Veteran musician Terry Borden (formerly of slowcore pioneers Idaho, Pete Yorn’s band Dirty Bird) returns with new songs as Blesson Roy.

Hear “Lost & Found” single, praised by Glide Magazine for featuring “Beach Boys-esque poppy vocals” blended with “his love for new wave.”

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Terry Borden of Blesson Roy as photographed by Ankhurr Chawaak

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Fanatic Promotion · Blesson Roy - Lost & Found

Glide Magazine says, “From the very first notes, Borden’s California connection is apparent in the sunny, Beach Boys-esque poppy vocals. He blends this creatively with a bassline and jangling, airy guitar playing that evokes his love for new wave music. Together, these influences form an entirely new musical sound that is at once infectious power pop with a bouncy energy and an orchestral sonic landscape.” Listen to “Lost & Found” by Blesson Roy at Glide Magazine or at the link below!

[STREAM]: https://fanatic.lnk.to/BlessonRoy-LostAndFound

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Blesson Roy

“Time Is A Crime” EP

May 8^th, 2020

(Slow Start Records)

  

Track Listing:

01. In Tune With The Moon (STREAM | LYRIC VIDEO)

02. Let It Go

03. Lost & Found (STREAM)

04. Inside

05. Walk This Mile

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PLAY, POST & SHARE

“A child of the 1970s, whose love of AM pop radio has served him well... may be setting the pace for a new sound in a new decade,” says PopMatters of “In Tune With The Moon,” the debut single from Blesson Roy. The Big Takeover calls it “dreamy and earthy... always with heartfelt emotion,” in the premiere coverage of the song’s lyric video. Check it out now at the links below!

[STREAM]: https://fanatic.lnk.to/BlessonRoy-InTuneWithTheMoon

[VIDEO]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYpV9IhZSwg

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Blesson Roy| About

Life-long “music lover and music doer,” Terry Borden is a child of 1970’s California whose early love of AM radio and his brother’s record collection has led him to numerous career highlights that are still accumulating.

These include: Kind words from Lou Reed, two appearances on David Letterman, guitar hangs with Radiohead, and 250-plus tour dates a year throughout early 2000s as a

member of slowcore pioneers Idaho and singer-songwriter Pete Yorn’s backing band Dirty Bird.

Coming of age in Los Angeles during the early 1990’s rise of punk and new wave, Borden’s long and varied career as a studio and touring musician will culminate with the release of his own dreamy pop project in 2020. Blesson Roy’s five-song “Time Is A Crime” EP arrives on May 8^th.

Owing to Borden’s stint living and working in the UK where he was influenced by the burgeoning sounds of sub-cultural labels such as 4AD, Creation, Factory and Rough Trade, the music of Blesson Roy will undoubtedly please fans of all these sounds.

Borden brings real roots song craft to his work, as well, showing that his recent years away from the music industry, but not away from songwriting, have only served to develop his abilities and technique, as Borden masterfully performs all of the instruments on the new tracks himself.

After Borden’s run with Idaho came to an end, he signed with Dave Allen of Gang of Four’s World Domination label as Flotilla, releasing one critically praised album, and while the label eventually folded, the record found some important ears, including those of Yorn.

When Yorn was looking for a touring guitarist, Borden got the gig, eventually switched to his beloved bass and spent another four years out on the road. Then, during a break in touring, Borden decided to make the down time indefinite.

“After a decade-long ride, I took a long time off and away from music and the music business,” he says. “I needed to take a hard look at my life, to clean up some existential messes, and change some unhealthy habits.” Now, revitalized and energized, Borden is continuing to create, write and record music for himself again.

Blesson Roy’s five-song “Time Is A Crime” EP arrives on May 8^th, 2020 via Slow Start Records preceded by the single “In Tune With The Moon,” out now. Terry Borden is available for interviews. Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

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Blesson Roy | Links

ASSETS : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : BANDCAMP

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Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact

WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : SOUNDCLOUD : SPOTIFY : BLOG : E-MAIL

Ten years on, debut by Figg (ex-Carissa’s Wierd, Modest Mouse) to finally see national release. Hear first single via Brooklyn Vegan now.

Duo’s described in KEXP’s “Song of The Day” as “Nancy Sinatra’s spaced-out work with Lee Hazlewood, if she was raised on Slowdive.”

