JD McPherson trades roots rock for midcentury mod on latest LP 'Nite Owls'
JD McPherson trades roots rock for midcentury mod on latest LP 'Nite Owls'
JD McPherson’s deep appreciation for the traditional styles of American music has earned him a unique position among today’s singer-songwriters. Early recordings firmly established McPherson’s love of roots rock n roll, blues, and country that unfairly labeled his output as “rockabilly,” a misguided descriptor saddled with the baggage of a cartoonish subculture of almost-cosplay that largely favors style over substance.
But McPherson’s patriotic love of his country’s sounds extends far deeper than a thick coat of pomade and a leather jacket. Subsequent LPs have found McPherson and his band dipping into soul, R&B, and jazz with effortless fluidity, shaking off the dustbowl aesthetic and embracing a broad pallet of styles reverently polished to a modern-day shine that feels continually fresh while highlighting the timelessness of the cultural origins.
McPherson’s latest LP, Nite Owls, is his first proper album of not-Christmas-music in 7 years and continues this neo-traditionalism approach with perhaps the biggest break yet from his previously established frameworks. The interim between albums has seen monumental changes that reworked his band’s long-running lineup and linked McPherson up as a member of the touring band for living legends Robert Plant and Alison Krauss. These events have a great amount of impact here, allowing McPherson the freedom to further expand upon his sphere of influences with a widened perspective and newfound vigor.
From the stylized album art by iconic graphic designer Nick Simich to the study craftsmanship and clean lines of its rhythm and grooves, Nite Owls embraces McPherson’s latest evolution from roots rocker to midcentury mod. The production on Nite Owls is sumptuous, intricately layered and brilliantly nuanced in a way that expertly highlights the rich compositions and impeccable talents of McPherson and his players. Like the songwriting, the instrumentation on Nite Owls is complex but approachable, traditional without being held back by convention, and refreshingly playful.
Opening with the rhythmic stomp of lead single “Sunshine Getaway,” the sole track on the album with the tightest ties to McPherson’s earlier material, Nite Owls quickly displays its resplendent plumage as a bird of a different feather. The atmosphere is moodier, tinted with umbral shades of the big-city after midnight and the mesmerizing blue notes of underground jazz. There is a pervasive energy that imbues the album with a noir-like quality, especially on the B-side, celebrating shadows with the sharp vibrancy of ruby red lipstick on the rim of an ice cold vodka martini, and the mysterious confidence of a trenchcoat collar raised in defense against the frigid fangs of San Francisco fog.
Odes to loves lost and found abound across the tracklist as McPherson reminisces on a menagerie of sweethearts to the backdrop of the passing seasons of life set to instrumentation that swells and simmers with the comforting familiarity of 35mm nostalgia, frayed and yellowing around the edges but still bursting with brilliant technicolor. Bloodshot Bill lends a gritty vocal performance to the tumbling ruckus of troublemaker anthem “I Can’t Go Anywhere With You,” and “The Rock and Roll Girls” rips like a gassed up hot rod sending regards and electric guitars to domesticated baddies that never fully shed their rambunctious ways on the highway to middle-age and beset with the burgeoning baby blues. “Nite Owls” abruptly takes the most significant brake from McPherson’s established sound, unfurling on a sexy twilight groove that undulates with the mesmerizing quality of smoke from clove cigarettes in the dark, foreshadowing some of the most exciting material McPherson has yet released on the back half of the album’s B-side.
Following the tidal wave of reverby surf guitar on instrumental jam “The Phantom Lover of New Rochelle”, McPherson embarks on a cinematic journey that closes out Nite Owls in grand fashion. “Don’t Travel The Night Alone” is perhaps the most brilliant addition to McPherson’s catalog to date. A smoldering slow-burner cast in haunting shades, a gothic romance that blossoms with heartbreak and devotion in equal measure as McPherson boldly steps into uncharted sonic territory. The track is a tour-de-force of emotive songwriting and bewitching composition, co-written by long-time collaborator Raynier Jacildo, that stands unique and exquisite among Nite Owls’ tracklist, emblematic of McPherson’s considerable artistic capabilities. With the incredible magnitude of a sigh, “This Is What A Love Song Does to You” shuffles delicately into the album’s closing moments like a lullaby exhaled in the aftermath of a love supreme, still enamored by the one departed and longing for the warmth of a final embrace.
Nite Owls is available now from New West Records. Stream the album on Spotify and follow JD McPherson on Instagram.
Upcoming Shows
** w/ Kate Clover
Sep 27, 2024 - Brooklyn Bowl Nashville - Nashville, TN - Tickets **
Sep 28, 2024 - Terminal West - Atlanta, GA - Tickets **
Sep 29, 2024 - The Grey Eagle - Asheville, NC - Tickets **
Oct 1, 2024 - The Atlantis - Washington, DC - Tickets **
Oct 2, 2024 - The Ardmore Music Hall - Ardmore, PA - Tickets **
Oct 4, 2024 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY - Tickets **
Oct 5, 2024 - The Hangar on the Hudson - Troy, NY - Tickets **
Oct 6, 2024 - The Sinclair - Boston, MA - Tickets **
Oct 8, 2024 - The Concert Hall - Toronto, ON - Tickets **
Oct 9, 2024 - The Magic Bag - Ferndale, MI - Tickets **
Oct 11, 2024 - First Avenue - Minneapolis, MN - Tickets **
Oct 12, 2024 - Metro - Chicago, IL - Tickets **
Nov 7, 2024 - White Water Tavern - Little Rock, AR - Tickets **
Nov 8, 2024 - The Kessler Theater - Dallas, TX - Tickets **
Nov 9, 2024 - Scoot Inn - Austin, TX - Tickets **
Nov 12, 2024 - Crescent Ballroom - Phoenix, AZ - Tickets **
Nov 14, 2024 - Pappy + Harriet's - Pioneertown, CA - Tickets **
Nov 15, 2024 - El Rey Theatre - Los Angeles, CA - Tickets **
Nov 16, 2024 - August Hall - San Francisco, CA - Tickets **
Nov 18, 2024 - Wonder Ballroom - Portland, OR - Tickets **
Nov 19, 2024 - The Crocodile - Seattle, WA - Tickets **
Nov 21, 2024 - The Commonwealth Room - Salt Lake City, UT - Tickets **
Nov 22, 2024 - Aggie Theatre - Fort Collins, CO - Tickets **
Nov 23, 2024 - Gothic Theatre - Denver, CO - Tickets **
Dec 28, 2024 - Cain's Ballroom - Tulsa, OK