Philadelphia-based Br’er releases single for “City of Ice” title track as tour continues.

Benjamin Schurr mixes industrial soundscapes, bittersweet lyrics on album out Tuesday.

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Benjamin Schurr of Br’er as photographed by Darian Scatton.

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“City of Ice” is the title track and the latest single from the new Br’er album City of Ice.

 

[SOUNDCLOUD]: http://soundcloud.com/fanaticpro/brer-city-of-ice

[MP3]: http://www.fanaticpromotion.com/projects/brer/mp3/brer-cityofice.mp3

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Philadelphia-based musician Benjamin Schurr (recording under the name Br’er) is currently on tour in support of his latest album City of Ice, scheduled for release via the Edible Onion label this Tuesday, November 22^nd. The title track from City of Ice is also the latest single from the album where bleak industrial soundscapes, bittersweet pop songwriting, and modern classical music are combined with the refined hand of a young, but experienced songwriter.

Sounding like a dark, electronic version of The Smiths or Bright Eyes produced by Trent Reznor, the songs on City of Ice focus on topics that tend to be marginalized in music such as abuse, displacement, and mental illness (although love and joy make appearances too).  Never-the-less, Br’er still manages to cover these topics in a way that commands repeat listening.

“Since Br’er is a personal coping mechanism for me, I really want the music to reflect the lyrics appropriately and to get the right sounds by any means necessary,” says Schurr. This meant either learning an instrument simply to satisfy the need for a specific part, or as Schurr states, to arrange for “musical one night stands” by recruiting players he’d meet at parties. Schurr would record them and typically never see them again.

City of Ice will be released on November 22^nd, 2011 by Edible Onion Records. The album packaging contains a lyric and photography book held in cases covered in gel transfers on top of acrylic and watercolor washes. Each case is unique and hand numbered.  Benjamin Schurr is available for interviews. Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

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Br’er On Tour

11/22 St. Louis, MO @ LEMP (3301 Lemp Ave.)
11/23 Nashville, TN @ Little Hamilton Collective (1318 Little Hamilton Ave.)
11/25 Murfreesboro, TN @ House Show (914 Ewing Blvd.) For Info: darian@edibleonion.com
11/26 Athens, GA @ The Plush Palace (260 N. Chase St.)
11/27 Macon, GA @ No Space (481 MLK)
11/28 Charleston, SC @ Communications Museum (58 George St.)
11/29 Greensboro, NC @ The Science House
11/30 Greenville, NC @ Tipsy (409 Evans St.)
12/01 Fredericksburg, VA @ Read All Over Books (307 William St.)
12/03 Washington, DC @ Red Palace (1212 H St. NE)

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Br’er

City of Ice

(Edible Onion – Nov. 22^nd, 2011)

Track Listing:

01. I’ve Forgotten Nothing

02. Milk of Kindness

03. You Go, We Stay Here (STREAM | MP3)

04. Hope

05. Sea of Doubt

06. The Butcher

07. City of Ice (STREAM | MP3)

08. The Kissing Glove

09. Coersion

10. Safe Word

11. Oestrus

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Br’er Links

EPK : WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : VIDEOS : EDIBLE ONION

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Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion

WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : YOUTUBE : TUMBLR : SOUNDCLOUD : LAST.FM : BLOG : E-MAIL

One Finger Riot’s Faris McReynolds releases “Work/Drink/Sleep” single b/w “The Weasel”.

Painter turned musician’s sunny debut release is bright spot on record about L.A. loneliness.

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 Faris McReynolds of One Finger Riot

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“Work/Drink/Sleep” b/w “The Weasel” is the first single and video from Come Drag Me Down by One Finger Riot

 

[SOUNDCLOUD] http://www.soundcloud.com/fanaticpro/sets/one-finger-riot-work-drink-sleep-single

 

[YOUTUBE]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAtvTymYok4

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Faris McReynolds is the man behind One Finger Riot, a name cleverly explained by the artist as “Pushing buttons with one finger to arrive at something musical.” Unlike so many musicians that become painters, the Los Angeles-based McReynolds found success as a fine artist first.  Showing his work in galleries before he was even out of art school, McReynolds admits that “The success of painting actually isolated me from creativity.” With music as his new full-time creative endeavor, One Finger Riot’s Come Drag Me Down album is now scheduled for release on January 17^th, 2012.

