Music Review: “Raw Wood” by John Vanderslice


TRACK 1

“Raw Wood”

From John Vanderslice’s Dagger Beach

SELF-RELEASED

Liner notes: “One day the pain will pass on from me to you,” sighs John Vanderslice, as disjointed drums and ghostly backing vocals boost the unease on this post-breakup ballad.

Behind the music: The founder of San Francisco’s Tiny Telephone studio, Vanderslice has produced for the Mountain Goats, Samantha Crain, and Spoon. He worked on the album’s lyrics while hiking in California’s Point Reyes National Seashore.

Check it out if you like: Anxious but articulate types, such as Thom Yorke, David Byrne, and Joanna Newsom.

This review originally appeared in our July/August issue of Mother Jones. 

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