JOE GOODKIN TO RELEASE RECORD OF LOSS DIGITALLY AND VINYL ON FEBRUARY 10TH
Record of Loss is the 2nd in a Trinity of EPs: Record of Life, Record of Loss and Record of Love (To Be Released Summer 2017)
"Goodkin Makes Esoteric and Difficult Topics Accessible"
“Every time I’ve listened to Record of Life, I’ve started to cry.” —Anhedonic Headphones
From Joe Goodkin--"It may be self-evident from the title, but Record of Loss is essentially a set of elegies: remembrences of people no longer with me and us. It is full of the sorrow of loss, but also the hope that comes from confronting loss. It is the most vulnerable music I've ever put out into the world and though a challenging, disconcerting, and even disturbing listen, I'm incredibly proud of it. Record of Loss' predecessor, Record of Life, starts with the song Dog and Cat, which has lyrics that serve as a self-imposed challenge: "I'm going to pour everything into this record of my life/every pain and every fear and every loss/and all the things that I held back and all the things that I left out/and maybe that will finally finally quell the doubt."
Record of Loss is the full realization of this challenge. What follows (and will be released this summer) is Record of Love: the fruits of getting through the darkness of Record of Loss.
I owe an incredible debt to the people who gave me permission to tell their stories of loss as part of mine. It was an honor to be trusted with these stories and I hope I did them some justice. The people about whom I sing are among the strongest that I know and are an inspiration to me. The act of writing and singing someone's story is humbling to say the least.
I owe a particular thanks to the following: Shane Hendrickson at I.V. Lab Studios for engineering and mixing Record of Loss and truly taking all the ideas I brought to the production table and making them shine. Ditto Rollin Weary also of I.V. for his invested mastering and advice. Also, Bret Figura for the beautiful, sublime CD and web design you see on the cover. Finally, Kim at KG Music Press for her tireless work in getting folks to write and cover the release.
I hope that if you're the type of person who shares on Facebook you'll share this post. I have the iTunes link here but Record of Loss is also available on Spotify and Amazon. If you're the type of person who writes reviews on iTunes or Amazon or builds and shares playlists on Spotify, I would treasure such things immensly. Know that it makes a difference for artists of my level. A huge difference.
I'll have at least one more incredible thing to share in the coming weeks (an amazing video by Nicholas Ferrario) and then in the coming months I'll continue to post press until I reveal the plans to release a double vinyl collection of Record of Life, Record of Loss, and Record of Love, this summer.
Thanks for reading, listening, and sharing, hope you enjoy Record of Loss, all my heart."
J
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/record-of-loss-ep/id1197360420
PRAISE FOR RECORD OF LOSS:
“By no means a “light” listen, and in line with Nick Cave’s recent meditation on death, Skeleton Tree, Record of Loss takes an emotional toll on you, but the weight you feel afterward is a price worth paying. Goodkin is making a name for himself as an important songwriter of this generation—moving away from the “indie pop” of his first band Paper Arrows, this series of personal albums are a master class in how to lay it all out on the table, set it to music, and absolutely devastate the fuck out of your audience. “—Anhedonic Headphones
“One of six songs on the February 10th EP release 'Never Come Back' is perhaps the most stripped back of the collection and gives a fine example of the emotion and feeling that typifies the collection.”—Beehive Candy
“In 2015, Joe Goodkin released his first solo album, an EP titled Record Of Life. He now follows that with Record Of Loss, a six-song EP that had me in tears before its end.”—Michael’s Music Log
“This album has a very mellow chill vibe with a very uplifting style. "Record of Loss" gives the listener hope. Great album Joe!”—Sister Dorothy Music Blog
“Beginning with the story of "Nothing To Lose," Goodkin's lyrics are easy to follow as he sings about this difficult topic. The gentleness of "Never Come Back" and the comfort strumming of "Sarah And Julie" tell personal tales that everyone listening can relate to. His new short album closes with the deep emotional, personal delivery of "For The Loss" as Goodkin finds therapy singing about his own loss.”—JP’s Music Blog
“Chicago’s Joe Goodkin is making serious efforts to redefine “singer-songwriter.” With a mesmerizing voice and delectable guitarwork from his uniquely tuned 1960’s era Gibson, Joe clutches at your heart and soul from the first strains…As the middle child of a three EP set, “Record Of Loss” is stunningly beautiful and undeniably real.”—Music Morsels