The album first single “Work/Drink/Sleep (out now via Post Planetary Records) is likely the sunniest moment on Come Drag Me Down and the video for the song reflects that. Though McReynolds directed the clip himself, he says that “I didn’t want to star in the video, so I only appear to put the story into action.” McReynolds can be seen at the beginning of the clip, writing life’s anxieties on balloons. The video also features artist Ashley Macomber who recently collaborated on a book of her paintings with Bonnie “Prince” Billy.

“The Weasel” is the unofficial album track that comes as the B-side of the “Work/Drink/Sleep”single.  McReynolds describes the track as a “Deconstructed mellow groove that sounds like it’s played by a band whose members have had all of their fingers broken except for one on each hand.” More succinctly, he mentions Cornelius, Blur and Ween as musical touchstones.

Faris McReynolds of One Finger Riot is available for interviews.  Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

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One Finger Riot Links

EPK : FACEBOOK : POST PLANETARY RECORDS

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Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion

WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : YOUTUBE : TUMBLR : SOUNDCLOUD : LAST.FM : BLOG : E-MAIL

New Robert Deeble single inspired by writer G.K. Chesterton, visual artist Lynn Aldrich.

New Robert Deeble single inspired by writer G.K. Chesterton, visual artist Lynn Aldrich.

“Heart Like Feathers” title track release to be accompanied by acoustic version B-side.

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Robert Deeble as photographed by Xea Wescott.

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“Heart Like Feathers” b/w “Heart Like Feathers (Acoustic Demo)” is the first single from the new Robert Deeble album.

[SOUNDCLOUD]: http://soundcloud.com/fanaticpro/sets/robert-deeble-heart-like-feathers-single

Watch a short film about the making of the “Heart Like Feathers” album, hosted by Robert Deeble.

[YOUTUBE]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVhklUGINLY

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See Robert Deeble live in Seattle

12/08 @ Columbia City Theater (4916 Rainier Ave S) w/ Anna Lynne Williams & Sergius Gregory, and Bill Patton @ 930PM

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“Heart Like Feathers” is the title track from Robert Deeble’s first album in six years and is also the first single to be released from the Heart Like Feathers album.  The track and its accompanying, non-album B-side – a stunning acoustic demo version of “Heart Like Feathers” – will be out on November 29^th.  The Seattle-based singer-songwriter will release the album via his own Mind Bomb Publishing label in association with Dead Letter Records on February 7^th, 2012.

Of the song, Deeble explains that “The inspiration started with one of my favorite quotes by writer G.K. Chesterton. He said ‘Poets do not go mad; chess-players do.’ It’s a reminder to me of the struggle of living in my head verses living out with my heart.” “Heart Like Feathers” was left half-finished for a quite a time until Deeble attended a slide presentation by visual artist Lynn Aldrich during a visit to New Mexico. Her image “The Birds of America” simultaneously inspired the rest of the lyrics to “Heart Like Feathers” and gave the single its cover art.

Previously proclaimed “an arresting talent, able to gain entry to places rarely imagined by most songwriters” by Paste Magazine, Deeble has been away from the music scene for the last half-decade-plus. In that time, he earned a master's degree in psychology and, along with his wife, became a foster parent to a baby girl. Having performed with like-minded artists such as Sam Phillips, Low, and Pedro The Lion over the years, Deeble now returns with a cast of indie-folk stars in tow.

Joining Deeble on the Heart Like Feathers album is Victoria Williams (folk heroine and one of Paste Magazine’s “Top 100 Living Songwriters”), Stephen Hodges (drummer with Tom Waits and Mavis Staples), Ric Hordinski (co-founder of noted Americana band Over The Rhine), and Anna Lynne Williams of ethereal dream-pop band Trespassers William. Heart Like Feathers was produced by Dylan Magierek, founder of Badman Recording Co. (My Morning Jacket, Mark Kozelek, The Innocence Mission).

Robert Deeble is available for interviews.  Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

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Robert Deeble

Heart Like Feathers

(Mind Bomb / Dead Letter)

Out 2/7/2012

Track Listing:

01. Heart Like Feathers (STREAM)

02. Suzanne

03. Undertow (STREAM | MP3)

04. Eucharist

05. Weeds

06. Exhale

07. Hearing Voices Seeing Ghosts

08. The Colors of Dying

09. Scarecrow

10. Sunflower

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Robert Deeble Links

EPK : WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : BANDCAMP : WIKI

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Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion

WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : YOUTUBE : TUMBLR : SOUNDCLOUD : LAST.FM : BLOG : E-MAIL