It seems only appropriate to post another recording of Ryley Walker, This singer songwriter guitar virtuoso represents among the very finest of their time, his authenticity, and an amazing understanding of their musical past, and honest songwriting. My first experience with Ryley Walker was the song “Primrose Green”. Here, at the Rough Trade Venue, Ryley Walker proved himself alone (with a supporting bassist for part of the set). More to the point, Ryley proved himself an unmitigated master of his art, far beyond his years in poise and style.
Most CMJ sets tend to be truncated versions of artists’ “best stuff”, run through in perfunctory fashion to get the most bang for the buck in terms of setlist. Ryley Walker saw things differently, leading off with a twelve-minute, spine-tingling “Summer Dress” that equaled about a third of the set. That time wasn’t wasted, either, as Walker soared on improvised vocal runs that took the song beyond the singer-songwriter realm into something spiritual, his voice becoming its own instrument rather than the mere vessel of lyrics. As with the bulk of the set in North Carolina back in September, this focused entirely on new material in lieu of Walker’s outstanding album of earlier this year “All Kinds of You”. That alone should say something about how prolific this artist is at this point. The ability of the young Chicagoan to distill such pain and emotion into his work is a humbling surprise, the kind of thing you’d never guess from the rest of his happy-go-lucky stage persona. This is a man possessed of rare gifts, and we cannot wait to see them brought to a wider world.
Tracks
01 Summer Dress
02 The West Wind
03 [banter1]
04 Primrose Green
05 [banter2]
06 Sweet Satisfaction
The set recorded primarily with a soundboard feed by Rough Trade engineer Cam, with a small amount of Schoeps audience microphones added for ambiance. Other than a few glitches with a DI during one song, the sound is excellent. Enjoy, and spread the word! of this superb musician.
The Fat Angel Sings 