The official music video for Joy Williams' "Front Porch," is premiering at Billboard, who proclaims, "On the memorable ballad she sings of retreating to the comfort of a front porch and the lyrics come alive within the characters in her powerful video." Watch HERE.
The video was directed by sister and brother team Alexa and Stephen Kinigopoulos ofRunning Bear Films (Kacey Musgraves, Ruston Kelly, Colter Wall, etc.). Of the song,Williams shares, "When I think of a front porch, I think of welcoming and being welcomed-shoes off, no pretense, no rush, nothing to prove. Sitting back, letting people see the bumps and bruises life brings sometimes and letting yourself be really seen. We live in such a busy world, so full of distractions. I wanted to write a universal song that spoke of returning...to what is real, what is now, what is true, what is loving, deep within...and wherever you call home." Stephen adds, "'Front Porch' is a very cinematic song, the concept for the music video itself came from just listening to the song once. There was mutual trust between Joy and us and that always makes for a successful collaboration."
"Front Porch" is the title track off of Williams' highly anticipated new solo album, which will be released May 3 via Sensibility/Thirty Tigers and is now available for pre-order. Each pre-order comes with an immediate download of "Front Porch" as well as two previously released songs, "Canary" and "The Trouble With Wanting."
Produced by Kenneth Pattengale of The Milk Carton Kids and engineered by Matt Ross-Spang, Front Porch features 12 new songs and represents a new chapter in Williams' career, who recorded the album in Nashville during the pregnancy of her second child. She reflects, "There is an energy that is very creative in having a baby. It gives a sense of urgency on top of all the creative energy. Cellularly, your body is experiencing something really different. Everything you are feeling is elevated. And you have a time-stamped sense of urgency." Already receiving praise, Rolling Stone states the new music, "...is both familiar and new, and explicitly clear that there's nothing missing when she goes it alone."
"So much of this is about coming home," says Williams. "Whether to a physical place or to yourself. The lines on my face, I can see them more clearly now. But a lot of them are laugh lines. This record feels like breathing more deeply into who I am. Come what may."
Two songs from the forthcoming record-"Canary" and "The Trouble With Wanting"-were released last fall to critical acclaim. Of "Canary," Rolling Stone proclaims, "As usual, her voice stills the spotlight, with everything building toward Williams' ringing, crystal-clear glory note in each chorus," and Houston Chronicle furthers, "Williams' vocal on the song reflects the assertiveness of its subject. A moment in its refrain finds her reaching high for a note and finding it." In addition to the official audio, live performance versions of both tracks-filmed at a 2018 show at The Franklin Theatre-can be viewed here: "Canary (Live)" and "The Trouble With Wanting (Live)." Most recently, Williams' cover of Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the Silence" was released as part of her "Live from the Front Porch" series.
Joy Williams is the winner of four Grammy Awards. She has released four solo albums and four EPs since her self-titled debut in 2001. She was half of The Civil Wars from 2009 until 2014, after which she released her solo LP, 2015's VENUS, which was praised by NPR Music for it's "new, more adventurous pop sound," furthering, "Williams takes on this material without shirking its heaviness, but her gift for melodies that rise up like warm winds brings a climate of grace to even the most difficult subject matter."
FRONT PORCH TRACK LIST
1. Canary
2. Front Porch
3. When Does a Heart Move On
4. All I Need
5. The Trouble With Wanting
6. No Place Like You
7. One and Only
8. When Creation Was Young
9. Preacher's Daughter
10. Hotel St. Cecilia
11. Be With You
12. Look How Far We've Come
photo credit: Andy Barron
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