Experimental Americana Artist William Harries Graham Releases New Album JAKES Today

Austin-based, indie Americana artist William Harries Graham is thrilled to release his brand new album, "Jakes,"today. Recorded and mixed by platinum, Grammy-award winner Stuart Sullivan at Wire Recording in Austin, Texas, the record features William Harries Graham on lead vocals and guitar, Mike Meadows on the drums and keys, Andrew Duplantis on bass and background vocals, Bobby Daniel on bass and Abra Moore on vocals. "Jakes" is Graham's second full-length record following his 2015 debut, "Foreign Fields," and the title pays homage to the neon sign above the pool table in the back room of the historic Continental Club, where Graham plays a Wednesday night residency that he has been doing for four years. William Harries Graham will be doing a Waterloo Records in-store performance on Sunday, March 3 at 5 p.m. to perform some tracks from his new record. See here for more information. He will also be performing at SXSW 2019 as an Official SXSW artist. See below for Graham's SXSW Official and unofficial showcases.

There will be an official album release show on Saturday, March 30 at Cosmic Coffee + Beer Garden, located at 121 Pickle Rd, Austin, Texas 78704. Doors at 7:30 p.m. Graham will be performing his new album at the release show with band members Chris Searles on drums, Andrew Duplantis on bass and Abra Moore on vocals and keys. Support to be announced. For more information on William Harries Graham, please see here. "Jakes" is available for purchase and streaming everywhere, including Spotify, Amazon and iTunes.

"'Jakes' continues to build on the world that I created with my debut album Foreign Fields, said William Harries Graham. "I wanted to expand the feel and the sonic range, creating a deeper sense of place and purpose. The stories that I tell on 'Jakes' are spacious and complex."

As the son of Jon Dee Graham and a second-generation Austin musician, William Harries Graham has been making music since he could walk. His first gig was at six years old at the Austin Music Awards when Margaret Moser invited him to play a song he'd written that several bands have covered called "Rock n Roll in the Street" to a crowd of over 1,000 people. That gig was followed by a special set with Dan Zanes at Hogg Auditorium a few months later when Zanes heard the song too. Graham was hailed as a prodigy when he was a young teen by music critic Michael Corcoran after the release of his debut album, "Foreign Fields," in 2015. The record was also picked up by Blue Rose Records after one of their reps caught Graham with his band perform at the Continental Club during SXSW 2016 and released the album in Europe soon after. Graham went on to travel throughout Europe and perform the album before returning to the U.S. to record his new album, "Jakes." He has also showcased at Folk Alliance International and headlined the Kerrville Fall Festival. William has opened for Arcade Fire, James McMurtry, Matthew Ryan, Ellis Paul, Steve Poltz and Alejandro Escovedo.

With a regular Wednesday night residency at the world-renowned Continental Club, Graham's music defies the contemporary labels - it is independent in spirit, but not indie; it is American, but not Americana. What it is, though, is a gorgeous and layered piece of work, which combines intelligent lyrics and powerful poetic imagery with a dreamlike wash of guitars and vocals, running down everything from glorious anthems to the most delicate weepers.

Aside from being a professional musician, Graham currently studies in the prestigious Plan II Honors Program at the University of Texas at Austin, and is a Jefferson Scholar. He also founded a 501c3 called Music4Music where they provide instruments for new music programs in poverty stricken districts and to programs with displaced refugees and asylum seekers. The song "Wolves" from Graham's new record "Jakes" was actually inspired by the Syrian refugee crisis and the mysterious Sleeping Beauty epidemic of refugee children in Sweden.

For his work in sustainability and design think, Wired Magazine has listed Graham as one of "World's Top Changing Innovator's: 50 People Who Will Change the World" in a list that included included Ben Rattray of Change.org,the artist James Turrell, Satoshi Nakamoto of Bitcoin, Brandon Stanton of Humans of New York, and Won-Soon Park, the Mayor of Seoul.

Upcoming tour dates and performances:

Feb. 27: The Continental Club - Austin, Texas - 9:30 p.m.

March 2: Townsend - Austin, Texas - 10 p.m.

March 3: Waterloo Records In-Store - Austin, Texas - 5 p.m.

March 10: One-2-One - Austin, Texas - 7 p.m.

March 14: Lucy's Fried Chicken - Austin, Texas - 5 p.m.

March 15 Cosmic Coffee + Beer Garden - Austin, Texas - 4 p.m.

March 16 Yard Dog - Austin, Texas - 3 p.m.

March 16 The Continental Club - Austin, Texas - 8 p.m.

March 30: Cosmic Coffee + Beer Garden - Austin, Texas - 8 p.m.

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