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Gilden Tunador and Robin Peringer of Figg. Photo credit: Robin Peringer.

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Fanatic Promotion · Figg - Black Tar of Camden Yards

Brooklyn Vegan says “Black Tar of Camden Yards” by Figg is “a very lovely dose of chamber pop-informed indie rock” in its premiere coverage of the song. Figg’s debut self-titled album, delayed for a decade, will finally see national release on June 12^th.

[STREAM]: https://fanatic.lnk.to/Figg-BlackTarOfCamdenYards  

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Figg

Figg

June 12^th, 2020

(Dissociated Press)

  

Track Listing:

01. A Case Study in Plagiarism (STREAM)

02. Pink is the New Blues

03. Black Tar of Camden Yards (STREAM)

04. Jack is the Pulpit

05. Bungleweed Motherwort

06. You and Me, Oh Please

07. Baby in a Cage

08. Don't Want to Have to Hate

09. Destroyer

10. Song for Dwyre

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PLAY, POST & SHARE

Fanatic Promotion · Figg - A Case Study in Plagiarism

Figg put their oft-delayed debut album up on the fledgling Bandcamp in 2015. It wasn’t up for long, but the album’s lead track found its way to a KEXP “Song of The Day” nod in 2017.

They said at the time, “Tunador’s voice has a striking clarity in the track mix of lead-off cut ‘A Case Study in Plagiarism,’ paired with a slightly fuzzed out guitar part, which builds to a beautiful, layered refrain. Think of Nancy Sinatra’s spaced-out work with Lee Hazlewood, if she was raised on Slowdive.” Hear “A Case Study in Plagiarism” now at the link below!

[STREAM]: https://soundcloud.com/fanaticpro/figg-a-case-study-in

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Figg | About

Figg, the Seattle and Los Angeles-based duo of Robin Peringer and Gilden Tunador, was originally scheduled to release its debut album a decade ago.

Peringer’s musical past is like a giant quilt of the Northwest music scene, having played guitar in Modest Mouse, 764-HERO, Love as Laughter and many more luminaries of the region. When he teamed up with Tunador, the duo found local admiration and ultimately national attention as part of the (intentionally misspelled) band Carissa’s Wierd.

Figg’s sound was perfect for the moment, but, shoved, then shelved, the album’s champions went away. Jump to a decade later, and now, a new moment has emerged for Peringer and Tunador as Figg’s self-titled debut, sounding fresh as ever, will finally see an appropriate record release on June 12^th, 2020.

“Releasing our record has been an ego-smashing lesson in the appreciation of patience, the unfolding of the creative process, and the magic of universal timing,” Tunador says. After the band’s deal fell apart, they shopped the album around, but were still a bit too shell-shocked from the whole experience.

Five years later, in 2015, just as Bandcamp was becoming the leader in artist-focused and controlled streaming, Figg decided to finally make the record available. They posted it without promotion or any fanfare at all. They just wanted their friends to be able to hear it.

Friends tuned in, and the band felt satisfied that at least the album was available to the public. Some of that public included legendary and internationally influential public radio station KEXP. The album’s lead track “A Case Study in Plagiarism” was added to rotation and anointed as a station “Song of The Day.”

Figg was revived, at least in this small, but important way, and this development moved Peringer and Tunador to start stockpiling new songs, and to give their generally unheard debut album its due.

“It’s as if the music has a life of its own and is determined to keep on breathing,” Tunador explains. “We are at the point in our lives where we understand the importance of doing what we love and we’re excited that the timing is aligned for this album to join the world with full promotion and availability across all platforms.”

The debut album by Figg, originally scheduled for release in 2010, is now scheduled for release on June 12^th, 2020. Members of Figg are available for interviews. Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

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Figg | Links

ASSETS : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : BANDCAMP

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Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact

WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : SOUNDCLOUD : SPOTIFY : BLOG : E-MAIL

Kathleen Grace (Jim James) teams with Grammy®-nom pianist, Larry Goldings (Beck, Sia, Tracy Chapman) for mostly one-take, collaborative album.

“Tie Me To You” features Grace original “Everywhere” at American Songwriter;  Rogers/Hart classic “Where Or When,” performed live at PopMatters.

