The Bearer Of Bad News is the third solo album from Saskatchewan singer/ songwriter, Andy Shauf. It’s something of a labour of love, recorded alone over a four year period in a basement studio in his parents’ house playing everything himself: guitar, piano, drums, strings and clarinet.
Andy has a light, pained voice which suits enigmatic songs like ‘I’m Not Falling Asleep’ and ‘Covered In Dust’. His more narrative songs, ‘Hometown Hero’ or ‘Wendell Walker’ for example, seem to demand a more weather-beaten tone. The latter is a story of adultery, homicide and suicide but it’s also the story of three young people fatally entangled – older and wiser heads might have found a different way out. ‘Hometown Hero’ could have been written by Tom Waits in less cynical times; the story of a man who does something brave but doesn’t stick around to take the credit. It’s told in a very matter-of-fact manner with a neat twist at the end. Several songs are decidedly weird; ‘The Man On Stage’, ‘Jesus, She’s A Good Girl’ and ‘Lick Your Wounds’ and I really don’t know what to make of them.
The final track, ‘My Dear Helen’ is even more extraordinary. It tells of a man confessing, we presume to his late wife, to what they call involuntary homicide in the US. Before that comes ‘Jerry Was A Clerk’ which explains how the tragic event came to pass. These two songs make The Bearer Of Bad News an essential listen.
Dai Jeffries
Artist’s website: http://www.andyshauf.com/
‘Wendell Walker’:
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