Chadwick Stokes’ new song “Mother Maple” recently premiered at UTNE Reader and can now be heard/shared via SoundCloud. Of Stokes and the new track, UTNE praises, “Stokes employs an old sample machine, a choir, and a really catchy hook, to frame his insightful lyrics on selfless love.” The song is the latest track from Stokes’ forthcoming studio album, The Horse Comanche, which will be released February 3 on Ruff Shod Records/Thirty Tigers (pre-order now at iTunes).
Recorded at Chicago’s Shirk Studios and L.A.’s House of Blues studio, The Horse Comanche was co-produced by Sam Beam of Iron and Wine, Brian Deck (Gomez, Josh Ritter) and Noah Georgeson (Joanna Newsom, Devendra Banhart). Also featured on the 10-track album are special guests Lucius on the song “New Haven.” Of the new album, Stokes comments, “We started recording the album this past January in Chicago during the Polar Vortex. I couldn’t believe that everyone showed up that first day—school had been canceled, restaurants were closed and cars were abandoned in the middle of the street (my van included). As Sam (Beam) stepped inside and warmed up, I remember Brian Deck saying, ‘I got a good feeling about this cold. Nothing of any worth was ever made easily.’”
Already receiving critical notice, the official music video for the first single, “Our Lives Our Time,” recently premiered at allmusic and can now be viewed/shared here. Of the song, Stokes comments, “The tune’s about being frustrated that we’re still in a society that is largely intolerant of gay marriage and gender equality, has a prison industry complex that is rampant, has corporations that have a stranglehold on the government, fat cat Wall Streeters who get away with murder and make billions as teachers of our country can’t make ends meet. Recording it was tough because the third verse was never mapped out and depending on how I sang it, so each time we did it, the words landed in a different place. The band and I just had to go for it and hope that the words ended in time and ended in a way that we could hit the last chorus in stride. It took many tries, and it might be different every time we try it live.” Additionally, last month, Glide Magazine premiered the song “I Want You Like A Seatbelt” praising, “…maintains his mastery for contagious worldly rhythms along with a fervent live energy, that mirrors his flair as an honest to goodness solo artist.”
Since forming his first band with two friends, Stokes has performed to audiences worldwide including multiple sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden and TD Garden as well as a special reunion performance at Boston’s Hatch Shell that drew over 120,000 fans. Stokes is also a co-founder of Calling All Crows, a non-profit dedicated to bringing bands and fans together to create change through hands-on activism and service. To date, Calling All Crows has raised over $550,000 and invested more than 30,000 hours of service in local communities across North America and Europe.
CHADWICK STOKES, THE HORSE COMANCHE
1. Pine Needle Tea
2. Mother Maple
3. Prison Blue Eyes
4. I Want You Like A Seatbelt
5. Our Lives Our Time
6. Horse Comanche
7. Hazy Maze
8. Dead Badger
9. New Haven feat. Lucius
10. Walter (First Hello)
Published by FestPop Staff Writer