GRAMMY-nominated jazz
and soul singer Gregory Porter has just released the music video for “Liquid
Spirit,” the title track of his impressive Blue Note debut, which will be
released in the U.S. on September 17. Porter has also announced Fall tour dates
in support of the new album including appearances in Los Angeles at the El Rey
Theatre on September 25 and two New York City shows at Le Poisson Rouge in
Manhattan on October 24 and Littlefield in Brooklyn on October 26.
Liquid Spirit features 3 covers and 11 new originals which showcase Porter’s innate gift for writing poignant songs based upon personal experiences with a relatable and emotional immediacy. Porter sees the album as a logical progression in his burgeoning discography as it touches on some of the same themes, particularly the highs and lows of romance, his childhood, and socio-political observations. More pointedly, he views the title track, a rousing, hand-clapping gospel-jazz romp, dealing with replenishing “thirsty” listeners with more substantial music, as the flipside to last year’s “Bling Bling,” a blistering song on his previous album Be Good on which the protagonist had so many artistic gifts to give but no one to give them to. Similar sentiments occur on “Musical Genocide,” on which Porter declares his refusal of accepting the insistent squashing of quality, diverse music and culture by a mainstream in favor of disposable, homogenized pap.
In part, these
songs are based upon Porter’s reflections on new fans, worldwide, who come to
him saying, “Where have you been?” or “How come I’ve never heard you before.”
“Not saying that I am ‘what is,’ Porter says, “But I think maybe what I’m doing
is what people actually want to hear. There are some people who want that
liquid spirit – a soulful, thoughtful sound – and they haven’t been getting it.”
GREGORY PORTER –
FALL TOUR DATES
Sept. 5 – Blue Note
Nagoya – Nagoya, Japan
Sept. 6 – Blue Note
Tokyo – Tokyo, Japan
Sept. 11 – Cabaret
Sauvage – Paris, France
Sept. 12 – Espace
Ligeria – Montlouis-sur-Loire, France
Sept. 13 – Grande
Halle de La Villette – Paris, France
Sept. 14 – Blue
Note Milan – Milan, Italy
Sept. 16 –
Kulturfestival Kunstflecken – Neumunster, Germany
Sept. 20 – Monterey
Jazz Festival – Monterey, CA
Sept. 21 – Russian
River Jazz & Blues Festival – Guerneville, CA
Sept. 22 – Yoshi’s
– Oakland, CA
Sept. 25 – El Rey
Theatre – Los Angeles, CA
Sept. 28 – Robert
Ferst Center for the Arts – Atlanta, CA
Oct. 9 – Centro
Cultural de Belem – Lisbon, Portugal
Oct. 11 – Casa Da
Musica – Porto, Portugal
Oct. 12 – So What’s
Next Festival – Eindhoven, Holland
Oct. 13 – Main Hall
De Doelen – Rotterdam, Holland
Oct. 14 –
Concertgebouw – Amsterdam, Holland
Oct. 15 – De
Oosterpoort – Groningen, Holland
Oct. 16 – Concert
De Vereeniging – Nijmegen, Holland
Oct. 18 – El
Mediator / Theatre De L’archipel – Perignan, France
Oct. 19 – Theatre
Ollioules – Chateau Vallon, France
Oct. 20 – Salle du
Vigean A Eysines – Eysines, France
Oct. 21 – Cave
Cooperative de Bouillargues – Nimes, France
Oct. 24 – Le
Poisson Rouge – New York, NY
Oct. 25 – Miami
Nice Jazz Festival – Miami, FL
Oct. 26 –
Littlefield – Brooklyn, NY
Oct. 27 – Shea
Center for the Performing Arts – Wayne, NJ
Oct. 30 – Royal
Albert Hall – London, England
Nov. 1 – Art Across
Campus Legends of Jazz Series – Syracuse, NY
Nov. 14 –
Kulturzentrum Kammgarn – Kaiserslautern, Germany
Nov. 15 – Circus
Krone – Munich, Germany
Nov. 16 –
Konzerthaus Dortmund – Dortmund, Germany
Nov. 18 –
Stadthalle – Heidelberg, Germany
Nov. 19 – Alte Oper
– Frankfurt, Germany
Nov. 20 – Theater
Am Aegi – Hannover, Germany
Nov. 21 –
Kammermusiksaal – Berlin, Germany
Nov. 23 –
Laeiszhalle – Hamburg, Germany
Nov. 24 – Die
Glocke – Bremen, Germany
Nov. 25 – Tonhalle
Dusseldorf – Dusseldorf, Germany
~ Blue Note Records
No comments:
Post a Comment