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The Language Shadow

by Kass Richards

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  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Feeding Tube Records / Good Cry Records vinyl reissue of The Language Shadow. Limited number available here.

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  • Limited Edition 12" Vinyl (First Pressing)
    Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Featuring original cover artwork by Allyson Mellberg-Taylor.

    Includes unlimited streaming of The Language Shadow via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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1.
Full fathom five, thy father lies Of his bones are coral made Those are pearls that were his eyes Nothing of him doth fade But suffer a sea change Into something rich and strange Sea nymphs hourly ring his knell I hear them--
2.
Diving 03:35
Cast off cast off these weeds from us Years of drowning in love We’re diving into the wreck of ourselves We might not come back up Lived in a world that almost drove me crazy Swallowing water without a sound Slow goes the ship, I will let go then maybe I’ll find my own way down I am a song that you cannot hear Though I am playing all around The blue of distance is calling me home What’s lost can never be found Lived in a world that almost drove me crazy Swallowing water without a sound Slow goes the ship, I will let go then maybe I’ll find my own way down
3.
Atlantis 04:24 video
I don’t wanna die alone with my own thoughts Let them breathe here And let them continue on their own How many minds are lost Like vapor in cold air To places our mothers could not know were even there This morning I got dressed Like a woman I once saw A woman who was not me I saw her on TV Or not the TV, but a computer staring back at me She smiled, and without speaking, told me that was how I should be I don’t wanna die alone with my own thoughts Let them breathe here And let them continue on their own How many minds are lost Like vapor in cold air To places our mothers could not know were even there Take good care of my body Be just as good as you can be And if you should discover That you don’t really love her Please bring my body back to me
4.
Hmm 00:51
Hmm
5.
Where you going I don’t mind I’ve killed my world and I’ve killed my time So where do I go what do I see I see many people coming after me So where you going I don’t mind If I live too long, I’m afraid I’ll die So I will follow you wherever you go If your open hand is still open to me Strangers on this road we are on We are not two, we are one. So you’ve been where I’ve just come From the land that brings the losers on So we will share this road we walk And mind our mouths and beware our talk Til peace we find, tell you what I’ll do All the things I own I will share with you And if I feel tomorrow like I feel today We’ll take what we want and give the rest away Strangers on this road we are on We are not two, we are one. Holy man and holy priest, This love of life makes me weak in my knees And when we get there make your play Cuz soon I feel you’re gonna carry us away In a promised lie you made us believe For many men there is so much grief And my mind is proud but it aches with rage And if I live too long, I’m afraid I’ll die Strangers on this road we are on We are not two, we are one. Strangers on this road we are on We are not two, we are one.
6.
Ride slow ride slow, under the rain You won’t behold such beauty again When you go your way my old friend You won’t be coming back again Oh my lovely love, oh my lovely love You go astray But here in my own heart You do remain Your father’s watch, gold band and chain Although it’ll never be the same Inside my heart, you do remain. The dog that howls, the winding sheet The wind that whispers under your feet Although I lied, I must repeat I’ll miss you when you’re gone from me Oh my lovely love, oh my lovely love You go astray And you can change the past to fit the page I broke your heart, and jumped my cage I set the fires on the stage The heart knows when it’s been betrayed. There’s not a word to say to you I’ve lost your scent, I hunt something new I could care less to follow rules That some fool made for me But still it stands, and will not remove Your beauty bright in every room I think of you, and am consumed.
7.
Daughter 03:37 video
My only daughter, I saw you walking Along the side of a country road I remember it was raining I pulled over my car And offered you a ride You climbed in beside me Fastened your freezing body To me you were a fountain of snow Unreachable, mesmerizing Though I asked many questions Answers I made on my own My love, my love--
8.
Luna 04:37
En una noche de niebla Decidí dar un paseo Cuando la niebla desaparecio No pude creer lo que vi Luna-- Tu luz es muy brillante Luna-- Por favor no me muestres más Allí al lado de un árbol Dos cuerpos abrazados Y cuando me acerque Un de ellos fue mi amor Luna-- Tu luz es muy brillante Luna-- Por favor no me muestres más Ahora camino todas las noches No encuentro descanso Y cuando veo amantes abrazándose Esto es lo que digo yo Luna-- Tu luz es muy brillante Luna-- Por favor no me muestres más
9.
Despite all my feelings of life parallel Nature is happening without my goodwill I called my friend up and she said it’s still Happening to you, even when you are ill Out on the highway it rises the eye I saw an eagle full mouth with the kill Flying on by. No family No universe No holy god No mother earth Out on the land to either side A pit as deep as it is wide And underneath a rolling dime I lift my skirt for the economy.
10.
Call off the guards I found her hiding in this house Although she swore up and down she was someone else But I have your picture here, your memory in my mind Thought you’d gone, but it appears You’ve remained behind So it’s true you’ve found me here But I may as well make myself clear I’m not gonna go without a fight You kids and your suits it just ain’t right And for the record I’d like to be said Instead of marching I danced to my death.

about

Kass (who works with Meg Remy’s U.S. Girls) sings and plays guitar, dulcimer and small instrument-style percussion. Recorded at Montreal’s Hotel2Tango, her music has the clean, hard bite of a Northern Spy apple. Some of the songs are performed as elegant solos, but there are additional instrumental touches by several Canadian musicians from the Toronto and Montreal scenes. But even when there are a few players piling up, the arrangements maintain a spare quality keeping the focus tight on Kass’s voice, words and strings. The additional keys, cello and electric guitar are all used for highlighting and support.

The album’s overall sound is hard to peg with any precision. The predominant female folk styles these days follow either the English or Laurel Canyon models, but The Language Shadow kneels before neither of these altars. The melodies are simple but rich, balancing sweetness against the lyrics, which can be quite dark. The same poise is displayed on the covers Kass chooses — the Kinks’ “Strangers” (a Dave Davies masterpiece from Lola) and Jennifer Castle’s “Nature” (a beautiful Cohen-esque song from her Pink City LP) — creating a very sumptuous whole, that should knock everyone’s socks off.

Nice one, Kass.

–Byron Coley, 2021

credits

released December 4, 2020

The Players:
Kass Richards: vocals, nylon string guitar, Appalachian dulcimer, tambourine, piano tuning pin chimes
Basia Bulat: Moog, Roland
Geordie Gordon: Guelph pump organ, Hammond organ, Mellotron
Tim Kingsbury: Electric ghost guitar
Zou Zou Robidoux: Cello on "Nature"

Recorded at Hotel2Tango, Montreal, Nov. 2019 and March 2020
Co-produced by Kass Richards and Basia Bulat
Sound engineer: Shae Brossard
Mastering: Harris Newman
Cover art: Allyson Mellberg Taylor
Cover art photography: Nafis Azad
Sequencing assistance: Tim Kingsbury

Songs written by Kass Richards unless otherwise noted.

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Kass Richards Massachusetts

Singer-songwriter/song collector living in the Boston area.

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