New music: Wesley Stace, Graham Coxon, Chvrches, The Way Down Wanderers

A wide range of highly-recommended releases are featured in my column this week.

Artist: Wesley Stace

Title: Late Style (Omnivore Recordings)

You might like if you enjoy: Steely Dan, Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach's "Painted from Memory" collaboration in 1998, Chris Stamey & the Fellow Travelers, Steely Dan

Tell me more: Blending the sounds of the past via an intoxicating mix of jazz, baroque pop and soul with an eternally-adventuresome spirit, singer-songwriter Wesley Stace has joined forces with composer David Nagler on the new album Late Style. Stace — who has also recorded a number of celebrated albums as John Wesley Harding — is an acclaimed novelist; his faith in joining forces with Nagler was an obvious leap of faith but pays huge dividends across Late Style. Indeed, Stace (a native of England who now lives in Philadelphia) would email lyrics to Nagler (who is based in New York). The parade of dozen wonderful tracks produced by Nagler and long-time Harding collaborator Chris Von Sneidern is a listener's dream. The jazzy opener "Where the Bands Are," melodious "Everything All the Time," euphonious "Come Back Yesterday," romance-themed gem "The Impossible She," soulful "Do Nothing If You Can" (the latter bolstered by some sublime Sneidern electric guitar) and acoustic-flavored "How You All Work Me" are among the timeless tracks on the wonderful and literate "Late Style." Information: OmnivoreRecordings.com and WesleyStace.com. 

Artist: Graham Coxon

Title: Superstate (Superstate)

You might like if you enjoy: Moby, Gorillaz, Blur

Tell me more:  Graham Coxon's Superstate is actually a collection of 15 tracks composed and recorded in connection with a graphic novel written by Alex Paknadel and Helen Mullane. To be clear, Superstate works wonderfully as an immersive listening experience apart from the newly-published 124-page graphic novel. The driving synth-pop gem "Yoga Town" features guest vocalist Valentina Pappalardo and is an inviting opener. The funky "Uncle Sam" features stylish guitar and electro disco romp "Only Takes A Stranger" (both with guest vocals from Rahel Debbie-Dessalegne) as well as the experimental Neo-classical "L.I.L.Y" are early nuggets on the album. "The Astral Light" blends disco, electronic and experimental sonic forces with the vocals of Pappalardo and Sharlene Hector bolstering the dystopian vibe. The dance floor-ready "Heaven (Buy a Ticket)," "The Ball of Light" and "Goodbye Universe" along with the soul-mining "Butterfly" and evocative "We Remain" also shine on the ambitious collection. Both Coxon's Superstate soundtrack and the companion graphic novel (released by Z2 Comics) are available on amazon.com. Information: GrahamCoxon.com.

Artist: Chvrches

Title: Screen Violence (Glassnote Records)

You might like if you enjoy: Chvrches, The Cure, Two Door Cinema Club

Tell me more: Chvrches is back with their ambitious fourth album, Screen Violence. The Scottish synth-pop trio recorded the album during the pandemic, working remotely on two different sides of the Atlantic. The shimmering opener "Asking for a Friend" is at once a dance-styled invitation and reflective sortie into these uncertain times. Other songs continue to showcase front woman Lauren Mayberry using her signature soprano in songs that explore fear, isolation, rejection and loneliness with tuneful candor. The wistful "California," darkly euphoric "Violent Delights," propulsive "Nightmares" and synth-swept rock closer "Better If You Don't" are among the wonderful cuts on "Screen Violence." My favorite track is the towering "How Not To Drown," a bewitching duet featuring Mayberry sharing lead and tandem vocals with The Cure's Robert Smith. Information: chvrch.es. 

Artist: The Way Down Wanderers

Title: More Like Tomorrow (Soundly Music)

You might like if you enjoy: The Jayhawks, Dawes

Tell me more:  The Way Down Wanderers' More Like Tomorrow — the Peoria, Illinois-spawned quintet's third full-length album — is a marvelous showcase for outstanding songcraft, top-tier Americana musicianship, nuanced arrangements and fantastic harmonies. The dynamic mournful tale of loss "Codeine, Rest & Loneliness," uplifting melody-soaked "Parkside Drive," rootsy sing-along "The Wire," gentle genre-bending "Dark Marks," mandolin- and banjo-bolstered "Hard Times," and sparse bluegrass-mining "Everything's Made Out of Sand" are among the standouts on the disc (set for release on Sept. 10). Information: thewaydownwanderers.com.

