New Music Tuesday: Ezra Bell – Ezra Bell [Album]

Regular readers of Trainwreck’d Society may notice that we have been a bit too far out of the music coverage game, but lately we have been trying to work our way back into the scene. Maybe stop ignoring the plethora of press releases that pass through the old inbox. Maybe wise up and listen. Maybe get that old feeling of joy that music used to give yours truly? But the chaos of the world has somewhat diminished this possibility and my ability to focus on just about anything has weakened.

But, sometimes, just sometimes….I hear something. Something special. Something that brings me back. And that something this go around is the amazingly original and extremely entertaining group I have recently learned is named Ezra Bell. And god dammit, if Ezra Bell isn’t throwing me back to the days when I would watch my favorite indie folk acts perform share a cramped stage with a pinball machine at a vegan burrito joint in the Northwest. While I would never wish to be 25 again, I am so happy to feel even a small bit of that ecstasy that music once made me feel, as I am now old and bitter and alone in an empty room in Nowhere, Poland.

Yes, Ezra Bell is everything I used to love to listen to when I cared. And hearing the sweet and sort of funky jams that these delightful hipsters are giving me has made me wonder why I ever stopped caring. The elements are varied, the swagger is evident, and the storytelling is as strong as you could ever imagine. And some if it has to be pretty damn catchy, as I just caught myself tapping on “Tourists” on this press page for what may be my 7th listen in a row. Much ike certain citizens of Utah we all know and love, I would never outright say that “Tourists” is my favorite wife on this album, but deep down I know it to be true. But dammit, then I move on down the track list and the cycle just continues. It is as though I can smell the PBR induced sweat that I can only imagine would be very evident at an Ezra Bell show, and it really does bring me back home.

While I may have confessed my love for one singular track thus far, it behooves me to let you fine readers know that “Go with God” is slowly creeping up into my psyche and trying to steal my love away. And I can think of no better way to describe Ezra Bell themselves actually. They are out to steal your love, with their incredible talents, perfect musicianship, and a staggering ability to make you forget about the chaos of the world, and remember a time when we weren’t afraid to die. Yeah, I think that will do it.

Ezra Bell’s self titled debut full-length album is available now on Spotify, Apple Music, all of those places you go to get music. So go get it.

Check out this recorded performance of “Tourists” courtesy of Killingsworth House: