Andrew Combs shares soulful new single 'Stars Of Longing'

EUROPEAN TOUR IN NOVEMBER/DECEMBER
INCLUDING THE LEXINGTON, LONDON – DECEMBER 10^TH

IDEAL MAN

NEW ALBUM OUT SEPTEMBER 20TH VIA NEW WEST RECORDS

Nashville based singer/songwriter Andrew Combs has announced his new album, Ideal Man, to be released on September 20^th via New West Records.

Combs has shared ‘Stars Of Longing’, the first track to be taken from the album:

An insightful, questioning gem, ‘Stars Of Longing’ opens the album with a snare drum cracking like a gunshot, before launching into a flowing blend of fuzzy guitar lines and reverb-drenched vocals. The track is accompanied by a captivating and touching video which premiered with FLOOD Magazine, who described it as “a shimmering slab of groovy psychedelic soul… a promising precursor to what’s to come”. 

Ideal Man was produced by Sam Cohen (Kevin Morby, Benjamin Booker) and follows Combs’ critically acclaimed 5 Covers & A Song EP, which featured his interpretations of songs by The Strokes, Radiohead, Blake Mills, Lucinda Williams, and Loudon Wainwright III.

Release Date: 20 Sept. 2019

Label: New West Records

11 Tracks

Total Length: 38:36

Genres: Pop
Amazon UK - iTunes

Ideal Man is available for pre-order now here: https://geni.us/acidealman

IDEAL MAN TRACK LISTING:

1. Stars Of Longing

2. Ideal Man

3. Like A Father

4. Save Somebody Else

5. Hide And Seek

6. Dry Eyes

7. Firestarter

8. Shipwreck Man

9. Born Without A Clue

10. The Stone

11. Golden

While Combs may be best known as a singer/songwriter in the classic 1970s Laurel Canyon sense of the term, he proves the true versatility of his work here, often setting his acoustic aside in favour of atmospheric synthesizers and distorted electric guitars. Captured live in Cohen’s Brooklyn studio, Ideal Man also features Combs’ longtime collaborators, drummer Dom Billet and guitarist/keyboardist/bassist Jerry Bernhardt.

A Dallas native, Combs has called Nashville home since 2006, but when it came time to record Ideal Man, he opted for a change, heading to Sam Cohen’s Jupiter Recordings in Brooklyn. “One of the things I really admired about Sam is that he wants to capture a moment,” says Combs.

“In the past, I’ve tended to pursue a studio sound that was really polished and clean, but I wanted to do something different this time, and I knew that working with Sam would lead to more of a loose, psychedelic, spaced-out vibe. We did everything live in the studio, even my vocals, and there’s a sense of immediacy and discovery in those early takes that you can’t recreate.”

Combs worked with some of his favourite writers for the album, including Joe Henry, Dylan LeBlanc, Jeff Trott and Kenny Childers, but the stories he tells here are deeply personal and remarkably vulnerable. The songwriting was partly inspired by his recent fascination with painting. Combs started painting when his wife was pregnant in 2017.

“It really changed the way that I write songs,” he reflects. “When I paint, I might start with a very abstract idea or maybe even just a feeling, but from there I’ll paint and scrape and paint and erase and keep on painting until something starts to take shape. I just let nature play out.”

Enamoured with the fresh creative avenues that painting opened up for him, Combs applied the same approach to his music, beginning songs with an emotion rather than a concept and treating lyrical and melodic ideas as raw material that could be added to or layered over at any point. When he heard the finished recordings, the songs in turn suggested entire canvases in his mind, and Combs began work on a series of oil paintings designed to accompany each track on the album. He plans on presenting the album and the paintings together in a gallery show surrounding the album release.

Fatherhood is another obvious source for Combs’ change in perspective, and the record reflects the emotional rollercoaster that comes with raising a child in such turbulent times. No longer simply an observer documenting the world as he sees it, he finds himself thrust into the role of protector and guardian on these songs, which means that joy and hope often come packaged with fear and frustration, anger and anxiety. A sense of danger and violence underlies the entire record, much as it does the entire country, but it only serves to make the moments of beauty and connection here that much more poignant.