Robert Kinsler

'The Good Lyre: The Songs of John Wesley Harding' Bandcamp album is benefit for Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, out April 2

The Bandcamp album release 'The Good Lyre: The Songs of John Wesley Harding' collects covers representing acclaimed singer-songwriter's vast catalog. A pretty impressive lineup of artists are contributing to the release including Rosanne Cash, Josh Ritter, Graham Parker, Gary Louris, The Minus 5 and many more! Robert Kinsler

100% of the proceeds will benefit Sweet Relief Musicians Fund; the collection will be released on Friday, April 2, 2021

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — What started one year ago as an innocent social media game, when Facebook friends and fans suggested artists they would like to cover Wesley Stace a.k.a.John Wesley Harding’s songs, became a reality with the Community Coronation Covers Project, a community-curated playlist featuring myriad well-respected artists. The tracks have now been gathered on Bandcamp as The Good Lyre: Songs of John Wesley Harding, available Fri., April 2. All proceeds from sales and downloads will benefit Sweet Relief Musicians Fund.

 

From the hundreds of suggested artist/song pairings, Stace compiled a list: “Realizing that some of these wild ideas were tantalizingly within my grasp, I wondered whether the musicians in question might be willing to help out, to make someone’s day.”

 

These are “bespoke covers: requested by a single person, and hand delivered, as it were, to that person,” says Stace. “The object was first to blow the mind of whoever made the suggestion ‘You said you wanted to hear Graham Parker sing ‘Devil in Me’? Here you go!!’ and then to blow the minds of any fans of the performing artists whom they never thought they would hear sing this song or perhaps any other of my songs: handmade custom-built quarantainment.”

 

“The project started purely as a way to lift spirits at the beginning of the lockdown; a way for musicians to cheer people up. Now we’re bringing it full circle: all the proceeds from this album will benefit Sweet Relief, and specifically musicians affected by the COVID pandemic. It’s a beautiful way to mark the end of the project’s journey. I immediately think of John Prine, Adam Schlesinger, Dave Greenfield, Matthew Seligman, Hal Willner and other friends and/or musical influences lost to complications from the virus.

 

“These performances were acts of great generosity and kindness by these artists — it’s not necessarily an easy thing to work up a new song by request — and I’d like to thank everyone who contributed. Now, in a further act of generosity, all musicians gave an enthusiastic YES to all proceeds being donated to Sweet Relief. There but for fortune go all of us.”

 

Says Aric Steinberg, EVP Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, “We’re so grateful to Wes and all of the amazing artists that donated their time and talent to this project. The proceeds will be used to help musicians who have been financially devastated by the pandemic; artists helping artists, so cool!”

 

Track List:

1. Ryan Miller (Guster) - Your Ghost (Don’t Scare Me No More)
2. Eric Bazilian (The Hooters) - The Person You Are
3. Tanya Donelly (Belly) - The World (and All its Problems)
4. Josh Ritter - Sussex Ghost Story
5. Rosanne Cash - I’m Wrong about Everything
6. Gary Louris (The Jayhawks) - Kiss Me, Miss Liberty
7. Britta Phillips (Dean and Britta) - Sleepy People 8. Steven Page - Why Must the Show Go On?
9. Chris von Sneidern - Negative Love
10. Graham Parker - The Devil in Me
11. Wreckless Eric - Sick Organism
12. Bad Scene - You in Spite of Yourself
13. Casey Neill - Darwin
14. The Minus Five - Making Love to Bob Dylan
15. Marti Jones and Don Dixon - Dreamfader
16. David Lewis - Infinite Combinations
17. Bob Pernice - To Whom It May Concern
18. Marshall Crenshaw - I Just Woke Up
19. Dean Friedman - Top of the Bottom
20. Dag Juhlin (The Sunshine Boys) - People Love to Watch You Die

 

About John Wesley Harding

Wesley Stace was born in Hastings in 1965. Since 1988, he has released many albums under the name John Wesley Harding — his most recent, 2018’s Wesley Stace’s John Wesley Harding, with the Jayhawks as his backing band — and recorded duets with, among others, Bruce Springsteen, Lou Reed and Rosanne Cash. Stace has published four novels, including the international bestseller Misfortune, and recently co-wrote Mark Morris’ memoir Out Loud. He also created Cabinet of Wonders, a monthly show that plays at New York City’s City Winery, and which The New Yorker called “one of the finest nights of entertainment this city has to offer.” He has taught at Princeton, Swarthmore and Fairleigh-Dickinson, and writes regularly for the Times Literary Supplement and The Wall Street Journal. He lives in Philadelphia. Learn more at www.wesleystace.com

John Wesley Harding Bandcamp page: https://found.ee/AECF 

 

About Sweet Relief’s COVID-19 Fund

Founded in 1994 by singer-songwriter Victoria Williams, Sweet Relief Musicians Fund provides financial assistance to all types of music industry professionals who are struggling to make ends meet while facing illness, disability, or age-related problems. In March of 2020, Sweet Relief launched a COVID-19 Fund, with a limited amount of funds available to be used specifically for musicians and music industry workers affected by Coronavirus. Funds raised will go towards medical expenses, lodging, clothing, food, and other vital living expenses to those impacted due to sickness or loss of work. For those wishing to apply or donate, please visit www.sweetrelief.org/covid-19-fund

Four far-flung titles worth celebrating

Those looking for musical diversity need not look further than the four far-flung titles celebrated in my latest roundup of new releases.

