For those unaware, with his signature blend of indie-folk, rock, and experimental music, Brian Straw will release his debut solo album, Baby Stars / Dead Languages on January 21st, 2022.

“This album is what happens after sobriety,” Straw states. An artistic mainstay in his hometown of Cleveland, OH, Straw started building his career in the early 2000s with tours of the US and Europe.

However, alcoholism soon stalled his momentum, resulting in a hiatus from his own musical output for nearly 15 years. After having his last drink in 2017, he resumed his own performances and began to refine and record songs that he’d been working on for years, as well as ones that came out of his journey to sobriety.

“The songs unfold in real-time. Everything I was dealing with emotionally went in the music,” he explains. “I was hard on myself. I carried around a lot of shame and regret. I broke down a lot. I lost my girlfriend. The making of the record became my therapy.”

After years of his fans wondering When will Brian Straw finish his record, Baby Stars / Dead Languages is a victory lap, every bit as grand, detailed, and generous as expected.

The album introduces Straw’s deft compositional abilities and ambitious scope to a new audience while giving his long-time fans from his local scene the music they’ve been waiting for.

Recorded in his own studio/gallery space, Survival Kit, it features several notable Cleveland-based musicians such as Bill Lestock, Nick Cross, Tony Cross, Mike Tolan, Rob Kovacs, Dan Price, and Emily Keener, many of whom will be joining Straw for a string of upcoming shows.

1. Sleep Study
2. I Have Not Wandered (Far from You)
3. I Still Dream of You
4. Needle in the Creek
5. Murmurations
6. Keys To My Room
7. Underground
8. Shame & Desire
9. Out of Doors
10. Microdream
11. Close Enough to Know
12. Half-Buried Crow

Lovingly veined with his signature blend of indie-folk, rock, and experimental music, the album opens on the studiously crafted, lonesome ache of both Sleep Study and I Have Not Wandered (Far from You) and backs those up with the rhythmically upbeat pairing of both I Still Dream of You and Needle in the Creek, the earthy Murmurations and the adamancy of spirit within Keys To My Room.

Next up is the low slung gossamer of Underground and the rock guitar-imbibed urgency of Shame & Desire and they are in turn followed by the euphoric melodies of Out of Doors, the quietly expansive Microdream, the album rounding out on the troubadour reminiscing of Close Enough to Know, coming to a righteous close on the dulcet Half-Buried Crow.

The title symbolizes the beginning and end of a cycle, both ruminating on the difficult time he spent at rock bottom and celebrating finding his way back into the light.

IndieGoGo Album Funding Page

Brian Straw - Out of Doors [Official Music Video]

www.brianstraw.org

Brian Straw @ Facebook