Press release

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At the intersection of Saturday night and Sunday morning is the essence of DEMONS+RATIONALS, the latest full length offering from songwriter and performer Brad Fielder. Vice, virtue, superstition, and affirmation – these are the ideations conjured to manifest the eleven tracks on this Shive Records release.

 

As the duality of the title implies, the sound of the album itself is a mixed one. Raucous and swampy Blues-tinged romps stomp alongside hands-in-the-air Holy rolling vamps. Electric thumpers and acoustic jumpers fill out the 44 minutes of music, featuring an instrumental theme for each side of the conceptual divide.

 

With ace engineer Jon Atkinson at the controls, DEMONS+RATIONALS was captured live in the room at Bigtone Records in New Orleans, Louisiana. For Fielder’s second production with Atkinson, after 2021’s Welcome To New Hoyle, the stripped down string band was swapped for a mixed ensemble.

 

All songs were written by Fielder, who supplied most of the vocals and played acoustic and electrified guitars, resonator, and harmonica. Longtime sideman, arranger, and confidant Charley Reeves filled out the low end on sousaphone and bass fiddle. Fifth generation New Orleans legacy jazzer Brandon Brunious played six string banjo and electric guitar. Megan Harris Brunious, international touring musician (Hank III, Peaches), sang lead vocals on three songs, and also played accordion, percussion, and trumpet. Performance artist and drummer about town Jesse Armerding played an assembled percussion kit of traditional drums mixed with building and construction hardware. Juel Niimi, member of the Oklahoma Youth Jazz Ensemble and Oklahoma All State Jazz Band, rounded out the recording on trombone.

DEMONS+RATIONALS releases to streaming June 4, 2024; one year to the day after recording was completed. It will also be released on a limited edition 12” LP pressed on random color vinyl featuring a “choose your own” double-sided cover jacket with lyric booklet.

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Shive Records SR2401

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all songs © Bradley Allan Fielder (BMI) 2024
all songs ℗  TomLo Music (BMI) 2024

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cover paintings by Brad Cochran
booklet photo by Marissa Johnson