Artist: John Wesley Harding
Title: Greatest Other People's Hits (Omnivore Recordings)
You might like if you enjoy: Bruce Springsteen, Fastball, the Minus Five
Tell me more: Singer-songwriter John Wesley Harding delivers in full on his delightful new LP Greatest Other People's Hits, a 17-track disc where he covers a diverse field of cuts while joined by a talented field of players who bring these lively reworkings to life. The Minus Five joins Harding for a shimmering take on Pete Seeger's "Words Words Words"; Fastball helps hit Joseph Egan's "Star" out of the park via bona fide power pop perfection; the wistful "Je Suis Venu Te Dire Que Je M'en Vais" poignant soundscape is further enlightened by Harding's vocal reading in French. Other artfully reworked standouts include a sparse take of Bruce Springsteen's "Jackson Cage," a teaming with the Universal Thump for a joyful run through George Harrison's "Wah Wah," and Americana-styled "Wreck on the Highway," the latter a live performance where the song's writer (the aforementioned Springsteen) contributes vocals and acoustic guitar. Other guests heard across the album include Lou Reed, Kelly Hogan and Rick Moody. Information: OmnivoreRecordings.com.

Artist: Lasers Lasers Birmingham
Title: Warning (Lasers Lasers Birmingham)
You might like if you enjoy: Phosphorescent, George Jones, Gram Parsons
Tell me more: Many of this writer's favorite artists have issued top-tier releases independently sans the support or bigger recording budgets afforded by working with a successful record label. Add to that list Los Angeles-based Lasers Lasers Birmingham whose Warning is an 11-track album that shines with the cosmic country sound of Gram Parsons even while infused with enough 21st century aplomb to make this the artist's own. Lasers Lasers Birmingham – the moniker for singer-songwriter Alex Owen – wrote the songs in a persona, an experience pushed even further after a near-death experience when he was in a car crash in the mountains of Ojai, CA. The real-world focused lyrics often find the lead character losing control in their life; to be sure the music finds singer-guitarist Owen and a collection of contributing musicians (along with noted producer Jason Soda) firmly in control as they unleash a bold brew blending authentic Americana, folk and rock. The lovely pedal steel-adorned title track, country rocker "After Party After Life," confessional acoustic nugget "Lead Me On", breezy "Numbers and Figures" and probing tale "What a Shame" are among the outstanding songs on Warning. Information: https://www.facebook.com/LasersLasersBirmingham/.

Title: New Songs for the 20th Century
Written by: Chris Stamey (Omnivore Recordings)
You might like if you enjoy: George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter
Tell me more: Written, arranged and produced by dB's co-founder Chris Stamey, New Songs for the 20th Century is an amazing album. The songs astound, as if lifted out of a time machine; to highlight some songs and note others is almost criminal. Those familiar with the Great American Songbook will likely be enthralled by this rich collection. Backed by the ModRec Orchestra, many great musicians bring Stamey's new songs to life. The beautiful and luxurious "I Don't Believe in Romance" features singer Caitlin Cary and has the magic of a Burt Bacharach classic; the wistful "What is This Music that I Hear?" and "On an Evening Such as This" are both bolstered by singer Kirsten Lambert's affecting vocals. The jazzy "There's Not a Cloud in the Sky" and more contemporary "I Am Yours" are among the memorable tracks on disc one. The jazzy "Beneath the Underdog" (featuring Marshall Crenshaw, Don Dixon and Django Haskins), the beautiful "In Spanish Harlem," and nuanced "Lover, Can You Hear Me?" bring equal power to the second disc. Information: OmnivoreRecordings.com.

Artist: Highest Intention
Title: Universal Light (Highest Intention Records)
You might like if you enjoy: Bob Marley, 311, Andrew Tosh
Tell me more: Lovers of reggae music steeped in undeniable rhythms, strong lead vocals and good vibes will want to get a listen of the debut from San Francisco Bay Area band Highest Intention. Universal Light provides a welcome introduction for the Ben "Down" Lowe-led troupe, adept at offering up a range of songs. The romance-minded "Ocean," aptly-titled "Vibes" (complete with an extended instrumental section), tuneful "Riverside," jubilant "Escape" and horn section-bolstered "Hold Your Own Love" are among the excellent tracks on the disc.  Information: highestintentionband.com.





Robert Kinsler