You should go see Lily Seabird in concert. Last week the Burlington folk-rock singer-songwriter kicked off her tour at Rumba Cafe in Columbus, where I live. The show was a fandom-intensifying experience.
I've heard and enjoyed Seabird's music up until now, but I did not expect her live show to rip. And please understand, it ripped so hard. It was like seeing Neil Young minus the mythos. It was like when Big Thief rocks out. It was like being visited by the ghost of Hop Along. It was like that one song on Magnolia Electric Co. where Scout Niblett sings, except explosively loud and raw.
"Demon In Me," Seabird's new single out today, reflects that ethos. According to a new interview with Matter News, Seabird has a new album coming later this year, the follow-up to last year's Trash Mountain. Whereas Trash Mountain had a stripped-down, demo-like quality that led Seabird to perform solo, the new record is louder and heavier, hence the return to performing with a band.
I don't know if "Demon In Me" is on the new record, but it definitely fits the description. There's some Neutral Milk Hotel to the way the six-minute track moves from a delicate waltz backed by trombone and clarinet to blown-out distorted grandeur halfway through. Seabird says the song is on "the dark side, probably a symptom of anxiety or depression." She continues, "The beginning of the song I talk about this longing for freedom. Whether it’s freedom from the demon or letting the demon be free, I’m not really sure, but by the end the music is supposed to embody that."
Watch Noah Lenker's video for the track below, where you'll also find Seabird's tour dates.
TOUR DATES:
03/17 - Dallas, TX @ Ruins *
03/18 - Austin, TX @ Sagebrush *
03/21 - Denver, CO @ Hi Dive *
03/23 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court *
03/26-27 - Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Fest
03/28 - Missoula, MT @ The Show Room at the Zacc
03/29 - Spokane, WA @ The Chameleon
03/31 - Seattle, WA @ Neumos #
04/01 - Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater #
04/03 - San Francisco, CA @ The Independent #
04/04 - Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom #
04/05 - Costa Mesa, CA @ The Wayfarer
04/06 - San Diego, CA @ Voodoo Room at the House of Blues #
04/07 - Phoenix, AZ @ The Rebel Lounge #
04/08 - Santa Fe, NM @ The Marigold Room
04/09 - Oklahoma City, OK @ Resonant Head
04/10 - St. Louis, MO @ The Sinkhole
04/11 - Chicago, IL @ The Hideout ~
05/01 - Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground ^
06/19-21 - Greenfield, MA @ Green River Festival
08/27 - Birmingham, UK @ Hare & Hounds
08/28 - Norwich, UK @ Norwich Arts Centre
08/30 - Nottingham, UK @ The Grove Notts
08/31 - Glasgow, UK @ The Old Hairdresser's
09/01 - Newcastle, UK @ The Cumberland Arms
09/02 - Liverpool, UK @ Quarry
09/03 - London, UK @ The Lexington
09/4-6 - Dorset, UK @ End of the Road Festival
11/07 - Groningen, NL @ Take Root Festival
* w/ hemlock
# w/ Eliza McLamb
~ w/ Minor Moon
^ w/ Built to Spill
