Listen: Twain - "Little Dog Mind"

photo by Nina Westervelt

Last month Brooklyn based singer/songwriter Twain released "Solar Pilgrim", the first single from his upcoming album Rare Feeling. If I hadn't had the privilege of seeing him perform several of the tracks live the strength of the single would've been enough to make me deeply invested in the album. With the album release getting closer Mat Davidson has released "Little Dog Mind", the studio version of a song Davidson did for La Blogotheque that I stumbled upon after I first saw him last year when he was still firming up album details.

On "Little Dog Mind", Davidson turns his focus inward. Instead of ruminating on love like much of Life Labors in the Choir or wondering what lies ahead of him in the future/the afterlife on "Solar Pilgrim", Davidson tries to wrangle his wandering thoughts. It's a pretty universal feeling: catching your mind drifting to other things when you want to/have to focus on the task at hand and one that Davidson is probably intimately familiar with when he's trying to write songs. So he hashes it out with the offending party much like you might try to reason with a child or the song's titular "little dog mind". Davidson, who's probably best characterized by/as the heart, almost playfully chides the mind. He's aware he's in control but his method of authority is winsome persuasion: "You're just like a little dog running away from me/little mind I'll catch you every time" Davidson sings and it's sure to put a smile on your face. Davidson manages a beautiful balance of emotion and charm with an invigorating display of songwriting prowess that both utilizes and subverts typical conventions.



Twain's sixth album Rare Feeling is out October 20th on Keeled Scales. You can pre-order the limited hand-printed vinyl from Keeled Scales now and other editions (digital, CD, cassette) will be available on the release date. Twain is also playing several dates with Langhorne Slim later this week so make sure you catch him if you can.

9/26 NYC - Bowery Ballroom
9/27 Washington, D.C. - Sixth & I
9/28 Philly - Union Transfer

Listen: Twain - "Solar Pilgrim"

photo by Nina Westervelt

This is a moment I've been waiting for since I first saw singer/songwriter Twain open up for Kishi Bashi this past fall. "Solar Pilgrim", the first single from Twain's upcoming album Rare Feeling, has Mat Davidson's same doleful yodel and twangy guitar. Instead of drastically changing his style, he sticks to what he knows and explores different narrative possibilities. "Solar Pilgrim" essentially ponders the specifics of the journey Davidson's soul will take when he's gone from the world. It's a song about life, death, and the hereafter; frequently shuffling through each. Twain often sings of love but on "Solar Pilgrim" the love shifts shapes and forms: romantic love, love of the natural world, spiritual love. It's a love that's bigger than his body and that Davidson sees as lasting long after his physical body.    

Twain's third full length album Rare Feeling is out October 20th on Keeled Scales. You can pre-order the album on CD, cassette, or LP here.

Pitstop: Twain

photo by Samantha Skapin

My introduction to Twain, the project of Brooklyn based singer/songwriter Mat Davidson actually happened several months ago in October when he opened for Kishi Bashi's Webster Hall stop of the Sonderlust tour. Armed solely with a guitar and his incredibly emotive yodel, it was an incredibly captivating set. After the show I immediately sought to acquaint myself with Davidson's catalog while also biding my time until an announcement of an album that would feature a number of the newer songs he had played that night (namely an absolutely emotional wrecking ball of the tune by the name of "Georgia"). The wait is actually why I didn't rush to feature him right away: I figured with so many new songs an album would surely be on the immediately horizon and I'd prefer to talk about beguiling man and his brilliant songcraft then. However after catching him again opening for the incredible Big Thief, it occurred to me that there really wasn't any good reason to wait. Davidson's music is stunning in its beauty and needed to be shared. On record - Davidson employs a host of musicians to fill in the spaces and it was a somewhat startling departure from the raw force Davidson taps into for his solo live shows. The songs still contain the same touching lyricism but there's something to be said for his calm, more measured delivery instead of his rafter-seeking vocals that easily overtake every nook and cranny of the room he plays in.



A member of Spirit Family Reunion (a fact I learned only after seeing him twice), Davidson's music is rooted in much of the deep American music tradition that serves as their inspiration: namely bluegrass, folk, and gospel. Though guitar is his main instrument, he's equally well versed in piano and fiddle, and these factor into his album efforts. Davidson's music deal almost exclusively with matters of the heart: the feeling of homesickness when you've been on the road for a long time, the blossoming feeling when you catch your lover off guard, Twain  is adept in this regard easily balancing these relateable feelings and subjects with winsome, simple presentation. Davidson doesn't engage in any extra frills: rather his vocals so consuming in their fervorous intensity serve as both the window and the grounding element of his music. Much like artists like The Tallest Man on Earth or Mandolin Orange the anticipation between albums is less about expecting radical tonal departures but rather what new lessons his distinct voice will seek to impart. With an album completed, it hopefully won't be too long before we heard Twain's new tales of love and woe and I couldn't be more invested.





Until his next album is announced cozy up with Twain's previous releases including the his recently re-pressed Life Labors In The Choir which you can order via Davidson's Bandcamp. He's also on tour with Big Thief and I strongly recommend catching both of them if they're in your city - you absolutely will not regret it.