![]() Naturally, the Shauf cinematic universe tends to grow with each record, something especially evident on Skyline. Reminiscent of “Up to Me,” left off Blood on the Tracks, or “Abandoned Love,” ditto Desire, Shauf fashions stunning, unforgettable side-quests of these two forgettable people, our nameless narrator and the immortal Judy, and turns their entire relationship into a concise, cinematic 27-minute tale-leaving no room for mistakes and emerging with Wilds, a delicate and unassuming record about accepting separation before fully letting go. Instead, Dylanesque in his execution, Shauf gave these “outtakes” their own record, and they end up being just as good, if not better, than the one from which they were omitted. The leftovers are not in the trash, though. Shauf wrote and recorded dozens of tracks for Skyline, but left ones not hellbent on a so-called “light-headedness” on the cutting room floor. Fan-favorite “Where Are You Judy” introduced us to the narrator’s former beloved, while tracks like “Thirteen Hours” and “Try Again” painstakingly depicted the softer consequences of breaking up, like the weight of single facial expressions and joking about missing a coat, but not the person wearing it. Whether it was watching a hypnotist fail miserably during “The Magician” or witnessing a beautiful woman dancing for a crowd on “Eyes of Them All,” Shauf subtly flexed his gift for storytelling-filling the record with too many people, but striking a generous, Lincoln in the Bardo-like balance between character depth and quantity within the heavy macrocosm he was responsible for.Īs did The Party, 2019’s The Neon Skyline-a concept album as ambitious as its predecessor, tackling alcoholism, bar culture and socially anxious interactions so relatable they make you squirm-takes place over one night, as Shauf’s narrator learns that his ex has come back to town and we watch him spiral through hours of grief and flashbacks. ![]() After a run of self-releases and cycles with Hopeless Records and Tender Loving Empire/Party Damage, Shauf burst onto the scene for good with ANTI- in 2016 by way of The Party, a wrought, honest portrait of people-watching and a lesson in the short distance between entertainment and melancholia. ![]() “On the last day, we were there / You said you wished we could stay / Boarded the plane and everything / Changed,” he sings on the track, in his sticky Canadian tenor so tight-lipped, it whistles.Īs essential to indie folk as George Saunders is to short-story collections for the better part of a decade, Shauf, ever the Saskatchewanian balladeer, always understands the assignment. “Norm” will be out in its’ entirety on February 10th, and is sure to be one of the most intriguing albums for 2023.With the release of “Spanish on the Beach” out of nowhere on a random Wednesday earlier this month-while, unbeknownst to most of us, a whole new record was waiting in the wings-listeners were reintroduced to Andy Shauf’s magnetic, rich mindset with a cut about hypothetical marriage and returning from a trip worse off than when you booked it. The accompanying video created by Chad VanGaalen nicely adds a visual representation of the world that Shauf creates with his songwriting, using a recurring character from the music video of “Catch Your Eye”. Shauf explained before that he hates talking on the phone, so imagining someone different he wrote this piece which oozes with the yearning intensity of its’ story. He sings of yearning to be called on the phone by someone he admires and fantasizes about what he would talk about with this person, before the narrative leads into a revelation that this was someone who in fact used to frequently talk to them on the phone. Shauf’s lyrics refer to the narrative of a concept character, a recurring theme for the upcoming album. An interesting addition in this composition is the use of strings which adds another layer of emotion into this piece. This latest release will immediately catch your attention with its crisp sounding drum sound, bright acoustic guitars, and a deep cutting bass sound which centres the whole piece together effortlessly. Along with “Wasted On You” and “Catch Your Eye”, Shauf has caught the attention of fans and music critics alike with their delicately arranged compositions and superb attention to detail and texture in the production process. Shauf releases another insightful look into the newest concept record which is set to be released on February 10th through ANTI- Records. Canadian singer-songwriter Andy Shauf releases third single from upcoming album “Norm”.
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