Song Premiere: Deb Talan, “Joshua Tree In The Headphones”
by Kelly McCartney (@theKELword) for FolkAlley.com
Few things recall an era as quickly and clearly as citing “wood panel walls and shag carpet,” as Deb Talan does in “Joshua Tree in the Headphones.” She does so to set the scene of a very specific memory of being at her best friend’s house, stoned and immersed in U2’s “Where the Streets Have No Name.”
But that scene is only the starting point for a story that goes much deeper.
“I’m a survivor of childhood sexual abuse (incest), so revisiting any part of my growing up has serious minefields,” Talan says. “This song is partly shaped around the sense of being trapped at the end of high school, nearly free, but still under the auspices of our parents. For me, those feelings are inseparable from those earlier ones of being trapped in my family because I was being abused.”
The tune comes from Talan’s new solo record, ‘Lucky Girl,’ which has helped her reclaim her role as an artist after spending years identifying as a mom, a wife, a bandmate (in the Weepies), and a cancer survivor. Part of that reclamation necessarily involved facing some old demons, as she does so bravely and beautifully in “Joshua Tree.”
“Everyone leaves something behind when they pass from high school into the larger world,” she offers. “There’s a sense of grief, but also relief and anticipation of something bigger, maybe better. For me, this song weaves together those different narratives and feelings. I hope everyone can relate to something in here. At the very least, it felt amazingly cathartic to write.”
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‘Lucky Girl’ will be released May 19 via Nettwerk Music Group and is available for pre-order now at iTunes and Amazon.com.
