which I haven’t been able to do up until now. At first, I’m going to try to DIY it as much as I can for a while. If it’s too intense and I can’t do what I want to do or the focus gets diverted, then I’ll think about going with a label that respects what I do.

found at
http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/music/2010/06/02/14227501.html