New York, NY (Top40 Charts) On February 22, composer, songwriter and keyboardist Eliot Krimsky will release his debut solo album, Wave in Time, via Pretty Purgatory. Perhaps best known for his work as the frontman and co-founder of the band Glass Ghost, Krimsky has performed extensively in the U.S., Canada,
Europe and Mexico. He has shared stages with Deerhoof, Dirty Projectors, and
Sharon Van Etten and collaborated with the likes of Meshell Ndegeocello, Here We Go Magic, Shearwater and members of Xiu Xiu over the last decade. Wave in Time features his distinctive falsetto voice-alongside sprawling, cinematic ambience and incisive, hook-heavy electronic pop-singing of fear, despair, humanity, and hope. These are powerful, affirmative anthems of and for this moment.
In the the wake of the 2016 election, Krimsky found himself struggling like so many Americans with what felt like a new reality: certain visible hatred and injustice, abject denial, loss of innocence and past naivetes, intense anxiety and fear. In this state of confusion, he began to write the songs of Wave in Time as his response, a coping mechanism, and a guide through the darkness toward hope and clarity. Many of these songs have specific origin. "Burden" for instance is inspired by Edward Snowden's bravery to give up comforts for the greater good, "Long
Black Highway" focuses on gun violence, both that of an institutionally racist police force and deeply alienated lone civilians, and "Fear" is about fear of intimacy in the nuclear family. The title Wave in Time reflects on a broader view of history, with waves of progress and defeat coming in and out of focus.
In stark contrast to his previous records with Glass Ghost, Wave in Time finds Eliot alone, both without a band and writing in the first person. On Glass Ghost's acclaimed debut album, Idol Omen, there was a singular protagonist -- a businessman who found a spiritual side. Yet on Wave in Time, there's a different transformational character: Eliot himself. From insular unease and disquietude to despondence and near surrender to eventual greater truths, these songs follow a deeply personal journey of resilience. This sense of hopefulness and curiosity rings strongly throughout Wave in Time. Songs rise out of intense places into huge, enveloping choruses, anthemic and powerful in their open defiance. It is these moments that are most singular and impactful -- moments of humanity, resolute commitment to life and living, solace, and solidarity, moments of and for the moment we're in.
Eliot Krimsky will headline Brooklyn's
National Sawdust on February 16, performing selections from Wave in Time. He'll be joined by acclaimed video artist Alex Reeves and other special guests. The evening will begin with an opening set of transcendent saxophone from
Travis Laplante, leader of the singular saxophone quartet
Battle Trance. Tickets are available here.