Combs first began garnering national attention for his music with the release of Worried Man, his acclaimed 2012 debut. The record earned Combs a slot at the iconic Newport Folk Festival, alongside dates with Shovels & Rope and Houndmouth, and prompted American Songwriter to proclaim that “[as far as] first albums go, it’ll be tough to beat this as one of the year’s finest.”

Combs followed it up in 2015 with the similarly well-received All These Dreams, which landed him performances with Kacey Musgraves and Eric Church among others, and then signed to New West Records in 2017 for his breakout third album, Canyons Of My Mind. Songs from that record racked up more than 15 million streams on Spotify and prompted rave reviews from Rolling Stone and NPR, who hailed him as “one of Nashville's most poetically gifted young singer-songwriters.”

Andrew Combs will be touring Europe in support of Ideal Man in November and December, including dates in Bristol, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, and a show at London’s The Lexington on December 10^th. Tickets are on sale now, and available here:https://www.andrewcombsmusic.com/tour

EUROPEAN TOUR 2019
27/11 – Rock & Blues Café, Zaragoza, ES
28/11 – Sala Siroco, Madrid, ES
29/11 – Riquela Club, Santiago, ES
01/12 – Kafe Antzokia-Kutxa Beltza, Bilbao, ES
02/12 – Cine Groucho, Santander, ES

Weds 4 December 2019 - St Lawrence’s Church, Biddulph (Website; Congleton Rd, Biddulph, Stoke-on-Trent ST8 7RG)
Thurs 5 December 2019 - Pleasance Cabaret Bar, Edinburgh (60 Pleasance EH8 9TJ) £15.68 8:00 PM - 10:30 PM (Doors 7:30 PM) Ticket Web

Fri 6 December 2019 - CCA, Glasgow (350 Sauchiehall Street G2 3JD) Ticket Web £16.88 7:30 PM Doors - 10:15 PM

Sun 8 December 2019 - Lost Lane, Dublin (1-2 Adam Court, D2 D02RP20, Ireland) Ticketmaster UK @ 7:30 pm

Mon 9 December 2019 - The Louisiana,  Bristol (Bathurst Parade, Wapping Road, Bristol BS1 4RH) Event £11

Tue 10 December 2019 - The Lexington, London (96-98 Pentonville Road N1 9JB) Ticket Web £19.60 Standing £17.50 (+ £2.10 Fees) 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM

11/12 – TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht, NL
12/12 – Café de Amer, Amen, NL
13/12 – Stille Nacht, Rotterdam, NL

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Modern East Nashville troubadour Andrew Combs drops Sci-Fi inspired ‘Blood Hunters’ video

“One of the most impressive singer/songwriters of recent years” 
THE LINE OF BEST FIT
“Almost surgically skilful with a phrase and yet filled with human vulnerability” 
MOJO
“One of Nashville’s most poetically gifted young singer-songwriters.” 
NPR MUSIC
UK TOUR DATES announced in April & May 

Andrew Combs today (Fri March 3, 2017) released the video for new single ‘Blood Hunters’, premiered by the prestigious Rolling Stone Country, The Ry Cox directed film is cinematic in scope with nods to sci-fi and horror, not too distant from Netflix hit show ‘Stranger Things’ and an example of the gifted songwriter’s exciting musical direction on the hotly anticipated album, Canyons Of My Mind, released on April 7th, 2017 via Loose in Europe. 

Already catching the attention of UK media with previous release ‘All These Dreams’, including publications Mojo and The Line Of Best Fit, Canyons Of My Mind will no doubt be Andrew’s UK breakthrough. The 11-song set was co-produced by Skylar Wilson (Justin Townes Earle, Caitlin Rose) & Jordan Lehning (Rodney Crowell, Caitlin Rose) and recorded at Battle Tapes Studio in East Nashville, TN and is some of Andrew’s strongest songwriting to date, already receiving support from NPR, American Songwriter and Paste Magazine.

