Hot Ball Of Chaos

Sitting In The Corner

Drive My Car

Progress of Man

Nathan Xander is proud to release “Tide Rolls Back,” the first single from the soon to be released album, Three Waltzes. Hard on the heels of French Creek Flood, the single begins the rollout of Xander’s 2nd album release of 2022. A fast fan favorite at recent shows, “Tide Rolls Back” is a reaction to a chaotic moment, a walking reflection of a time and place both personal and shared, but with a lingering swell that rings as true today as it will tomorrow.

Three Waltzes is Xander’s most topical collection of songs to date and his first release that was completely recorded before any of the music had been played live. Working out the arrangements in the band’s Brooklyn rehearsal space allowed the compositions to breathe in a way that Xander’s previous recordings lacked. Members of the band include Cameron Kapoor on electric guitar, Derek Weaving on bass guitar, and Oliver Beardsley on drums and percussion. 

Once ready to put sounds to tape, the band took the collection to Hunter Davidsohn, of Business District Recording, in Binghamton, New York. They quickly found their comfort zone in Davidsohn’s quirky space, chock full of vintage gear and an all analog signal path. The tracks were recorded live with minimal overdubs, and a few first takes made their way to the album. Davidsohn added keys and marimba on “Take Care” and “Progress of Man,” and Xander enlisted Chicago’s Dan Ingenthron to play organs on “Tide Rolls Back” and “Hot Ball of Chaos.”

The 10 tracks on Three Waltzes showcase Xander’s ability to weave his many influences and experiences into a style of songwriting undeniably his own. “People Might Believe” is a hopeful look into our contemporary condition with a touch of 60’s inspired folk rock. “Progress of Man,” the album’s 2nd waltz, weaves a narrative that one can imagine hearing from a gondolier on the river Styx. “Saturday” is a bouncy, Tom T Hall influenced love letter to the first days of spring. Together, the songs convey the earned wisdom and sense of humor that have become Xander’s trademark. 

“Tide Rolls Back” will be available on Bandcamp, Apple Music, Spotify, and most other streaming services on September 2nd, 2022.

Tide Rolls Back

They’re playing softball in the park in the sun, on Saturday, and I’m smiling
They’re sharing wine and having lunch, playing catch and two hand touch and I’m smiling
Never thought winter would end, never thought I’d see the sun again and I’m smiling
Oh my God I’m feeling good, walking around the neighborhood on Saturday

I drag an old dog down this block about a thousand times a week but I’m smiling
At a million little weeds, poking up through cracked concrete out there today
I had forgotten spring would come, thought my last song had been sung, and I’m smiling
Oh my God I’m feeling good, walking around the neighborhood on Saturday

They’re tying on their dancing shoes, shaking off those worried blues and I’m smiling
Taking in this busy scene’s doing a world of good for me and I’m smiling
Never thought winter would end, never thought I’d see the sun again and I’m smiling
Everybody’s feeling good, walking around the neighborhood on Saturday

Saturday

Other Side

People Might Believe

Take Care

Nathan Xander is a troubadour in the Texas sense, when he’s in Texas. Or in the California sense when he’s there. Or the Chicago sense, oh, OK. You get it. The man writes like he travels: well and often. He’s as familiar with Brooklyn as his hometown of Union City, PA, Gillian Welch as with X. Nathan’s new collection of songs, recorded in a big blue barn in Upstate New York, is his best work to date, and we at Trailer Fire Records are thrilled to share it with you. 

Blue House (07/17 Trailer Fire Records) represents the work of a writer in the prime of his craft. Nathan’s years of touring, with their joyful wildness and melancholy, come through in these songs. “Over You, Over Me” evokes that duality, while songs like “Shadows” growl and pulse with the frivolous energy of an artist who likes to break things. “Pennsylvania” is as anthemic a song as ought to be written, a wholehearted Mellencamp-esque thumper about home, while “I Remember You Now” is a psychedelic memory in homage to friends Xander has met along his traveler’s way. Each of the songs here are evidence of experience, which Nathan has in spades. 

The Deli says Nathan “conjure[s] memories of smoke and sawdust.” Reglar Wiglar claims his writing “definitely gets to the heart of matters of the heart.” These recordings, as much as the band Nathan assembled, serve to underscore what his work represents: a life in pursuit of a good damn song. Blue House will not disappoint.

NathanXander

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