Slow Leaves is a self-contained solo project with Grant Davidson curating every aspect of the music and its presentation, including being the multi-instrumentalist, producer, cover art designer, photographer, and videographer. He views the totality of these various aspects as being essential parts of a larger project of self-understanding through artistic methods. His folk and psych-rock stylings recall older songwriters like Mickey Newbury, Nick Drake, Gene Clark, and Neil Young. But they also live in the world of modern classic writers like Andy Shauf, Bonny “Prince” Billy, Bedouine, Big Thief and Bill Callahan. His silky voice has been compared to Roy Orbison or Bryan Ferry.
Slow Leaves’ latest album, Meantime (due out on Birthday Cake and Make My Day Records on June 30th), is about waiting for something momentous to occur in life, and how all the mundane stuff that happens during the wait actually constitutes what is meaningful. If you blink, you miss it; if you think too much, you miss it. If you’re lucky, in the meantime, there’s love and there’s death and not much less. Grant Davidson, the Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada-based artist behind Slow Leaves says: “I see this album as a love letter, a collection of messes that fit neatly within a regular life if there is such a thing. In that sense, I guess these songs serve as a reminder for myself, since I’m forgetful, that all moments are equal in that they pass through us once only in long stretches of boredom or by bursts of love and death. In the meantime, I only hope not to let any more go by unnoticed.”
Today Glide is excited to offer an exclusive early listen to Meantime, which features a collection of folk songs adorned with paisley 1960s and 70s touches. Indeed, Davidson brings a melodic pop sensibility to the music that feels like a throwback while also coming across as fresh and new. This is toe-tapping, bouncy music that also carries a level of sophistication and wit in the songwriting and composition. It’s hard not to get sucked into the infectiousness of these songs as Davidson draws from influences like Tom Petty, the Everly Brothers and Roy Orbison alongside contemporaries like Big Thief and Bonnie “Prince” Billy. That being said, he also crafts his own unique sound that goes from quiet and charming folk-pop to roots and indie rock. Between the deliciousness of the music and the thoughtful lyrics, it’s hard not to be impressed by such a fully realized musical vision.
Grant Davidson describes the inspiration behind the album:
It feels like I’m always waiting for something momentous to occur, to finally arrive someplace where I can say “I’m here, I made it.” But mostly there’s no big arrival, just a carrying on. These songs are about desires, memories, loss, loneliness, and love, all of which I’ve felt acutely this last year. I see the album as a love letter, a collection of messes that fit neatly within a regular life if there is such a thing. In that sense I guess these songs serve as a reminder for myself, since I’m forgetful, that all moments are equal in that they pass through us once only in long stretches of boredom or by bursts of love and death. In the meantime, I only hope not to let any more go by unnoticed.
LISTEN:
