LEE HARVEY OSMOND
–ACID-FOLK PROJECT FROM ARTIST TOM WILSON–
‘BEAUTIFUL SCARS’
RELEASED (3/25) VIA LATENT RECORDINGS
ANNOUNCES ADDITIONAL U.S. SHOWS THROUGHOUT SPRING
INCLUDING STOPS IN:
CHICAGO, DALLAS, LOS ANGELES, PHOENIX AND SEATTLE
THE BLUEGRASS SITUATION PREMIERES VIDEO FOR
“BLUE MOON DRIVE”
|| Stream ‘BEAUTIFUL SCARS‘ here ||
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Watch video content here ||
LEE HARVEY OSMOND-moniker for the acid-folk project helmed by multi-faceted artist Tom Wilson-last week (3/25) released his new full-length album BEAUTIFUL SCARS via Latent Recording and distributed by Megaforce/RED. No Depression noted the album “…brings to mind the imagined result of an unholy alliance between Tom Waits and Nick Cave, one that might also find Leonard Cohen lurking in the dark shadows. Happily then, Wilson’s ominous growl syncs well with the album’s general sway and rumble, making for an insurgent sound if ever there was one” (3/20/2016). Elmore Magazine says, “Wilson’s an inspired songwriter, constantly picking at scabs. This album offers ten fine tunes…they all have merit” (3/24/2016).
OSMOND-in support of BEAUTIFUL SCARS (produced by the Cowboy Junkies‘ Michael Timmins)-announced additional U.S. shows running throughout spring and into summer starting in Buffalo, NY on April 13 at Sportsmen’s Tavern & Music Hall with stops in Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Seattle among other cities before wrapping in Alberta, Canada at Bear Creek Folk Festival. Full tour dates listed below and more information can be found here.
Earlier this month (3/18), the 2016 Juno Award-nominee for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year partnered with The Bluegrass Situation to premiere the video for “Blue Moon Drive” which can be viewed here. Additionally, POPMATTERS.COM debuted the video for “Oh the Gods – Where Our Hearts Remain” which can be viewed here. POPMATTERS‘ Sarah Zupko described the song as “…dark, haunting grooves blended with low, raspy, whispery vocals that recall Alabama 3 at their very best” (2/5/2016).
The album’s cover, which depicts Wilson as a powerful, raw and warrior-like figure, is a result of Wilson discovering at age 55 that his cousin was actually his mother and of Mohawk heritage, not Irish as he was raised to believe. “That’s actually how I feel as an artist,” Wilson explains. “At 56, I’m just emerging from the woods, with all of this new knowledge of who I am.” BEAUTIFUL SCARS, originally released in Canada, was produced by the Cowboy Junkies‘ Michael Timmins. “The album is where I am now,” Wilson says. “It was made during this discovery.” Also known as a member of the Americana trio Blackie & the Rodeo Kings, Wilson adds: “I didn’t know where the inspiration was from, and I’m not a cosmic guy, but if you see my art or listen to what I’ve been writing about on this album, I’ve been documenting this through the fucking cosmos for the last couple of years.”
Side Note: Jason Isbell offers lend vocals on Wilson‘s composition titled “Land of The Living” for forthcoming Blackie & the Rodeo Kings album (full details on the project TBA).