A Dallas native now living near the same East Nashville airport immortalised in the opening sequence of Robert Altman’s country music odyssey, Andrew Combs is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, and heir to that 1975 film’s idea of the Nashville troubadour. 

Well established in the East Nashville singer-songwriter scene alongside friends and contemporary artists Aaron Lee Tasjan, Erin Rae, Caitlin Rose, Nikki Lane, Andrew and his fellow indie artists are creating an alternative Nashville music scene. One which is coexisting completely independently from the glitzy dizzying glamour of mainstream music institution Music Row, born in the dive bars of East Nashville - these young talented musicians are capturing the voice of an American generation. Andrew shows musical maturity on Canyons Of My Mind, tackling political issues on ‘Dirty Rain’, he expresses environmental concerns, commenting on the gentrification and the destruction of America’s industrial and agrarian Heartland. Elsewhere Andrews writes elegant love songs and mood pieces, amounting to a rounded and crafted piece of modern songwriting.

On the ambitious video, Andrew Combs offered, “I loved where Ry’s head was at with this. When I first read his treatment, I knew he was spot on. I dug his plot idea - putting together a story of the hunter and its prey. The premise could have very easily become a sloppy mess of intertwined stories. Instead I think we got a nice, concise video that keeps you on your toes. That is very hard to do, in my opinion. I really appreciated Ry’s attitude - a mixture of professionalism and laid back. His easy going demeanor was key, especially when we were slogging through the cold river to get some daybreak shots.”

Combs has also announced the initial U.S. and U.K. tour dates in support of the album, with appearances at the SXSW Music Festival in Austin, TX this month. Please see tour dates below, with more to be announced. 

Canyons Of My Mind will be available digitally, on CD and 180g vinyl on Loose, available to pre-order now via PledgeMusic.
Also available to Pre-Order at Amazon UK (£7.99) - UK iTunes (£7.99) - Amazon.com ($9.49)

Related BLOG Post:

American troubadour Andrew Combs announces new album CANYONS OF MY MIND & releases new video/track 'Dirty Rain'

UK & Ireland Tour Dates

Sun 30 April & Mon 1 May 2017 - Kilkenny Roots Festival (St Kieran's St, Gardens, Kilkenny, Ireland) Event

Tues 2 May 2017 - Night And Day Cafe, Manchester (26 Oldham Street, Northern Quarter M1 1JN) £15.40 Standing Event

Thurs 4 May 2017 - Glee Club, Birmingham (The Arcadian Center, 70 Hurst Street, B5 4TD) £13 Event

Sat 6 May 2017 - The Caves, Edinburgh (Niddry Street South, EH11NS Edinburgh) 15.68* Event

Sun 7 May 2017 - Brudenell Social Club, Leeds (33 Queen's Road, LS6 1NY) £13.20 Event

Mon 8 May 2017 - The Maze, Nottingham (257 Mansfield Road, NG13FT) £13.20 Event

Tues 9 May 2017 - Borderline, London (Orange Yard, 16 Manette Street, Soho, W1D 4JB) Ticketmaster | ALT Tickets | Ticketweb

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American troubadour Andrew Combs announces new album CANYONS OF MY MIND & releases new video/track 'Dirty Rain'

New track ‘Dirty Rain’ paints a bleak picture of a near-future dystopia

Illustrated beautifully with accompanying powerful video premier on NPR

Andrew Combs is set to release his 11 track, third album, Canyons Of My Mind, on April 7th 2017.

With this release he has teamed with PledgeMusic (along with his labels New West & Loose) to offer fans an exclusive pre-order, where you can get items available nowhere else.
Also available to Pre-Order at Amazon UK (£7.99) - UK iTunes (£7.99) - Amazon.com ($9.49)

The 11-song set was co-produced by Skylar Wilson (Justin Townes Earle, Caitlin Rose) & Jordan Lehning (Rodney Crowell, Caitlin Rose) and recorded at Battle Tapes Studio in East Nashville, TN. After touring behind his second album All These Dreams - which earned him international accolades and comparisons to everyone from Leonard Cohen to Harry Nilsson to Mickey Newbury - Combs has returned with a new album that puts down stakes in fresh sonic terrain. Canyons Of My Mind - as its title suggests - is a landscape where the personal and pastoral converge.

