The first single from Gentleman Caller's upcoming record, "Wake", out on October 2, 2012

The Answer

     Gentleman Caller’s 4th full length LP, “Wake”, seems destined to secure a place among the vaunted halls of the modern era’s greatest bummer records. Like Big Star’s Third or Red Red Meat’s “Bunny Gets Paid”, songwriter Kenny Childers has transformed personal tragedy into a contemplative, mournful collection of songs, full of subtle beauty and beautiful subtleties. Childers’ songs linger and hover, conveying striking imagery, and evocative melodies within a deceptively straight forward packaging. These songs don’t overwhelm... they infect. 
	  Perhaps no song on the album demonstrates Mr. Childers’ ability to navigate complex emotional terrain better than “The Answer.” Composed after the death of Indiana musical luminary, Lon Paul Elrich, the song finds its protagonist traveling back through his life, recounting the ways in which he tried, to varying degrees of success, to find balance and even peace. We are transported back to his childhood class room where his bony frame encouraged ridicule, to the church of his youth, where the preacher’s tales of hell fire and original sin did more to terrify than enlighten, to the pharmacy counter, where the ineffectual anxiety medication was doled out, and to the bar where he sipped beer with the other searchers, and with those who had long since given up the search. And after all this, the devastating final lines, a confession that turns the song on its head - “I did not find the answer in your eyes”. It is a stunning piece of work, and if it fails to give you goose bumps, your goose may not work. 
     Though Childers has flown relatively under the radar nationally, His work with Gentleman Caller over the past decade has earned him a fervent cult of followers regionally. This great regional affection for Childers’ music culminated in the curation of a tribute album earlier this year.  Several regional bands and musicians of note picked favorites from the Gentleman Caller catalog, recorded their own beautiful - or bug fuck crazy - renditions, and submitted them to musicalfamilytree.com.  The Indiana-based archival website funded the pressing of a 300 copy micro edition double vinyl of the album, entitled “Nine Different Kinds of Gone”, which will be released shortly after “Wake”. A fitting companion piece, “Nine Different Kinds of Gone” showcases just how powerful Childers’ songwriting truly is, by filtering it through the lenses of those who admire his work. The album can be streamed in its entirety, here…
http://kjctribute.bandcamp.com/album/nine-different-kinds-of-gone-a-tribute-to-kenny-childers
     “Wake” will be released on Oct. 2nd on vinyl (limited edition of 300), as well as digitally, by Mariel Recording Company, the label of longtime friends, fans, and collaborators, Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s.  Gentleman Caller will also accompany the band on a short run of shows in October, which include a very intimate performance at NYC’s Mercury Lounge.



GENTLEMANCALLER-WAKE