Fourth Lewis album emerges

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/jan/09/fourth-lewis-album-emerges

Version 0 of 1.

A fourth album has emerged by the mysterious recording artist Lewis.

The Canadian musician made headlines last year when his 1983 album L’Amour was rediscovered and reissued by Light In The Attic. Since then more records have emerged, including Romantic Times – which was also reissued last year – and Love Ain’t No Mystery, which was subsequently put out by Fiasco Bros, a studio connected to the singer.

Now Fiasco Bros are releasing a fourth album, Hawaiian Breeze, and have shared two tracks online. Just Sittin’ by the River Bank features Lewis’s slightly unhinged vocals repeated over crashing piano chords. Fallin’ Down is based around minimalist guitar plucking and is vaguely reminiscent of Devendra Banhart.

When L’Amour first emerged it came with a story as compelling as the music. Lewis, whose real name was Randall Wulff, was reportedly an enigmatic blonde playboy who disappeared immediately after recording L’Amour without even paying for his studio time. He had proved difficult to trace, and when Light In The Attic finally did track him down he seemed disinterested in the project. The label were obliged to stop reissuing his music.

L’Amour was praised by critics, who noted the record’s sonic similarities to much modern day alternative music. In a review of Romantic Times for the Guardian, chief pop critic Alexis Petridis said: “Romantic Times seems to exist – emotionally at least – in a lineage of music that includes Big Star’s Sister Lovers, Neil Young’s Tonight’s the Night and Brian Wilson’s contributions to the Beach Boys’ Surf’s Up: it sounds – harrowingly, grippingly – like someone falling apart before your very ears.”.

You can hear the music in the players below.