Today, Nicki Bluhm and The Gramblers new album, Love Wild Lost, is out in stores and online. The band teamed with producer Brian Deck (Iron & Wine, Modest Mouse, Josh Ritter) on the album, which arrives on April 21. It’s their first time working with an outside collaborator and the result is their most compelling collection of songs to date. The Richly layered sound forms the ideal foundation for Bluhm’s soaring vocals and increasingly powerful songcraft. Further color comes from San Francisco’s Magik*Magik Orchestra (Death Cab for Cutie, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, The Walkmen), whose complex arrangements serve to amplify the indelibly universal themes of Love Wild Lost. You can purchase Love Wild Lost on iTunes or at www.nickibluhm.com.
“Their songs, written mostly by Bluhm and her husband – some separately, some together – are concise and well-crafted, with catchy, memorable melodies framed in R&B-, blues- and country-flavored arrangements. Bluhm’s an impressive singer with a direct, seemingly effortless approach that suits a broad range of emotions and attitudes exceptionally well, and often sounds as if she knows more than what the lyric itself suggests.” – Nashville Scene
“The band is a melting pot of classic folk, blues, and country sounds. Bluhm’s voice, hitched to the wagon of her accompanying band, travels along the countryside, conforming gracefully to each genre’s geological features. ” – SF Weekly
Last week, Nick Bluhm & The Gramblers released a stream of their record on The New York Times Press Play. You can listen to the stream here. The band had previously released their captivating first single, “Waiting on Love,” from their much-anticipated new album via Paste. Last month, the Wall Street Journal premiered “High Neck Lace,” saying: “It’s a slow-burner, with keening steel guitar and eddies of strings [care of Magik*Magik Orchestra], surrounding Bluhm’s warm, inviting vocals.”
Nicki Bluhm and The Gramblers are on tour now. They are playing residencies in intimate venues in Chicago and Nashville that kicked off last week at Schuba’s in Chicago. In addition, the band has slated a number of headlining shows and performances at upcoming festivals through the summer. Announced tour dates are listed below and additional ones will be announced soon – for complete details and ticket information, please visit www.nickibluhm.com.
North American Tour Dates
APRIL
21 Chicago, IL Schubas ^
22 Louisville, KY Waterfront Wednesday w/ Shakey Graves, JD McPherson
23 Nashville, TN The Stone Fox %
24 Indianapolis, IN Radio Radio ^
25 Columbus, OH A&R Bar ^
28 Chicago, IL Schubas #
29 Cincinnati, OH Taft Ballroom #
30 Nashville, TN The Stone Fox #
MAY
1 Little Rock, AR Stickyz #
2 Guthrie, OK Queen of the Prairie Festival
15 – 17 Big Sur, CA Hipnic
21-24 Cumberland, MD DelFest
JUNE
5 Hunter Mountain, NY Mountain Jam
6 Jamestown, NY Reg Lenna Center for the Arts
JULY
2 – 5 Quincy, CA High Sierra Music Festival
12 San Luis Obispo, CA Seven Sisters Festival
22-26 Floyd, VA Floyd Fest
AUGUST
14-16 Lyons, CO Rocky Mountain Folks Festival
SEPTEMBER
18 – 20 Del Mar, CA Kaaboo
^ – with Guthrie Brown
# – with U.S. Elevator
% – with Sarah Siskind