The fifth solo album from Chris Eckman (The Walkabouts, Dirtmusic, Distance, Light & Sky) is a deep dive into the vagaries of these extraordinary times. Eckman's luminous songwriting navigates loss, disorientation, redemption and the search for home. Recorded raw and direct with a small ensemble, the record is framed by expansive sonic textures: treated strings, analogue synth drones and ambient guitars. Where the Spirit Rests was co-produced with British electronic composer Alastair McNeill (Ro?s?n Murphy, Yila) and includes an inspired cast of collaborators: pedal steel maverick Chuck Johnson, avant-garde violinist Catherine Graindorge and Dream Syndicate/Green on Red keyboardist Chris Cacavas. The All Music Guide called Eckman "one of the most underrated U.S. songwriters, a man who can pack a short story into image-laden lyrics." The new album - Where the Spirit Rests - is amongst his most personal and vivid. A place to which he has been headed all along. This has been a time that's clawed at our hearts. It's dug deep into our bones. It's been a time to reach for touchstones to help us through it all, whether it's the solace of the familiar or the seeking of something new. For Chris Eckman, the time brought the desire to write songs once more, crafting and shaping the music that would become his new album, Where the Spirit Rests. "I hadn't played a lot of guitar in the last few years," explains Eckman (whose other job is running the global music label Glitterbeat). Even before the pandemic tore the world apart, he'd been confronting difficult changes in his personal life. Picking up the instrument again brought a muscle memory, a lifeline. It was a return to the things he'd known for decades as a musician. "From that, some songs came. They weren't very good at first, then around spring things started to grow." Songwriting brought a way to navigate his life, to articulate the thoughts and emotions tumbling around his head. At that point, though, they were only songs; he had no thought of making them into an album. "There was no deadline, there wasn't even a project; I had time to think about words and lines," he recalls. "I ended up with between 15 and 20 songs. Seven made it onto the record." The contributions ranged from the simplicity of McNeill's disquieting synth drone under "Early Snow" to ambient country pioneer Chuck Johnson's atmospheric pedal steel on "This Curving Track." Eckman was wary about approaching him, as he releases Johnson's acclaimed albums via his label. But in the end that was no problem; it turned out Johnson had been a fan of Eckman's former band, The Walkabouts. Old Seattle friend Jon Hyde brought woozy, boozy carousing steel sounds to "Drinking in America," a track that teeters on a knife-edge of violence - what Eckman calls his "break up with America song." Violinist Catherine Graindorge, who orchestrated "Cabin Fever" and the title track, brought the kind of colours and unpredictability that's highlighted her work
Release date:
June 25, 2021
Label:
Install our app to receive notifications when new upcoming releases are added.

Recommended equipment and accessories
-
Phono Preamps - Top Picks
A selection of the best phono preamps for your turntable setup
-
Denon DP-400
Featuring a high-precision, belt-driven mechanism and an adjustable tonearm that ensures optimal tracking and minimal resonance
-
Nobsound Little Bear T7 Tube Preamp
Delivers rich, warm audio through its high-quality vacuum tubes, featuring multiple inputs and adjustable gain
-
Nagaoka MP-110H Cartridge
Features a high-quality elliptical stylus that provides excellent tracking and minimizes distortion, delivering a detailed sound reproduction with an output voltage of 5.0 mV
-
Cartridges - Top Picks
A selection of turnatble cartridges that provide great performance and sound quality
Featured Upcoming Vinyl
-
Aqyila Falling Into Place
Sony Import
June 6, 2025 -
Karl Ratzer Trio Vienna Red (Audiophile; Signature Edition)
In And Out Records Gmbh
July 11, 2025 -
Hotline TNT Raspberry Moon
Third Man Records
June 20, 2025 -
GoGo Penguin Necessary Fictions [2xLP]
Masterworks
July 11, 2025 -
Night Moves Double Life
Domino Record Co
July 25, 2025 -
Mister Romantic What's Not to Love? (Blue Marble)
Eternal Magic Rec.
June 13, 2025 -
Motörhead The Manticore Tapes (Deluxe Bookpack; Clear) [3xLP]
Bmg
June 27, 2025 -
Cynthia Erivo I Forgive You [2xLP]
Republic Records/Verve
June 6, 2025 -
Maruja Pain To Power
Sony International Network
September 12, 2025 -
Grateful Dead Gratest Hits
Grateful Dead Production
June 13, 2025 -
B.c.camplight Sober Conversation (Gold)
Bella Union UK
June 27, 2025 -
S.G. Goodman Planting By The Signs [2xLP]
Slough Water Records
June 20, 2025 -
Sean Nicholas Savage The Knowing
Born Losers Records
June 27, 2025 -
Black Spiders Cvrses (Black & White)
Dark Riders
June 27, 2025