It’s been a year that has passed since we last shared any music from melodic yet melancholic indie rock singer-songwriter Fred Abong – that was for his sixth album‘Yellowthroat’ album, which was a collaborative effort with Rob Ahlers (50FOOTWAVE, Kristin Hersh Electric Trio).
Now Abong is back with a new single, called ‘Father’. Presumably inspired by his own family history (and if it is not, it certainly is a story that many can identify with), this song represents the first sonic peak of his new album ‘Fear Pageant’, slated for release in late summer via Seattle-based label Disc Drive.
‘Father’ goes down easy – between his smooth delivery, calming voice, attractive change-ups throughout the song shifting us from one enjoyable environs to another – Abong has crafted this piece impeccably and the video is just as enjoyable to watch. The video itself makes the viewer feel that he / she knows Abong a bit better. He has a comfortable presence and his delivery is convincing.
On this release, Abong – a Filipino-American indie / alternative rock singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist – upholds his reputation as a songwriter creating a blend of “ragged Replacements and lyric-driven Bob Dylan” and as “Elliott Smith with balls”.
A musical and geographical wanderer, he grew up in the Northeast, has lived in Southern California, and currently calls New Orleans home. His songs are existentially and romantically focused, poetic, and slightly off-kilter. Detuned guitars, unconventional song structures, and a raw and unpolished production aesthetic characterize the overall sound. Fred’s hypnotic, sometimes gravelly adds to the effect.
“This was one of the last songs to be written for this album. Though I never know what ‘inspires’ a song in any kind of obvious way (I don’t get ‘ideas’ for songs or anything like that), it’s possible the song is informed by the fact that my children are all adults now. But that’s too linear an interpretation. The song is both less and more than that, in my opinion. Nothing is that straightforward. You should be getting the idea that I’m not in control of the song, ever. Maybe the spelling … I’m in control of the spelling,” says Fred Abong.
“Lyrically and imagistically, though, it suggests to me a spiritual crisis of some sort. The music, too, has a solemn, reverential quality, until it gets funky in the outro. Actually, now that I think about it, the whole song is both reverential and funky. It just gets funkier at the end. So, I guess that’s what the song is about – funky reverence.”
Getting his musical start in 1980’s Rhode Island as a drummer, bassist and guitarist in an array of hardcore punk bands, Fred abong spent the early 1990s playing bass for Throwing Muses and then Belly. He then put professional music pursuits on hold for academic pursuits, earning a PhD in Humanities and serving as a professor at various universities for eight years before returning to music.
Continuing to write songs as a solo artist, Abong’s music has a raw and unpolished production aesthetic with an overall direct, though deceptively imaginative and oblique, presentation. Apart from his work as a solo artist, Fred Abong is also currently bassist in the Kristin Hersh Electric Trio and has also been a practicing Vedic astrologer for the past 20 plus years.
As of June 6, ‘Father’ will be released on fine music platforms, including Bandcamp, where his ‘Yellowthroat’ record is also available in all formats. The full ‘Fear Pageant’ album will be released (digitally and on vinyl) on July 20. Get ‘Father’ at https://bit.ly/45L37lA
CREDITS
Music and lyrics by Fred Abong
All songs recorded, mixed and performed by Fred Abong
All instruments by Fred Abong
Mastered by Fred Thomas
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