Offa Rex
"The Decemberists have long shown a fascination with the tragedy of folklore, and it was probably inevitable that they'd wind up making a traditional folk-rock album at some point in their careers. But by teaming with Chaney, they've surpassed delivering a mere homage. Instead, The Queen Of Hearts hums with the resonance of bygone eras and ancient ways, of doomed love and arduous hardship — all of it embroidered into the patchwork tapestry of life itself." - NPR
Nonesuch Records released The Queen of Hearts on July 14th, the debut album from Offa Rex, an adventurous new project featuring English singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Olivia Chaney and The Decemberists. Produced and recorded by Tucker Martine (Modest Mouse, My Morning Jacket, Neko Case) and Colin Meloy at Martine's studio in Portland, OR, and mostly arranged by Olivia Chaney, the thirteen tracks on The Queen of Hearts draw largely on traditional English-Irish-Scottish repertoire to create a transatlantic musical conversation that flirts with psychedelia and folk rock while maintaining its own inimitable identity. Pre-orders are available now from iTunes and the Nonesuch Store, where the title track may be downloaded instantly; Nonesuch Store pre-orders also include an exclusive print, a limited number of which will be autographed by the musicians.
The origins of Offa Rex can be traced to a tweet. Meloy, a fan of Chaney's 2015 Nonesuch debut, The Longest River, struck up a dialog with her over Twitter, which eventually led to her supporting The Decemberists on a U.S. tour. Chaney says: "Every so often [on the tour] Colin and I would have these fleeting but quite intense conversations about songwriting and singing traditional songs. One night he asked me, grinning, 'Have you ever thought of having a backing group? We'll be your Albion Dance Band.'"
Meloy adds: "There's this weird relationship between British and American music, this interesting trade and theft that goes back and forth. My hope was that if we--the neophytes, the dilettantes, the pretenders--brought Olivia to Portland to work with Tucker, perhaps these traditional British songs would be infused with something different."
From the heady harpsichord swirl that engulfs album opener "The Queen of Hearts" to the warm, delicate drone of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," or the cold, grey riff that heralds "Sheepcrook and Black Dog," it's evident that Offa Rex is different indeed, upending its folk roots and imbuing these songs with exploratory verve.
Offa Rex will tour this summer, including performances at the Newport Folk Festival, Town Hall in New York, and at The Aladdin in Portland. They will also be performing at Travelers' Rest, The Decemberists' two-day curated festival in Missoula, MT on August 12 and 13. Additionally, Olivia Chaney will support The Decemberists during their August tour, during which she will join the band on stage to perform songs from The Queen of Hearts. Chaney will also do a few solo shows around these dates.
RIYL: Olivia Chaney, The Decemberists, Milk Carton Kids
TRY: #1, 2, 4
Download full album here:
https://www.piratepirate.com/downloads/
More Info Here:
http://www.offarex.co/
https://twitter.com/TheDecemberists
https://twitter.com/OliviaChaney
http://www.decemberists.com/
http://oliviachaney.net/