Andrew Anderson: Press

"Anderson delivered in a way powerful enough to rival the presence of a full band in fact this unlikely country influenced singer-songwriter captivated a punk crowd at a rock venue. That should serve as testament to the power of his performance... He performs as if his life depends on it..." - Hans Fink

Andrew Anderson is amazing. He’s a lonesome traveler that writes songs and lives them. He’s unknown for now, but hopefully not forever. - Mike Herrera (MxPx, Tumbledown) in an interview with thealbumproject.net

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Gonna Make You Sweat

The Sweatbox Sessions [EP]

Andrew Anderson

The brave Andrew Anderson is one of my favorite Austin musical nomads, a guy who writes, records, and tours his music obsessively. It's not so much that Anderson expects to get anything out of it (although he richly deserves wider hearing), it's just that he's compelled to do so. There are a lot of fakers who claim their lives are driven by music in these parts, but most often it's something external, the hopes of fame, money, or getting laid. Anderson sings and plays like there's something inside of him that will eat him up if he doesn't let it out. He needs music, and we need more like him.

Even the man's style speaks to his determination. Anderson plays country, not neo-folk, not "Americana," not No Depression, the sort of which hasn't been remotely commercially acceptable since the 70's. The Sweatbox Sessions, a cleanly-recorded but raggedly performed collection of solo recordings, may help to win over status-conscious hipsters. His full-length As Long As This Thing's Flyin' was and is terrific, but the full band sound was pitched awkwardly to market in a place as ruinously genre-conscious as Austin. Anderson doesn't just graft twangy songs on to a rock rhythm section. As a result the record might have been stuck in no-man's land, too authentic to make sense for people just discovering Uncle Tupelo but way too original, unpolished, and confrontational for the line-dancing crowd.

Stripped down to naught but his acoustic and his urgent, weather-beaten voice, Sweatbox Sessions finds Anderson moving in all directions at once -- "Hemingway" is the most romantic thing he's written, "Barrel of a Gun" a speedy, tough family history, and the new mandolin arrangement of "Necessary Casualties" is so in-your-face it's kind of punk rock. "Consequence" and "Indifference" don't sound as substantial, as if he hasn't quite had the chance to work them to a shine through numerous live performances yet. And the cover of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" might have been best left as a live surprise; here on record it sounds a tiny bit like pandering.

What's best about Sweatbox Sessions is the emphasis it puts on Anderson's vocals, which are far less rehearsed and smoothed-out here as they appeared on on the full-length. His twang is authentic, but so is his sense of humor, his anguish, and his conviction. Lock him away from his instruments, and he'd sing while pounding on the walls. No matter what your preference in style is, there's only a handful of musicians here or anywhere whose music comes entirely from inside, with little consideration paid to how it will be received and what rewards it will win them. Andrew Anderson plays at Emo's tomorrow night, Thursday the 11th, with Kalu James, another true believer, albeit one with an entirely different aesthetic. The cover is only two dollars!

Posted by Western Homes at 1:29 PM

http://bigwesternflavor.blogspot.com/2010/02/gonna-make-you-sweat.html

Next on stage was this kid from Idaho, Andrew Anderson ..... After just a few licks on his mandolin, I started thinking to myself, "What the fuck is this guy doing playing here? On a Wednesday?" But it seems that's Austin, for you. There's a ton of real talent rolling through this town on any given night - raw, genuine people who just love their music so much that it can't be anything but infectious. All you have to do to find it sometimes, is show up.

 

This review was supposed to be written by someone else. I needed to step in and was unsure if I’d be able to complete it. I already knew I would enjoy the album, but I am not a big country music person and was not confident I would be able to deliver a well-rounded review of Andrew Anderson’s music. I popped in the CD, and it suddenly became easy. And why? Anderson’s music is ubiquitously easy to like, love even.

Though his voice has a twang, half his songs have an Iron and Wine, emotional pop feel to them and cannot be pigeon-holed as alt-country. The other half feature banjo riffs, harmonica-driven tunes, and a “git-er-done” beat. Still, the second set is universally likable.

Anderson is backed by his loyal band, formerly known as The Horseshoe Bends, Luke Meade (who also recorded the album), Jeremy Harris (who helped produce), and Ki Johnsen (who also created the album’s artwork). Each band member is a hard-working cog, contributing to the greater good of an impeccable CD.

As Long as This Thing’s Flyin’ represents maturation in both his sound and his career objectives. This album takes his music to another, tighter level instrumentally and philosophically. Having been recorded, mixed, and mastered in three different states by three different engineers, the diverse perspectives on Anderson’s songs make the album feel complete and rounded.

Chock full of storytelling, Flyin’ takes you through the years of traveling across the country Anderson has done, addressing love found and lost, religion, and more. Flying between high points like “Filling in the Gaps” and “The One I Left Behind” to weaker (but still thoroughly enjoyable) tunes like “Send the Bastard Running,” a romp about whose gun is bigger,the album creates a sonic landscape for those outside of Idaho imagining our grand state.

