Hear It First – Old Man Luedecke, ‘Domestic Eccentric’
*Old Man Luedecke releases his new album ‘Domestic Eccentric’ on July 24. You can listen to the album in its entirety before then in the player below!*
I had a friend in college who, when asked if she was homesick on the first day of our freshmen year by the well-meaning resident advisor, shrugged her shoulders and said, “Eh. Home, to me, is where your pillow is.”
Mind. Blown.
What was she talking about? Home is where your dog is. Where the neighbor’s front door slams loud enough so that you can hear it in your bedroom, two stories up. Where the church bells seem to ring incessantly, no matter the time of day or night. And where everything you love and hate seems to exist in some sort of comfortable chaos.
That was the first time I learned that “home” doesn’t mean the same thing to everyone. To Chris “Old Man” Luedecke, for example, home is babies growing up too fast and a wife who only gets more wonderful as the years go on. Home is a rustic, quiet existence, filled with the sounds of coffee percolating, stories of true love being told around the dinner table, and, of course, the non-stop plucking and strumming of banjo strings.
For his new recording ‘Domestic Eccentric,’ Old Man Luedecke invited one of his musical heroes, Tim O’Brien, to his hand-crafted cabin in the woods of Nova Scotia. The two spent some time pondering the meanings of home and family and good music. Other friends gradually joined in – some in that cabin and some in other cities – and the end result is what Old Man Luedecke describes as “a rich portrait of personal friendships.” From the listener’s point of view, it’s also a rich sonic portrait with each musician getting a well-deserved turn in the spotlight.
From the opening track “Yodelady” (which is really a love song that, yes, includes yodeling) through “The Briar and the Rose” and the oh-so-poignant “The Early Days,” and winding up at the final track, “Happy Ever After,” we get a very clear picture about the most important people and experiences in Old Man Luedecke’s life.
If you think about it, it’s really quite gracious of him to give us this personal glimpse of what makes his life tick – and it sure doesn’t hurt that the musicianship surrounding these intensely individual revelations and observations is incredible. Banjo, mandolin, fiddle, bass and drums – it all serves to underscore what’s most important to this banjo savant from Nova Scotia. And that, of course, is his home.
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‘Domestic Eccentric’ is due out on July 24 via True North Records, and is availabe now for pre-order at iTunes and Amazon.com.
