by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Footings, New Hampshire’s finest and most consistent Americana band, returns with a new self-titled album, due out September 28th via Don’t Live Like Me Records. The once solo project of Eric Gagne has grown and expanded to a quintet that’s about as super a “super-group” gets within the Northeast DIY scene. Joined by Pile’s Rick Maguire (drums), Elisabeth Fuchsia (viola), Bunny’s A Swine’s Candace Clement (vocals), and Rick Rude’s Jordan Holtz (vocals), Gagne’s hard-pressed folk songs are brought to life with texture and a comfortable ease. The special feeling that goes into making music with great friends is radiant throughout Footings’ new album.
“American Beers” bridges together delicate harmonies, heavy acoustics, and a brilliant viola line, tangling their lines with a post-rock grandeur while leaving the emotional heft firmly with the band’s more earthy aesthetic. Opening with a somber strum and a gentle buzz, Gagne and Holtz’s voices work together with a fragile resolve, well balanced, as they set scenery, tone, and mood. Gagne has always specialized in lyrics that bring you from your setting into the woods (canyon, hills, open windows, etc), his visionary writing uses nature to transport the way you hear the songs. Fuchsia’s viola is the real emotional core however, slowly drifting during the introductory verse and absolutely exploding into a pleasantly abrasive tremor. In another context, the quick back and forth movements of the bow might be menacing, but here it plays out beautifully, a swelling of dynamics to drive home the elegance of the songwriting.
Footings’ self-titled album is out September 28th via Don’t Live Like Me Records.