As I tried to scan through the songs one last time before finishing this piece, I just couldn’t do it; I had to listen to the entire album. There’s no skipping past these songs; You want to hear and experience every morsel.

Anderson is, for now, screen printing cases by hand, making each album a unique work of art. Each one is numbered, and will be for sale at the CD Release Party Tuesday, November 10th at Terrapin Station. When you get your copy, pop open a bottle of Wild Turkey, close your blinds, and savor the traipse through the wandering mind of a true Idaho cowboy.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Looking for a Place to Get To

As Long as This Thing's Flyin'

Andrew Anderson

There's a glut of country/folk artists in present-day Austin. You know it, I know it. I happen to love country music. I've always liked the old stuff (or new traditionalists like Freakwater, Richard Buckner, Giant Sand, and so forth) but my appreciation for the polished commercial version of Nashville music has risen in the past few years from an odd source. I'm a big "American Idol" fan (we'll talk about that more in January), and the country-themed weeks and the contestants who attempt to brand themselves in that genre are a nice break from all of the tepid Top 40 tunes. Modern commercial country can be pretty broad and creamy, but for whatever reason it's remained a discipline where professional songwriters (as opposed to singer/composers) dominate and that means that even if the songs are formulaic at least they're complete, with choruses that flow logically out of the verses, structures that build to climax, and instrumental hooks in addition to vocal ones. For years I used to say the only kind of music I really had no use for was modern radio-friendly country and I don't feel that way at all any more. Keeping an open mind is important as a musician and as a music listener. You could learn a valuable lesson anywhere. And Nickel Creek's Pavement cover is better than the original. There, I said it.

I don't think I have to go out of my way to explain my appreciation for Andrew Anderson's As Long as Thing's Flyin'. On a facetious level, the record has the trappings of current country-rock. Lyrically there's a predominance of mentions for sin and whiskey, and the acoustic guitar changes are what you would expect. But Anderson and his extremely talented bandmates, drummer Luke Meade and and multi-instrumentalist Jeremy Harris, have gone out of their way to complete a record that's full of personal expression and memorable, individualist touches. Even the packaging is better than the norm: Rather than a jewelbox with a piece of paper inside, Flyin' comes in a really lovely cardstock case with elegant screenprinted artwork. CD's have been rendered a mere delivery system for digital content, to be ripped and discarded, but here the artist has created something worth keeping. The simple but iconic inner sleeve design and the band photographs all work together to give another perspective on the music on the disc.

The songs, like the sleeve, are simple at first glance. Anderson is an instinctive songwriter with a direct lyrical and musical approach. His most distinguishing tendency as a singer is to not let the constraints of meter interfere with his ideas; he moves rhyme schemes and rhythms around in cool ways. While his songs aren't packed wall-to-wall with weird changes, there's more harmonic movement than is usual for work in this style. What really separates As Long as This Thing's Flyin' is the arrangements, for which Meade and Harris deserve equal credit. Meade engineered the record in addition to drumming on it, co-producing with the rest of the band, and Flyin' really sounds like a professional, finished album. There are different production approaches to introduce songs (the scratchy, back-porch quality to "The One I Left Behind" at its opening) and clever transitions (a raunchy pick slide bridges "Wait Darlin'" and "Hell on Earth"). Meade also has a style on the drums that's unusually aggressive for country-rock, but never too loud, distracting, or inappropriate. His ability to play busy, heavy fills and then zip back into a shuffling backbeat is one of the many subtle elements that makes the album distinctive.

Harris is a one-man wrecking crew, playing proficient and reliably tasteful parts on electric guitar, banjo, and dobro. He's clearly a prodigy, but what really sets him apart is his ability to moderate his attack to leave Anderson's vocals their proper space in the mix. "Wait Darlin'" has an amazing dry lead guitar riff that gives way to a related but gentler banjo lick when the vocals come in; that's only one example of how Harris harnesses his tremendous talent to make Anderson's songs come across more strongly. The trio work together beautifully. Meade is equally willing to lay back and provide just a shaker or a lone kick drum if that's what best suits the song.

At 14 tracks As Long as This Thing's Flyin' starts to retrace its own steps in the back end. There are some nice cello additions here and there, but the group does tend to stay in one mood for each piece and the stronger songs are crowded towards the front of the running order. That means a few later pieces come over like weaker developmental versions of what we've already heard. They would benefit from having a real bass player, too; Anderson and Harris's efforts at the instrument sound like the competent work of good musicians but don't give the extra shape and texture of a true bassist born -- there's a lot of root notes just doubling the guitars. I think Anderson and his group have the imagination and the skill to broaden their sound in both directions. Meade's rock chops could allow them to sound convincing on heavier electric numbers, but there's also a knowledge of old-world modes at work here that suggests they could try some more overtly folk sounds and pull it off. From the basis of Harris's cello arrangements, I'd love to hear what he could create with a full-blown string quartet. Lyrically, Anderson is much stronger when he's clearly drawing from personal experience ("Once Met a Girl," "Old Dusty Trail") than when he's trying to sing in someone else's shoes (the slightly awkward "Send the Bastard Running"). What's important is that he's writing songs about different subjects and from different perspectives, something that will keep his material consistently improving. With Meade and Harris in the fold, he's got to keep his game up to meet the challenge of providing songs worthy enough for players this good and this smart.

