![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/glsm_cd.jpg\")
The first recorded project from Gold Light + Snakemusk \u2013 the duo of former Kovacs and the Polar Bear multi-instrumentalist Joe Chang and singer-guitarist Beau Campolong \u2013 is a new album, Shadows in the Shallows<\/i>. The duo digs deep into a country duo sound that recalls Johnny and June Cash as well as Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, but with all new and original material.<\/p>\n
The new album comes nearly three years after the last collection of songs released under the Gold Light name. \u201cI wasn\u2019t really doing much music after my last record,\u201d Chang says. That album \u2013 2016\u2019s Visions<\/i> \u2013 was effectively a Chang solo record, following his usual practice of bringing in occasional musical associates on a few tracks. A 2016 single featured Chang on all instruments, with vocalist Grace Joyner on harmonies. That almost-but-not-quite-solo approach to recording also served him well on earlier Gold Light projects like the 2015 Babe<\/i> EP and a self-titled album released on cassette in 2013.<\/p>\n
Though musically varied, all of those projects shared an indie-rock vibe. The new music heads in a very different direction, one that reflects the creative input of Beau Campolong.<\/p>\n
By the time Visions<\/i> was released, Campolong was playing guitar in the live lineup of Gold Light. Campolong asked Chang to take part in a benefit gig at the Double Crown in West Asheville, with a set that focused on country and western sounds. \u201cThat was a kind of a jump start on a new musical path,\u201d Chang says. \u201cWe started playing all these country-folk covers, and that led to this new project, which is a joint thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chang says that the musical collaboration is a natural one. \u201cWe were friends before, then we started played music; we share a lot of the same influences and interests.\u201d He says that Campolong\u2019s \u201cfresh, different perspective\u201d and \u201csweet, fragile voice\u201d are great assets in the project. \u201cI’ve only ever done stuff on my own musically, within my own head and thoughts,\u201d Chang says. \u201cBeau brings to the table ideas on harmonies, arrangements, changing a lyric here and there, and a unique view on the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/glsm.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
The collaborative nature of the sessions that yielded Shadows in the Shallows<\/i> led to consideration of a new name for the project. \u201cBut we never came up with something we really liked,\u201d Chang says. Campolong was already performing under the name Snakemusk. \u201cAnd really, whatever music I make, I want it to be consistent under the name Gold Light,\u201d Chang says. So Gold Light + Snakemusk it would be.<\/p>\n
Film buffs and avid book readers may find the titles of some of the songs on Shadows in the Shallows<\/i> familiar. The opening tune (and leadoff single) \u201cThe Heart is a Lonely Hunter\u201d shares a title with Carson McCullers\u2019 1940 novel. And the album\u2019s second track \u201cThe Last Picture Show\u201d has a title in common with Larry McMurtry\u2019s novel as well as a 1971 Peter Bogdanovich film adaptation. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sure there\u2019s some<\/i> meaning behind that,\u201d Chang concedes with an inward laugh. \u201cOn one level, they\u2019re just really nice titles. But on the other, it\u2019s because I\u2019m a fan of narrative-driven songs. So it makes sense to give them titles that share the names of books or films or what-have-you.\u201d<\/p>\n
That focus on storytelling lies at the heart of the album. And it\u2019s in line with the sort of material for which many of Chang\u2019s musical heroes are best known. He thinks of Hank Williams, Buddy Holly and Bruce Springsteen as the pillars of his musical inspiration. \u201cThose are the Trinity for me,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a kind of universal utility to story-based songs, Chang believes. \u201cThey\u2019re all very simple in structure, and they could almost be any genre, really,\u201d he says. \u201cA love for old time and folk songs \u2013 traditional kind of stuff \u2013 is how this album came together.\u201d<\/p>\n
The subject matter of the nine songs on Shadows in the Shallows <\/i>varies, but a unifying theme of unrequited love pervades the lyrics. \u201cI relate to lovelorn things,\u201d Chang says. \u201cThat\u2019s probably why I relate to [the music of] Roy Orbison: I\u2019m always on the losing end of love.\u201d And that\u2019s often reflected in Chang\u2019s lyrics regardless of the musical style he\u2019s pursuing. \u201cThe last couple of Gold Light albums have all been \u2018breakup albums,\u2019\u201d he says. <\/p>\n
Those who seek a label to apply to the album\u2019s musical style may have received an assist from Campolong, who has gone on record describing it as \u201cshallowpool\u201d country. \u201cI have no idea what that means,\u201d Chang says with a laugh. \u201cBut we both thought it was a good way to describe it. It\u2019s country, but not in the deep end; you\u2019re just kind of getting your feet wet with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
That description makes more sense when Chang reveals that he\u2019s already hard at work at not one but two more Gold Light records. He says the next one will be a stripped-down affair, \u201clike my Nebraska<\/i>,\u201d he says. \u201c And then, after that, I want to make a really big pop album. I\u2019m trying to span all the genres, get them all under my belt.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The first recorded project from Gold Light + Snakemusk \u2013 the duo of former Kovacs and the Polar Bear multi-instrumentalist Joe Chang and singer-guitarist Beau Campolong \u2013 is a new […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16731,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,20,41,49],"tags":[237,3847,3848],"class_list":["post-16730","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alt-country","category-country","category-interview","category-new-release","tag-asheville","tag-gold-light-snakemusk","tag-joe-chang","cat-4-id","cat-20-id","cat-41-id","cat-49-id","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16730","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16730"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16730\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16733,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16730\/revisions\/16733"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16731"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16730"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16730"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16730"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}