LEE HARVEY OSMOND TOUR DATES:
| Wed, April 13 | Buffalo, NY | Sportsmen’s Tavern & Music Hall |
| Thur, April 28 | Ann Arbor, MI | The Ark |
| Fri, April 29 | Chicago, IL | Schuba’s |
| Sat, April 30 | St. Paul, MN | Turf Club |
| Sun, May 1 | Cedar Rapids, IA | C.S.P.S. Hall |
| Mon, May 2 | Omaha, NE | Slowdown |
| Tue, May 3 | Kansas City, MO | Knuckleheads Saloon |
| Wed, May 4 | Salina, KS | Steifel Theatre for Performing Arts |
| Thur, May 5 | Dallas, TX | The Kessler Theatre |
| Fri, May 6 | Austin, TX | Cactus Café |
| Sat, May 7 | The Woodlands, TX | Dosey Doe |
| Sun, May 8 | San Antonio, TX | Sam’s Burger Joint |
| Mon, May 9 | Albuquerque, NM | The Cooperage |
| Tue, May 10 | Tucson, AZ | Club Congress |
| Wed, May 11 | Phoenix, AZ | MIM Music Theatre |
| Fri, May 13 | Pentiction, BC | The Dream Music Festival |
| Sat, May 14 | Pentiction, BC | The Dream Music Festival |
| Sun, May 15 | Santa Cruz, CA | Moe’s Alley Blues Club |
| Mon, May 16 | Los Angeles, CA | Troubadour |
| Tue, May 17 | San Diego, CA | Music Box |
| Wed, May 18 | Bend, OR | Volcanic Theatre Pub |
| Thur, May 19 | Seattle, WA | The Triple Door |
| Fri, May 20 | Seattle, WA | The Triple Door |
| Thur, May 26 | Buffalo, NY | Sportsmen’s Tavern & Music Hall |
| Wed, June 15 | Buffalo, NY | Sportsmen’s Tavern & Music Hall |
| Fri, June 18 | Beaumont, AB | Beaumont Roots and Blues Festival |
| Sat, July 9 | Evansburg, AB | Pembina River Nights Festival |
| Wed, July 27 | Buffalo, NY | Sportsmen’s Tavern & Music Hall |
| Thur, July 28 | Belmar, NJ | Belmar Beach Concerts |
| Sat, July 30 | Philadelphia, PA | Tin Angel |
| Sat, Aug 13 | Grand Prairie, AB | Bear Creek Folk Festival |
| Sun, Aug 14 | Grand Prairie, AB | Bear Creek Folk Festival |
SOME PRAISE FOR BEAUTIFUL SCARS:
“…LeE HARVeY OsMOND is his most unusual undertaking to date, boasting a style that’s both soft and sinister in equal measure…three albums on, they project a persona that might have been birthed in the bayou before slowly and deliberately snaking its way through the swamp… the sly shuffle of ‘Laser Without Your Love,’ the vampish ‘Blue Moon Drive’ and the jazzier approach of ‘Black Spruce’ find Wilson spreading his wings…yet, the best offerings of the album are also the most subdued – the measured ‘Hey, Hey, Hey,’ the raspy sprawl of the slower paced ‘Planet Love’ and the solemn, somber balladry of ‘Dreams Come and Go.’ Each brings to mind the imagined result of an unholy alliance between Tom Waits and Nick Cave, one that might also find Leonard Cohen lurking in the dark shadows. Happily then, Wilson’s ominous growl syncs well with the album’s general sway and rumble, making for an insurgent sound if ever there was one.”
–Lee Zimmerman, NODEPRESSION.COM, March 20, 2016
“Beautiful Scars is like nothing out there right now. If you’re a fan of Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen, or the movies of David Lynch and Jim Jarmusch, this is the album for you. It’s deep, powerful and strangely seductive.”
–Luke Goldstein, BLOGCRITICS.ORG, March 27, 2016
“A rough-and-tumble songwriter with rock-and-roll moves…”
–Suzanne Cadgène, ELMORE MAGAZINE, February 19, 2016
“Osmond (whose real name is Tom Wilson) is no stranger to the world of music. Lots of folks already knew/know him as a member of the bands Junkhouse and Blackie & The Rodeo Kings. But it seems as if the music he’s making as a solo artist is the stuff that’s really capturing peoples’ hearts and imagination…Beautiful Scars is cut from the same fabric as Osmond’s last album (The Folk Sinner). The songs are subdued and slightly spooky. But it’s those vocals that really make the mark. Tom has a great deep focused voice that really grabs you and doesn’t let go.”
—BABYSUE.COM, February 29, 2016
“‘Blue Moon Drive’ encapsulated the molten, mysterious feeling that stands out on the new Beautiful Scars album, with silvery slide guitar from Tom’s old colleague and friend Colin Linden…Then came a righteous stomper and a set-closing, sexy slow walker called ‘Freedom’ with Linden playing righteously reverby Gretsch electric guitar. Lee Harvey’s low whisper and rumble of a voice was thrilling and the mood was consistently in a minor key. It was like opening the show with a modern day film noir soundtrack.”
–Craig Havighurst, MUSICCITYROOTS.COM, February 19, 2016
“…Wilson’s alter-ego Lee Harvey Osmond lives up to both the moniker and his immense talents on Beautiful Scars…a monster of a songwriter and performer, Wilson’s subtle extravaganzas contain elements in both lyrics and groove that push and pull like adverse forces…Wilson’s voice echoes, and the music shakes like a Shaman rattling bones.”
–Tom Clarke, TAHOEONSTAGE.COM, March 23, 2016
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