Drawing inspiration from the biographies of literary figures like Charles Wright and Jim Harrison, Combs has created an album that explores the notion of “sustainability” in its many facets - artistic, economic, spiritual, environmental. 
NPR Music’s Ann Powers previously stated, “His song-pictures are gorgeous, but he recognises their impermanence as he sings.” This deeply felt sense of ecology, of the transient beauty within nature’s chaotic churn, lies at the heart of Combs’ approach to his art.
NPR Music recently premiered the video for the track “Dirty Rain”. They stated "Andrew Combs possesses a voice that always provides a thrill; here, he makes sure it offers relevant substance, too”. He will soon announce a full European tour in May 2017.

A Dallas native now living near the same Nashville airport immortalised in the opening sequence of Robert Altman’s country music odyssey Nashville, Andrew Combs is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, and heir to that 1975 film’s idea of the Nashville troubadour as a kind of musical monk.  Here in the twenty-first century whorl of digital narcissism, where identity can feel like a 24/7 social media soft-shoe performance, Combs makes music that does battle with the unsubtle.  As a songwriter, Combs relies on meditative restraint rather than showy insistence to write his songs, a technique commensurate with his idea of nature as an overflowing spiritual wellspring. 

“When I set out to record my last album, I had a distinct vision of what I wanted the record to sound like.  It was a cocktail of the Roy Orbison, Glen Campbell, Nilsson vibes that you can hear right there on the surface,” Combs says.  “Canyons Of My Mind is much more personal.  It’s a testament to my acceptance of who I am as a man, and who I am becoming.”  The record’s sonic adventurousness bears witness to that evolution, as well as to some big changes in his personal life. 

Between All These Dreams and Canyons Of My Mind, Combs married his longtime girlfriend and honeymooned for six weeks in the Minnesota wilderness.  The quiet struggles and satisfactions of carving out an identity in a world gone wrong are palpable throughout the album.  Whether questing through the labyrinth of his own spiritual yearning (“Heart of Wonder”), recreating a rail rider’s full-body sensation of freedom beneath an azure Montana sky (“Rose Colored Blues”), imagining a near-future dystopia where the very idea of green spaces have been annihilated (“Dirty Rain”), or channeling the desire of a peeping Tom who has fallen in love with his sylvan quarry (“Hazel”), Combs refines the vulnerable vagabond persona he mastered on All These Dreams while pushing it beyond those boundaries, into a more pastoral realm aligned with artists like Nick Drake and Tim Buckley.  The idea of the artist’s creative life as an ecosystem - one just as in need of cultivation and care as our own imperiled world - informs much of Canyons Of My Mind.  

Andrew achieved critical acclaim in the UK with support from The Guardian to Line of Best Fit for his previous release ALL THESE DREAMS (Loose Music; 26 Jan 2015; Amazon UK) which drew comparisons to singer songwriters from everyone from Leonard Cohen to Harry Nilsson. Andrew delivered a stand out performance when he shared the main stage at The 02 with artists including Chris Stapleton and Kacey Musgraves at Country to Country festival last year.

Canyons Of My Mind is available to pre-order now via PledgeMusic, digitally, on CD, on 180g vinyl and alongside a whole load of exclusive Pledge goodies.

Ranging from digital download (£8), CD (£10), 180g black vinyl (£18) to Song For You + CD with SIGNED Print (£450)

Take a look at the album artwork and track list below.

1. Heart of Wonder

2. Sleepwalker

3. Dirty Rain

4. Hazel

5. Rose Colored Blues

6. Better Way

7. Lauralee

8. Blood Hunters

9. Silk Flowers

10. Bourgeois King

11. What It Means To You

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