Album: Four Songs
Song: I Am Lost
There's obscure, and then there's obscure. Andy Shauf is obscure.
Shauf is a Regina singer/songwriter, in my opinion favorably comparable to Iron and Wine and Sufjan Stevens amongst the quasi-folk set. I first heard his music at the 2009 Regina Folk Festival and was absolutely blown away by the sensitivity of his guitar playing, his fine sense of melody, his crystal clear vocals, and his evocative and elegant style.
He has put out a full length album, Darker Days, and another EP, Waiting for the Sun to Leave, both of which are excellent and feature more polished songwriting and production than we hear on Four Songs. But there is a touching naivete to the latter, and it features perhaps my favorite Shauf song, "I Am Lost."
Our featured tune is the second of two from the below performance at a tiny Brooklyn venue. The audience is breathless here, as if expecting at any moment the tender, gossamer melody and whispered guitar to collapse in on itself. Please watch and listen to the entire video -- it provides a good sense of Shauf's best qualities as a performer, connecting to his audience with an aching melancholy reminiscent of Lyle Lovett or Nick Drake's quietest moments, not to mention insight into his appealing self-deprecating manner.
Listen to Andy Shauf. He deserves it.
No comments:
Post a Comment