Kristin Hersh Debuts New Single 'Constance Street (Single Mix)'

Acclaimed indie guitarist and singer/songwriter Kristin Hersh debuts her new single “Constance Street (Single Mix)” from her highly anticipated new album, Clear Pond Road, coming out September 8 via Fire Records. Pre-order the record HERE.

Of Hersh’s third single from the upcoming album she explains, “I lived on Constance Street in New Orleans when that song’s story happened. Buying slips in the Irish Channel/broken prince in fluorescent camo is a very Southern day. I was born a hick and I guess I’ll always be one.”

The album’s previous releases “Dandelion” and “Ms Haha” have continued to receive critical acclaim. On “Dandelion” Stereogum notes “the song extends, reaches out into the unknown. Its muted backdrop sends our focus to the lyrics, which Hersh delivers with all the eerie intonations associated with a murder ballad, but in this case the crimes are love and hope.”

Hersh wrote, performed and produced Clear Pond Road at Stable Sound Studio. She incorporates strings and ambient field recordings on the record to lushly cinematic effect, with the close-up intimacy and sensory nature of each track culminating in a record that resembles a sonic memoir, or a home movie caught in time. Clear Pond Road is sensuous: a life-affirming statement, a new piece of this mysterious jigsaw, a very personal memoir. From street signs to snapshots, it’s a blossoming of a true icon of independence. The record is both intimate yet expansive.

“Some records demand to be made,” says Hersh. “And you know this is the case when the songs function as systems in a body. I octavized an acoustic baritone as the skeleton, cellos are the lungs, a Nashville-strung Collings and glockenspiel were the fingertips feeling around in this weird-ass dark space, and drums are always your heart, of course…but the vocals are a strange narrator here. A narrator lost in the story, of all things, more like eyes.”

Hersh cofounded Throwing Muses in high school, and after earning a devoted following the group was the first American group to be signed to British label 4AD. Amidst international touring, releasing ten solo albums (multiple independently) and founding her own label, Hersh went on to form the power rock trio 50 Foot Wave and publish 3 books, including her acclaimed memoir Rat Girl.

Hersh was one of the first artists to break outside of the traditional label system, using a fan-supported structure to fund her work. She teamed up with British label Fire Records in 2018 around her tenth studio album Possible Dust Clouds where she continues her partnership.

CLEAR POND ROAD INTERNATIONAL TOUR

September 27—Exeter, UK—The Phoenix Arts Centre

September 29—Ramsgate, UK—St George’s Church

September 30—Oxford, UK—Florence Park Community Centre

September 30—Oxford, UK—Florence Park Community Centre Matinee Performance

October 1—Liverpool, UK—Philharmonic

October 3—Bristol, UK—Strange Brew

October 4—Cardiff, UK—Acapella Club

October 5—Reading, UK—South Street Arts Centre

October 6—Cambridge, UK—Storey’s Field

October 8—Norwich, UK—Arts Centre

October 9—Nottingham, UK—Metronome

October 10—Leeds, UK—Mill Hill Chapel

October 11—Leeds, UK—Mill Hill Chapel

October 12—Manchester, UK—St Michael’s Ancoats

October 14—Glasgow, UK—Mono

October 15—Edinburgh, UK—Summerhall (Dissection Room)

October 16—Newcastle, UK—Cluny

October 17—Newcastle, UK—Cluny

October 18—Hebden Bridge, UK—Trades Club

October 19—Kilkenny, Ireland—Cleere’s

October 20—Galway, Ireland—Roisin Dubh

October 21—Dublin, Ireland—Pavilion Theatre

October 22—Bangor, UK—The Court House

October 23—Dundalk, Ireland—The Spirit Store

October 24—Kendal, UK—The Old Brewery

October 25—Leek, UK—Foxlowe Arts Centre

October 26—Birmingham, UK—Hare And Hounds

October 28—London, UK—St John at Bethnal Green

October 29—Brighton, UK—Komedia

November 2—Brisbane, Australia—Black Bear Lodge

November 3—Canberra, Australia—Smith’s Alternative

November 5—St Kilda, Australia—Memo Music Hall

November 8—Melbourne, Australia—Northcote Social Club

November 10—Newton, Australia—Vanguard

November 11—Katoomba, Australia—Baroque Room

November 16—Wellington, New Zealand—Meow

November 17—Christchurch, New Zealand— The Piano

November 18—Auckland, New Zealand—Tuning Fork

November 19—Waiheke Island, New Zealand—Artworks 

Photo credit: Pete Mellekas

To post a comment, you must register and login.