A bearded singer in a cowboy hat hailing from Boise collected drummer Luke Meade and guitarist J.R. Harris to form the "country/post punk/Western swing" band of no-nonsense country blues that would bare his name: Andrew Anderson.

The group's philosophy could be described in the track, "Damn It Man": "I smoke too much / I drink too much / I swear too much and my life is riddled with sin." But Anderson himself might, in a nutshell, best be described as an original homestyle voice paired with altruistic acoustic accoutrements.

It's this blending of Dylan-style vocals with structured rock chords and bittersweet subject matter that creates a wholesome album, As Long As This Thing's Flyin', their fourth full-length endeavor. The fast-paced number "The Hawk," in particular, makes this reviewer want to dance with a pretty lady.

The band has a variety of influences. On their MySpace profile, they quote Ernest Hemingway, Jack London and J.K. Rowling, and those inspirations are expressed via guitars, banjos, mandolins, drums, pianos and harps.

In the track "Necessary Casualties," Harris plays a delicate mandolin intro as Anderson croons a political message about war and its futility, questioning "this other guy / who sits at a desk and writes checks / that constantly send our nation further into debt."

Anderson and company celebrate the release of the CD with a shindig at Terrapin Station on Tuesday, Nov. 10. They'll share the party, which starts at 9 p.m., with friends SGFY and Jeremiah James. Best yet, the show is free.

As Long As This Thing's Flyin' harkens back to the days before synthesizers when fingers were callused, throats were sore and makin' your own sweet music hurt so good.

 

Disclaimer: J.R. or Jeremy did not play the mandolin... -andrew anderson

The irreverent country tunes of Andrew Anderson benefit greatly from tremendous lead guitar, banjo, mandolin, and backing vocals from gifted sideman J.R. Harris. Anderson's no slouch himself, with his rapid-fire delivery and funny, original lyrics. "Damn It Man" has a thoughtful arrangement with lots of left turns and a nifty instrumental section where a deft lead guitar in one channel duels with a woozy one in the other. "Necessary Casualties" is an impassioned antiwar song with every lyric chosen for maximum effect. "Once Met a Girl" plays an obvious-seeming premise into a memorable personable twist, as Anderson muses that his wild past means he "don't have the right" to woo his one true love.

"The culmination of a month’s work will be a performance held at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Low Key Arts Building, 118 Arbor St.

Since Sept. 1, Andrew Anderson, a musician from Boise, Idaho, has been using Low Key Arts as a studio to write, practice, hand-screen an original pressing of his CD and teach.

Anderson, who studied at Berklee College of Music, has been a busy man and the building has been abuzz with activity. It became a silk-screen factory, as he hand-printed a collectible run of 500 copies of his new album, “As Long As This Thing’s Flyin’...."

 

to read the rest of the article follow the link...

"Elliott Smith meets Dylan"

"Andrew is a talented songwriter and arranger.  He's equally capable with an acoustic guitar and in front of a band.  He was a pleasure to work with.  I'm sure he's going to do really well, and I look forward to hearing more."

-TW Walsh, former sideman of Pedro the Lion, and Engineer, currently fronts the band The Soft Drugs.

The Berklee College of Music is well-known as the place to go for the ultimate education in composition and recording. The school has taught several hit-makers such as John Mayer, Melissa Etheridge and Steve Vai. Boise-native Andrew Anderson pools his Berklee education with life experience to create tunes packed with adversity, pain, and a keen sense of songwriting.

As a Centennial High student in West Boise, Anderson joined goals with fellow student Stephanie Johnson to record a CD entitled Something We Both Share (available on itunes). The two went on to become classmates at Berklee as well.
 
"I have since gone back to being mostly a solo or singer/songwriter musician but always trying to have myself backed by great musicians and friends who I can connect with on a personal and musical level. Music and art is all about relationships," says Anderson.

Those great musicians are best friend and drummer, Luke Meade, and roommate/keyboardist Brian Leavell, who he continues to include occasionally in his live line-up.

Anderson's intimate take on alcoholism and mental illness in "Whatever It Takes" brings out a common human understanding of being hurt inadvertently by a loved one. His fragile, subdued vocals drive home the damage evoked in this song through the twangy lap steel and rhythmic, hypnotizing measures.

Pick up this track on Anderson's limited-edition EP Love In Reverse (Love Makes War, and Other Unfinished Work) at the first-ever BoiseBeat night at Terrapin Station this Thursday, where Anderson and his band will play. Each CD will have its own unique artwork and will be sold for only three dollars.