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Kathleen Grace and Larry Goldings as photographed by Emilia Pare

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Kathleen Grace | In The Press

“Genre-blurring dexterity...” — JazzTimes

“Smart, alluring and evocative.” — The Washington Post

“Imaginative talent on the rise.” — Los Angeles Times

“Echoes of Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris.” — Downbeat

“Simple beauty and subtle wisdom.” — LA Weekly

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Hear the plaintive, beautiful ballad “Everywhere” by Kathleen Grace (with Larry Goldings) at American Songwriter or at the link below.

Grace tells American Songwriter: “Making an album with Larry was easy, so beautifully easy, we had the same goals and values. We just wanted to trust what happened live in the studio.”

[STREAM]: https://fanatic.lnk.to/KathleenGrace-Everywhere

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Watch the live-in-studio video for “Where Or When” from Kathleen Grace with Larry Goldings via PopMatters or at the link below.

“On ‘Where Or When,’ Goldings’ keyboard figures provide an unobtrusive companion to Grace’s wonderfully understated vocal performance. In a world of overstuffed compositions and performances, this is a wonderfully restrained and sparse moment.” — Jedd Beaudoin, PopMatters

[VIDEO]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvZvKdtbqzA

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Kathleen Grace with Larry Goldings

Tie Me To You

(Monsoon Records)

Out Now

Streaming Link:

STREAM FULL LP

Track Listing:

01. Tie Me To You (Kathleen Grace & Larry Goldings)

02. Where Or When (Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart) (STREAM | VIDEO)

03. Everywhere (Kathleen Grace) (STREAM)

04. John The Revelator (Traditional)

05. Berceuse (George Moustaki)

06. The Thrill Is Gone (Ray Henderson & Lew Brown)

07. Embarcadero (Kathleen Grace & Darek Oleszkiewicz)

08. Love For Sale (Cole Porter)

09. What’ll I Do (Irving Berlin) (VIDEO)

10. I’ll Follow The Sun (John Lennon & Paul McCartney)

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Kathleen Grace with Larry Goldings | About

Much like her music, Kathleen Grace’s career has expanded in recent years beyond its jazz and folk roots that saw her appearing at The Montreux Jazz Festival and The Kennedy Center for the Arts, with performances alongside rock band Portugal The Man at Coachella and throughout My Morning Jacket leader Jim James’ solo release, Uniform Distortion.

Kathleen Grace’s latest album, Tie Me To You, was born from a place of awakening, the kind that can only trigger massive change, great loss and also, hope. It is the product of finally seeing yourself fully for the first time and the price you pay to do so.

In her case, it cost her a marriage that had consumed her entire adult life. It also marked the birth of a new woman, one who would call a new man to her side — a man who, ultimately, could not stay.

Amidst this love and loss, Grace barely slept. Instead, she was flooded with music day and night — poems, songs, and melodies.  She imagined recording this new music freely, in the moment, with no big production or fixes; she envisioned simple songs broken down to their most basic parts.

Soon, she picked up the phone and called Larry Goldings, a legendary keyboardist who has worked with James Taylor, Norah Jones, John Mayer, Beck, Sia, Tracy Chapman, and others. She said simply, “Listen, I need to make a record. And you’re the only one in the world I can make it with. Can you call me back?”

He did.

And so it was that Grace found herself in the only place left that made any sense: a recording studio in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Silver Lake, California. The pair recorded live in the low light of the wood-framed building, often producing songs in single takes. What emerged is a portrait of a woman exposed as she mourns what she must let go of in order to keep reaching for herself. The result is a new sound for Grace, one that is more vulnerable and bold, one that embraces her eclecticism without apology.

Grace explains, “I remember this time so clearly, the tastes, the colors, and the sounds. The feeling of sitting next to Larry on a piano bench without headphones and just singing. Singing songs only for me, most of which I’d never sung before. Singing to myself and also to the men I loved. It’s all there in the music. Forever. Trapped in a snow globe of emotion.”

Grace and Goldings invited masterful partners into their creation of Tie Me To You. Bass player David Piltch (KD Lang) appears throughout the album, and violinist Gabe Witcher (Punch Brothers) is a special guest appearing as both a soloist and string section.

The project was championed by Grammy®-winning engineer Sheldon Gomberg, who offered up his studio for the better part of a year. A song record at its core, Tie Me To You features original music by both Grace and Goldings as well as covers of pieces by French icon Francois Hardy, blues great Son House, and The Beatles, and standards by Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, and Rodgers & Hart.

