Continuing in the aural tradition of Vaud and the Villians, Mather Louth and Radio Noir, Nick Cave, Tom Waits, and Cirque Berzerk; multi-instrumentalist, composer and singer Mark Growden brings back the dark big band soul of old whiskey drinkers and scalawags in his new album release “Saint Judas”, whose national record release party is being held Tuesday, Mar. 16 at the seminal Hotel Cafe. Leonard Cohen fans look out: Growden has a chilling cover of “I’m Your Man” on Saint Judas.
Saint Judas, an intoxicating mix of roots music with a postmodern aesthetic, features 13 tracks of ‘Americana noir’ with an overarching theme of redemption. Recurring themes in the intensely personal new album include love and loss, sin and faith, perseverance, compassion, and, most significantly, redemption. There is a darkness that haunts Saint Judas, though not without a glimmer of hope. Growden explains that, for him, the resurrection theme that surfaces throughout the work isn’t of the magical rise-from-the-dead variety, but rather that, “it takes some grieving to get through to the joy.”
His soulful music reinterprets older, pre-rock forms such as blues, jazz, cabaret, gypsy, and folk with a contemporary edge. While Growden cites the likes of Howlin’ Wolf, Nina Simone, and Kurt Weill as influences, the new album should appeal not only to roots music enthusiasts, but also to fans of indie darlings DeVotchKa, Beirut, Rasputina, Devandra Banhardt, and Andrew Bird.
The title track on Saint Judas – a cabaret rocker with its refrain of “bottoms up to you, buddy, ’cause somebody had to take the blame” – honors the biblical “Saint of Sinners” often vilified as the traitor who turned on Jesus. Like pretty much every Nick Cave song, the religious references aren’t so much a testament to the man himself, but used as an illustration of the darker side of human nature. If you are a fan of grimly humorous storytelling, definitely check Mark Growden out.
Hotel Café is located at 1623 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028. Doors will open at 8:00 p.m., ages 21+ allowed. Tickets will cost $10.00 at the door or $7.00 in advance. For more information on the venue please call 323-461-2040 or visit http://hotelcafe.com. For more on the artist please visit http://markgrowden.org and http://www.myspace.com/markgrowden.
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