Under the moniker of Desert Life, singer songwriter, Chris Swales, and multi-instrumentalist, Tom Jordan are exploring the darkest areas of the heart with their debut album Let It All Pass.
On the verge of quitting music all together, once Chris met Tom, their friendship and writing partnership led to a renewed interest in the thing that nearly broke him. When it was time, the duo worked with producer Nick Swannell and called on local musicians to fill in where they needed with Jason Downes (drums), George and Daisy Whitfield (accordion and cello).
On the album, Chris says,
“I wanted to make an album that had the same feel of R.E.M.’s ‘Automatic For The People’, layered with melancholy, melody and majesty. I still remember how that album changed my listening. It was a conduit to discover so much more great music. Let It All Pass touches me like AFTP. I hope others get to hear it, and if I’m lucky, it might resonate with them the way it did me.”
With the legendary Jon Graboff (Ryan Adams & The Cardinals, Norah Jones, Noel Gallager) on the pedal steel guitar, “I Don’t Wanna Know” is the stand out track. It accentuates the lyrics of knowing a love has moved on but not wanting to know they have.
The slow brushstrokes of the drums and horns within “Tangled Light” beautifully show a lost soul in the midst of an existential crisis. The horns once again present a beautiful portrait in “No Colours” as the lyrics offer one a moment of reflection and thought.
The second stand out song on Let It All Pass is “Never Be the Same”. The music has a doomsday spaghetti western feel that is lush and poetic.
I’ve always thought the cello is heartbreakingly sad and that heartbreak can be heard on the title track. From the lyrics to the instrumentation, this song captures the essence of who Desert Life is the best. It shows the majesty of Desert Life that Chris felt with Automatic for the People.
Painting with shadows, shades of melancholy, loneliness, and the highs and lows of life, Desert Life takes a journey deep into one’s heart and soul with Let it All Pass, allowing for healing and hope.
MUST LISTEN TRACKS: “I Don’t Wanna Know”, “Tangled Light”, “Hiraeth”, “No Colours”, “Never Be the Same”, “Let it All Pass”
