Kendra Sheetz Cleveland-based songwriter Brian Straw has teamed with Wax Mage Records for the release of his double LP, The Hidden Years 2000-2007. The new release offers a retrospective of Straws’ creative evolution during his early years including selections from his out of print CDs including Once You’re Lost You’re Encouraged To Stay Lost, Backfeed Pools, and Bleeding Sun.
As a teenager in small town Indiana, Stew began writing/composing music, playing in bands, and plotting his artistic path. After moving to Cleveland, Straw forged new musical ideas based around noise, improvisation, and experimentation. It’s been nearly three years since Brian Straw released his masterful vinyl debut, Baby Stars/Dead Languages, having previously set aside his singer-songwriter pursuits for a good decade-and-a-half to attend to his struggles with alcohol. Along with his addiction struggles that swallowed up those long years preceding Baby Stars/Dead Languages, Straw might also consider himself a recovering perfectionist who has managed to accept the always-shifting limitations of creative practice, when performances and recordings inevitably fall shy of one’s aspirations and short of perfection.
He shared:
“I tried to move on from these early works, feeling that nothing met my expectations. I was still learning how to write songs, record music, and navigate my artistic path. These recordings represent an honest reflection of who I was at that point in my life . . . my younger self finding his way.”
Stream The Hidden Years 2000-2007 in full below you can pre-order your copy of the album on vinyl here via Wax Mage. They’re offering an artist signature variant pressing which is limited to 100 copies and every record has a unique handpoured vinyl design.
Tour Dates
| Saturday, Feb 15, 2025 |
Cleveland, OH | Little Rose Tavern w/ Talons' & Powers/Rolin Duo |
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