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Originally released via Ryan's own label, Sophomore Lounge, in the US late 2023, it picked up some incredible reviews: best of 2023 in both Pitchfork and Rolling Stones, 9/10 lead review in Uncut, and a raft of other notable publications. Over in the UK in June to play a few dates with the Reds, Pinks and Purples.
"At the frayed bottom-edge of Indiana – just a moderate bike ride north of Louisville, Kentucky – multi-instrumentalist, artist and songwriter Ryan Davis’’ Americana-noir soundwaves have been emanating for years in a myriad of forms. As driving force for the lauded State Champion, long-running member of Tropical Trash, administrator of the esoteric and excellent Cropped Out festival, and lone proprietor of the Sophomore Lounge label, Davis lays down his first proper ‘solo’ release with Dancing On The Edge, a rich, 2LP tapestry of tunes that absolutely glows over seven expansive cuts. It’s a pure collage of modernity and heritage.
After a period of introspection spent re-immersing himself in his drawing & painting practice, as well as his newfound delvings into instrumental music, Davis’ sea change was imminent. “I wasn't sure I would ever make another record of ‘song’ songs,” he says, “but last year I started writing again and it eventually took the shape of the record at hand. I worked painstakingly hard on the material. It felt virtually impossible to complete for a bulk of the time I spent trying to enter into it, but the process pulled me out of a strange place. I was eventually able to live inside of the songs enough to understand the world within them – to ultimately help shape them into what I understood them to be.” Indeed, there’s a load of inspiration captured in the grooves with Ryan’s unfiltered, folk-traditioned approach to poetic twists-of-tongue meeting head on with sublime instrumentation.
Tracklist
1. Free From the Guillotine (08:22)
2. Learn 2 Re-Luv (06:03)
3. Flashes of Orange (09:56)
4. Bluebirds in a Fight (07:07)
5. Junk Drawer Heart (06:25)
6. A Suitable Exit (09:20)
7. Bluebirds Revisited (03:57)