jeffrey lewis i insist that you listen

Jeffrey Lewis - I insist that you listen to this!

Video for Williamsburg Will Oldham Horror

How I only heard about New York's Jeffrey Lewis for the first time

about a month ago I really don't know, but this is the kind of new

music I want to be listening to. 32 year old Lewis is both a comic

book artist and a prolific musician...both in terms of recorded output

and general wordsmithery. His highly literate lyrics are witty, sweet,

cutting, insightful, surreal...the whole shebang. At times it feels

like he's an impish child who has devilishly pulled at the end of the

ribbon holding a bulging Santa's sack closed; and that sack is chock

full to the brim with words, ready to spill out all over the pavement,

bouncing all over the place like marbles and running amok.

Part of New York's current 'anti-folk' scene, in which the emphasis is

placed on lyrical creativity and sonic innovation, as opposed to

technical musicianship, this is a young man with a ludicrous amount of

words, and who isn't afraid to use them! Those of you currently

getting into the Juno soundtrack (which I have been meaning to write

about for a while...I just never seem to get around to it) will like

this; although Lewis' tunes are very varied, they remind of The Moldy

Peaches in places.

And this is not just some strange coincidence. Lewis has previously

collaborated with Kimya Dawson, has appeared on stage supporting Adam

Green, and has provided the artwork for several of their album covers.

As for the comic books - he produces his own series, Fuff (formerly

Guff) and, elsewhere, is responsible for characters such as Baby

Shoes, who "has legs growing out of his head and he's addicted to

shooting truth serum". He site his illustratory heroes as Dan Clowes

and Alan Moore...and even based his senior year thesis on the latter's

Watchmen.

Making music since 1997 and signed to Rough Trade in 2001 he has, to

date, released four albums (official albums that is...there are plenty

more mix-tapes and self-releases knocking about) - 2001's The Last

Time I Did Acid I Went Insane, 2003's It's The Ones Who've Cracked

That The Light Shines Through, 2005's (2006 in the US) City and

Eastern Songs and, most recently, 2007's 12 Crass Songs (due to be

released in the US on 28th January).

As the title would suggest, this most recent album features twelve

Lewis reworkings of songs originally by the British, pacifist,

anti-capitalist anarcho-punksters Crass. What once were high energy,

vitriolic and aggressive-sounding (don't get me wrong, brilliant

sounding) diatribes have been transformed into subdued psychedelic

folk music. Before you tune out completely, let me tell you that

somehow this really works. What the songs have lost in urgency, they

have gained in buckets in terms of being able to appreciate their

excellent, thoughtful lyrics. I'm not quite sure how, but none of the

message seems to be lost, and a lot of Lewis' covers come off sounding

almost pretty.

Rock Louder put it pretty darn well in their review. And you should

also head across to Wikipedia to read about Crass if you need to.

I can't get enough of Jeffrey Lightning Lewis (I read somewhere that

he was named that by his beatnik parents!) at the moment and I'd love

you to join me for the ride.

Have a look at an example of his comic book work here (more examples

at his own website; link below). The cover to 12 Crass Songs is itself

a 16 page fold-out comic book strip, and is just gorgeous!

Visit Jeffrey Lewis at MySpace.

Visit his website for info. on Lewis' discography, tour dates, comic

books, general news...or to play Space Invaders!

Buy his albums! Or, if you prefer, you can download 12 Crass Songs on

a by song basis from, the very aptly named, Juno download.

From 12 Crass Songs:

Jeffrey Lewis - Where Next, Colombus? (sic)

Jeffrey Lewis - Big A, Little A

And the Crass originals:

Crass - Where Next, Columbus?

Crass - Big A, Little A

Also check out The Gasman Cometh, Systematic Death and I Ain't Thick,

It's Just A Trick.

From It's The Ones Who've Cracked That The Light Shines Through:

Jeffrey Lewis - Back When I Was 4

Jeffrey Lewis - Gold

Jeffrey Lewis - If You Shoot The Head You Kill The Ghoul

From Gas Money Tour EP: