It's a solo kinda thing, but I've got a merry band of Philadelphia co-conspirators working on the new record:
Tom Bendel: Drums
Brendan Cooney: Keys
Ramon Sender: Bass
Devin Greenwood: Sounds and general magician
Influences
Just about everywhere I look 'n listen, seems to me. Lately, though, I've been visiting/looking/listening/reading Paul Muldoon, Blueeyesmagazine.com, Matinicus, Italo Calvino, Will Oldham, James Wright, Edward Abbey, Fiery Furnaces, Tom Waits, Joanna Newsom, Anais Mitchell...
Singer and songsmith Scott Pryor debuts his sophomore album, Theater for the Weary, on June 19th, 2009 at the Latvian Society of Philadelphia (531 N. 7th Street). 8pm for the main event.
Theater follows close on the coattails of Pryor’s successful debut album, Suggestions for the Tailor:
“Only one in ten singer-songwriters currently performing is truly worthy of our attention. Scott Pryor is that one in ten and he shows it on his debut collection, Suggestions for the Tailor. His guitar work demonstrates a range spanning elegance and acoustic bash. Nonetheless the voice and tone are entirely Pryor’s…[His] songs are immediate and heartfelt.” LUNAR GROOVE
Produced by Devin Greenwood, recorded by Bill Moriarty, and featuring musicians that Pryor hand-picked from his favorite local bands (including Buried Beds, West Philadelphia Orchestra, Amy Pickard, Hoots & Hellmouth, and Birdie Busch), Theater for the Weary reflects Pryor’s growth as a songwriter and collaborator, and his expanding artistic vision. From the rolling and lilting title track, to the crisp and pure heartpouring of “Aida” and “The Faintest Light”, Pryor is a wordsmith in the finest sense. Start with “Thirsting’s Cure,” and come away parched for more of Pryor’s fine craft.
Pryor hails from the woods of North Carolina and Virginia, but now calls Philadelphia home. He calls his music an “invitation to pay attention” -- for both himself and his audience. Drawing on heritage that spans the urban and the rural, Pryor’s songs revel in the grit, bone and redemptive seeds to be found in each. From swimming holes to skyscrapers, from plows to asphalt playgrounds, Pryor stitches together the strange and mundane bits of a weathered and heroic Americana. Filled with wonder and longing, Theater for the Weary is ultimately defined by the triumph of earnest joy in spite of the facts — supported by the delight-filled clatter and swoon of new-found musical friends and collaborators.
For this special album release event, Pryor will be joined onstage by Devin Greenwood, Tom Bendel, Brendan Cooney, Todd Erk, and Eliza Hardy Jones. He’ll also deliver a few solo guitar treats as he did to a standing room crowd last month at the Tin Angel.
Harpist Gillian Grassie and Americana duo Jake and Emma Morrow will also perform as part of a multi-media installation exhibit that will open the evening. The exhibit will explore, in visual and spacial terms, the physical and emotional landscape that Theater deals with in musical terms.
Scott...esta nueva musica esta increible! Es impresionante lo mucho que has crecido, musicalmente, en estos cuantos meses! Muchisimas Felicidades amigo...se te quiere...Patricia
thank you for gracing our little spot in west philly with your music yet again.
sadly someone accidentally closed my laptop, so we've only got a part of the set recorded, but here it is-> the video quality is rather poor, but you sounded great!
I penciled you into my calendar yesterday...with pen. I am excited to finally meet the man that Simon has painted such a wonderful picture of. Also, a hefty congratulations on your record.
