THREE CHORDS AND THE TRUTH: Atlanta-via-Athens songwriter and musician Adam Klein will celebrate the release of his newest album Saturday, Apr. 22 at Hendershot’s. The eight-song album, Holidays in United States, is Klein’s eighth full-length release since he began putting out music about 17 years ago. In that time, his music has moved from the raw earnestness of his youth to a still hopeful but learned repose of deep adulthood. Further, his take on modern Americana has expanded and melded into fully realized compositions with rich arrangements and a resolutely mature approach to delivery. Special highlights on the new album are “Peale Are Callin’,” “Blood On My Hands” and “Bright Rails Shine,” in which Klein channels his inner Woody Guthrie. Tickets for the show, which also features Russell Cook & The Sweet Teeth, are $10 and can be purchased via hendershotsathens.com. Click there, head to “calendar,” find the show, and click for tickets. Yeah, I know that’s a few steps, but a little exercise won’t hurt you. Find the new album over at adamklein.bandcamp.com, and for all other information, please see adam-klein.com.
OPEN ALL NIGHT: As best I can tell it’s been nearly a decade, if not a little bit longer, since I had anything to say about songwriter Chris Ezelle. I’m not even sure he lives in town anymore. At any rate, dude has a new 10-song album out named 60 Pieces Of Silver. It’s a touching collection of songs that exist in a relatively genre-less universe, save for that un-namable blend of rock, country, acoustic, etc. that was a hallmark of early 1970s post-hippie pop music. For me, the album’s centerpiece, “She Rises,” is the highest mark here with its incredibly tender piano melody and hand-carried lyricism. And, believe me, it has stiff competition from the other tracks, as this whole album is a nice study in staying steadily understated. Another nice touch is the Suicide/Springsteen atmospherics of “The War Drums,” which render the track as something even more desolate than would be found on Nebraska. Ezelle is a man of few words and even fewer outlets, so the only place you can find this for now is here soundcloud.com/chris-ezelle/sets/60-pieces-of-silver. Spend some time with it, though, and you just might find your go-to album for this upcoming summer’s late night drives.
CALL ME: The indie-popsters in Telemarket won’t be releasing their new album Ad Nauseam until Aug. 25, but the lead single comes out this week. It’s named “Who Was In My Room Last Night?” and will hit the proverbial street Thursday, Apr. 20. It’s a nicely fleshed out slight-psych track with lots of twists and turns and noisy popisms. All of this comes courtesy of Science Project Records and Cloud Recordings. The same night, Telemarket will celebrate the single’s release with a live performance and music video premiere at the Flicker Theatre and Bar alongside guests Basically Nancy (Savannah) and Athens’ own Sex Cells. For more information, please see telemarketmusic.com.
SLOWER EVERY SPIN: The new EP by the spectacularly prolific Placeholder (stylized as [placeholder] in nearly all instances) is named suffocation, and that’s about as evocative a title as one could expect for this. The instrumentation is steady but sparse, and the vocals present but fading. Ironically, the subject matter here lends itself to a sense of untethered-ness and a reassessment of identity, each of which allows for a sense of weightlessness that is just about the opposite of suffocating. That said, the emotional component here is such that it feels like air has been sucked out of the room. While this is in no way a hip-hop release, fans of the music, and not necessarily the lyrics, of artists such as Mac Miller, Yung Lean (and associated project Död Mark) and even XXXTentacion should feel at home here. Find this and a whole lot more over at whoisplaceholder.bandcamp.com, and explore the entire Placeholder digital landscape through linktr.ee/whoisplaceholder.
GROUP CHAT: A cool lineup will happen Saturday, Apr. 22 at the Flicker Theatre & Bar. The night will feature the live siren sounds of songwriter Emileigh Ireland, the straight-ahead and smart guitar pop of Lexington, KY’s Scott Whiddon, and the chance to experience a rare set by Smokefrawg (the experimental collaboration between Maizy Stell, Garrison TB and Thom Strickland). To get up to speed on all three, please see emileighireland.bandcamp.com, adoorforadesk.bandcamp.com and brownpaper.bandcamp.com.
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