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Kathleen Grace | Links

ASSETS : WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : YOUTUBE : INSTAGRAM : BANDCAMP

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Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact

WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : SOUNDCLOUD : SPOTIFY : BLOG : E-MAIL

Blesson Roy is new dreamy pop project from former member of slowcore pioneers Idaho, Pete Yorn’s band Dirty Bird; Debut EP arrives May 8th.

Terry Borden returns to music following years of down time, revitalized, energized; New material embodies sophisticated songwriting by career player.

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Terry Borden of Blesson Roy as photographed by Ankhurr Chawaak

+++

PLAY, POST & SHARE

“A child of the 1970s, whose love of AM pop radio has served him well... may be setting the pace for a new sound in a new decade,” says PopMatters of “In Tune With The Moon,” the debut single from Blesson Roy. The Big Takeover calls it “dreamy and earthy... always with heartfelt emotion,” in the premiere coverage of the song’s lyric video. Check it out now at the links below!

[STREAM]: https://fanatic.lnk.to/BlessonRoy-InTuneWithTheMoon

[VIDEO]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYpV9IhZSwg

+++

Blesson Roy

“Time Is A Crime” EP

May 8^th, 2020

(Slow Start Records)

  

Track Listing:

01. In Tune With The Moon (STREAM | LYRIC VIDEO)

02. Let It Go

03. Lost & Found

04. Inside

05. Walk This Mile

+++

Blesson Roy| About

Life-long “music lover and music doer,” Terry Borden is a child of 1970’s California whose early love of AM radio and his brother’s record collection has led him to numerous career highlights that are still accumulating.

These include: Kind words from Lou Reed, two appearances on David Letterman, guitar hangs with Radiohead, and 250-plus tour dates a year throughout early 2000s as a

member of slowcore pioneers Idaho and singer-songwriter Pete Yorn’s backing band Dirty Bird.

Coming of age in Los Angeles during the early 1990’s rise of punk and new wave, Borden’s long and varied career as a studio and touring musician will culminate with the release of his own dreamy pop project in 2020. Blesson Roy’s five-song “Time Is A Crime” EP arrives on May 8^th.

Owing to Borden’s stint living and working in the UK where he was influenced by the burgeoning sounds of sub-cultural labels such as 4AD, Creation, Factory and Rough Trade, the music of Blesson Roy will undoubtedly please fans of all these sounds.

Borden brings real roots song craft to his work, as well, showing that his recent years away from the music industry, but not away from songwriting, have only served to develop his abilities and technique, as Borden masterfully performs all of the instruments on the new tracks himself.

After Borden’s run with Idaho came to an end, he signed with Dave Allen of Gang of Four’s World Domination label as Flotilla, releasing one critically praised album, and while the label eventually folded, the record found some important ears, including those of Yorn.

When Yorn was looking for a touring guitarist, Borden got the gig, eventually switched to his beloved bass and spent another four years out on the road. Then, during a break in touring, Borden decided to make the down time indefinite.

“After a decade-long ride, I took a long time off and away from music and the music business,” he says. “I needed to take a hard look at my life, to clean up some existential messes, and change some unhealthy habits.” Now, revitalized and energized, Borden is continuing to create, write and record music for himself again.

Blesson Roy’s five-song “Time Is A Crime” EP arrives on May 8^th, 2020 via Slow Start Records preceded by the single “In Tune With The Moon,” out now. Terry Borden is available for interviews. Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

+++

Blesson Roy | Links

ASSETS : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : BANDCAMP

+++

Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact

WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : SOUNDCLOUD : SPOTIFY : BLOG : E-MAIL

Ten years later, former Carissa's Wierd members’ debut as Figg will finally see national release. Hear band’s KEXP “Song of The Day” now.

Feat. Robin Peringer (Modest Mouse), sound described as “Nancy Sinatra’s spaced-out work with Lee Hazlewood, if she was raised on Slowdive.”

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Robin Peringer and Gilden Tunador of Figg. Photo credit: Kelly White.

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PLAY, POST & SHARE

Figg put their oft-delayed debut album up on the fledgling Bandcamp in 2015. It wasn’t up for long, but the album’s lead track found its way to a KEXP “Song of The Day” nod in 2017.

