ELVIS PERKINS IN DEARLAND - ELVIS PERKINS IN DEARLAND (LP)

Elvis Perkins Elvis Perkins In Dearland on Vinyl LP! 

In a traditional New Orleans funeral procession, “the second line” refers to the lively troupe of brass musicians who trail behind the mourners, injecting a spirit of spontaneous celebration into an otherwise somber affair. Indeed, Elvis Perkins in Dearland’s new eponymous album feels very much like the second line to his exquisitely melancholic and much-hailed solo debut Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday gained Elvis a dedicated and reverent following for its nuanced meditations on death and grief, many moments on that first record felt as if the listener had tip-toed into the intimate confines of a private elegy, enveloped in that wondrous, old-soul quality of Elvis’s voice.

There are still plenty of private moments on Elvis Perkins in Dearland, but Elvis is now joined by a talented trio of friends that toured with him in support of Ash Wednesday. Many of the new songs on Elvis Perkins in Dearland were honed on the road by the four bandmates, whose natural ease with one another allowed them to constantly experiment with arrangements on the fly. Grammy Award-winning producer Chris Shaw (Public Enemy, Bob Dylan, Ween) helped to mastermind this sound by balancing the vast array of eclectic instruments that the band utilizes, from the quiet heave of a harmonium or hurried whisper of strings lilting in and out of Elvis’s voice on “Hour’s Last Stand” to the pounding, ring-tailed beat of the marching drum that propels “Hey” skywards. Even while creating its own particular sound, the band is clearly influenced by a range of American roots music, as evidenced by the roughened harmonica licks punctuating Elvis’s verses, the wicked, bluesy squeal of the organ on “I’ll Be Arriving,” or the mournful tromp of the tuba on “Chains, Chains, Chains” (played by the estimable Howard Johnson, who has recorded with John Lennon and the Band). In fact, it is in this juxtaposition of old and new where the feeling of a “happening” emerges, where we feel the spontaneous gathering of melodies.

At once raucous and profound, Elvis Perkins in Dearland conjures both the greatest celebration and the saddest funeral, channeling an ageless wisdom that deepens with each new listen.

Elvis Perkins In Dearland Elvis Perkins In Dearland Track Listing

1. Shampoo
2. Hey
3. Hours Last Stand
4. Heard Your Voice in Dresden
5. Send My Fond Regards to Lonelyville
6. I'll Be Arriving
7. Chains Chains Chains
8. Doomsday
9. 1 2 3 Goodbye
10. How's Forever Been Baby