October 1, 2013 | 0 Comments

SPIRITS OF THE RED CITY – JULA going for Top 200 ADDS NOW!!

Oh my goodness. This band is breathtaking. I can’t wait for you to hear (and also SEE! The packaging is gorgeous and handmade!) this record. It’s delicate, sensitive, complicated, beautiful folky music. They’re the kind of band I would have gladly spent years pursuing, but they happened to kind of just drop into my lap, when a pal who’s in The Lumineers introduced me to one of Spirits’ label’s owners, Macon Terry, who is incidentally also in the wonderful band Paper Bird. Also they had their tour kick-off show intersect with that other awesome tour I’m promoting, with Shenandoah Davis and Anthonie Tonnon, which is some pretty sweet serendipity but not entirely coincidence (these are worlds that overlap pretty heavily for sure). Oh and that bit about the Lumineers connection wasn’t just name-dropping; they’re a good reference point to tell you what kind of thing we’re in for here. As I once heard somebody put it: “Lumineers’ music is like starting on the journey, going up the mountain, but Spirits’ music is like after the journey, sitting around the campfire at the end of the night.” INTRIGUED?! READ ON!!!

SPIRITS OF THE RED CITY

JULA

Collectible Records

Spirits of the Red City present their sophomore LP, Jula.

Jula marks a first release for Denver label Collectible Records. Recorded by Kevin Ratterman in his Louisville studio La La Land, the album is the long-awaited follow-up LP to 2009’s Hunter Moon, which was lauded for its “airy intimacy and elegance… wistful themes and relatively spare orchestrations [and its] honesty and passion” (Robin Hilton, NPR’s All Songs Considered).

Where Hunter Moon excelled in showcasing the band’s unusual arrangements, Jula truly exceeds. With their signature combination of classical strings, experimental jazz percussion, and an arsenal of roots/folk instruments, Spirits of the Red City have created a rare sense of space. With sparing but deliberate use of their full lineup, they craft a sound that never seems either bare or overwhelming. And whether in calm croon, lilting lament, or yelling in desperation, songwriter Will Garrison maintains a breathless intensity that supports his humble, honest and intelligent poetry.

Though nearly all the members of Spirits of the Red City have at one time called Minneapolis their home, in the years since Hunter Moon‘s release all but Garrison have dispersed – to Alaska, California, Colorado, Michigan, and New York. Despite their geographic disparity, they have devotedly toured all around the States – performing in theaters and art galleries, backyards and basements, parks and caves, on farms and ocean piers. And while Garrison does most of his songwriting at home in Minneapolis, each song’s intricate orchestration is never fully realized until the ensemble is on the road. This process for the Spirits – the patience that carries relationships though months of distance, the yearning that builds, and the ecstasy of reunion – is what makes Jula a delicacy that was worth the wait.

Spirits of the Red City are on tour on the West Coast immediately following their September 24^th release; tour dates are listed below.