They said at the time, “Tunador’s voice has a striking clarity in the track mix of lead-off cut ‘A Case Study in Plagiarism,’ paired with a slightly fuzzed out guitar part, which builds to a beautiful, layered refrain. Think of Nancy Sinatra’s spaced-out work with Lee Hazlewood, if she was raised on Slowdive.” Hear “A Case Study in Plagiarism” now at the link below!

[STREAM]: https://soundcloud.com/fanaticpro/figg-a-case-study-in

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Figg

Figg

June 12^th, 2020

(Dissociated Press)

Track Listing:

01. A Case Study in Plagiarism (STREAM)

02. Pink is the New Blues

03. Black Tar of Camden Yards

04. Jack is the Pulpit

05. Bungleweed Motherwort

06. You and Me, Oh Please

07. Baby in a Cage

08. Don't Want to Have to Hate

09. Destroyer

10. Song for Dwyre

+++

Figg | About

Figg, the Seattle and Los Angeles-based duo of Robin Peringer and Gilden Tunador, was originally scheduled to release its debut album a decade ago.

Peringer’s musical past is like a giant quilt of the Northwest music scene, having played guitar in Modest Mouse, 764-HERO, Love as Laughter and many more luminaries of the region. When he teamed up with Tunador, the duo found local admiration and ultimately national attention as part of the (intentionally misspelled) band Carissa’s Wierd.

Figg’s sound was perfect for the moment, but, shoved, then shelved, the album’s champions went away. Jump to a decade later, and now, a new moment has emerged for Peringer and Tunador as Figg’s self-titled debut, sounding fresh as ever, will finally see an appropriate record release on June 12^th, 2020.

“Releasing our record has been an ego-smashing lesson in the appreciation of patience, the unfolding of the creative process, and the magic of universal timing,” Tunador says. After the band’s deal fell apart, they shopped the album around, but were still a bit too shell-shocked from the whole experience.

Five years later, in 2015, just as Bandcamp was becoming the leader in artist-focused and controlled streaming, Figg decided to finally make the record available. They posted it without promotion or any fanfare at all. They just wanted their friends to be able to hear it.

Friends tuned in, and the band felt satisfied that at least the album was available to the public. Some of that public included legendary and internationally influential public radio station KEXP. The album’s lead track “A Case Study in Plagiarism” was added to rotation and anointed as a station “Song of The Day.”

Figg was revived, at least in this small, but important way, and this development moved Peringer and Tunador to start stockpiling new songs, and to give their generally unheard debut album its due.

“It’s as if the music has a life of its own and is determined to keep on breathing,” Tunador explains. “We are at the point in our lives where we understand the importance of doing what we love and we’re excited that the timing is aligned for this album to join the world with full promotion and availability across all platforms.”

Moments can never be forced, they just happen. But one of the best things about moments is that, when given enough time, they tend to circle around again.

Referencing the English rock band Gomez, formed in the late 90s, is a refreshing and genre-bending idea in 2020 as UK and Brit-admiring songwriting, bathed in psychedelia, becomes more of a thing. The current flavor of that time is the current flavor of this time.

Artists that Figg cites as influences include The Cure, The Smiths, Spiritualized, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, The Velvet Underground, Jane’s Addiction (“particularly the song ‘Summertime Rolls,’” notes Peringer), Black Box Recorder, Built To Spill, Gomez, and Brian Eno.

Tunador says that the album “navigates the positive and the negative within human relationships to ultimately find balance in love. You need to feel grief to heal grief,” she says. “Love is not just flowers and romance, but equal parts fear and worry that one needs to acknowledge in order to transcend.”

To that end, Figg’s songs are intentionally recorded in a slower BPM to give space for the process of reflection.

“We want to take the listener on a contemplative journey,” Tunador explains. “It’s meant to be meditative.”

Peringer offers an even more practical explanation: “I wanted this music to be satisfying to Seattle drivers. The traffic has gotten so bad that you’re forced to drive ten miles an hour slower than the speed limit. Figg is good to listen to in Seattle traffic.”

Wise words from a band that knows how powerful a role patience plays in perseverance.

The debut album by Figg, originally scheduled for release in 2010, is now scheduled for release on June 12^th, 2020. Members of Figg are available for interviews. Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

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Figg | Links

ASSETS : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : BANDCAMP

+++

Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact

WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : INSTAGRAM : YOUTUBE : SOUNDCLOUD : SPOTIFY : BLOG : E-MAIL