Connie Ward
Folk rock musician Nick Brown has the heart of an artist and the head of a journalist. His new record, Contender, ties the two together with lean, clear imagery and fully realized compositions.
It’s a far cry from his 2012 release, Slow Boat. Not in quality, but certainly in maturity. Slow Boat was a solo project that proved Brown could write great songs.
Contender is a band project that shows Brown can make great music. The band part is key for Brown who, when creating this six-song EP, surrounded himself with some of Madison’s best players. “Those guys all listen so well that it creates a situation where you can just talk about a sound or a feel for a part of a song, and they can make it happen with their fingers,” Brown says.
“Those guys” include the enigmatic Andrew Harrison on electric guitar, a local player with national chops and a seemingly limitless vocabulary. His guitar here is classic country Telecaster that Brown describes as having “clarity on tone and darkness in the phrasing that is uniquely his.” Rusty Lee (Lost Lakes/Josh Harty), also known for his educated ear, plays keys. Drummer Ben Wolf and bassist Pat Logterman round out the core ensemble.
“Things get interesting when you combine Rusty’s tendency toward ethereal, airy organ with Andrew’s plucky Telecaster sound, with Pat’s giant, left-handed upright bass and Ben’s deep musicality,” says Brown.
Together they’ve created a sophisticated, Americana rock album with a sound that suggests Dave Edmunds as much it does Jay Farrar. In fact, Brown must have a hidden British muse. “Lucky Lady” gets all Dire Straits on a punchy backbeat. “Cracks” has a poppy Paul McCartney playfulness to it. Throughout the album, Brown’s vocal tracks showcase a voice that’s smoky and soothing yet able to leap into an urgent falsetto at a moment’s notice.
Contender, which was recorded at Dojo and mastered at Blast House Studios, also features backup vocals from former Madison singer/songwriter Anna Vogelzang (who has since relocated to Los Angeles). Brown and Wolf were listening to the rough cut of “Cardinal Street” in the control room and agreed that the number had room for more vocals. “We thought of the best singer in our radius who might be willing to lend a voice, we texted Anna and she was there in 30 minutes and done in an hour,” says Brown.
Brown has carved out an important leadership role among Madison folkies. Which isn’t to say he’s self-important. His favorite cut on the record is no surprise, given his drunk-uncle sense of humor: “Underpants.” But for all the lightheartedness Brown brings to his work, he’s had a tough couple of years – his marriage ended, and that led him to some personal reckoning and travel.
Did these events have anything to do with the songs on Contender? Nope, he says. “Making music has provided me indescribable joy throughout my life. Yet its cathartic elements don’t tend to have anything to do with verbalizing sadness or giving a voice to pain. I see music-making as a forward-looking endeavor.”
