With his 2013 record, In the Throes, Tulsa singer-songwriter John Moreland was thrust into the local and national spotlight. It was a deeply intimate and personal piece of work, garnering beaucoup praise (including a shoutout from MSNBC host Rachel Maddow) and heaps of Nebraska-era Boss comparisons.
Now, thanks to — of all places — The Wall Street Journal, you can listen to High on Tulsa Heat, Moreland’s highly anticipated Throes followup. The album is streaming in its entirety over on TWSJ‘s Speakeasy blog.
Here’s a snippet of what they had to say:
Though the album falls squarely into an Americana vein, the singer cites the do-it-yourself ethos of his punk-rock past as an essential ingredient: Moreland produced the album the album himself and his friends helped record and performed on it. That’s not the only influence from his time in the hardcore scene as a teenager.
“Nobody is afraid of lyrical honesty,” Moreland says. “You’re not supposed to shy away from confrontation or emotional extremes, so maybe that’s another thing that comes from punk.”
High on Tulsa Heat is out April 21 via Thirty Tigers. LP pre-orders are sold out, but you can reserve an MP3 version of the album through Moreland’s website.
Also, be sure to catch Moreland perform and Austin songwriter Chris Porter Friday at The Blue Door in Oklahoma City and Saturday at Tulsa’s Woody Guthrie Center.
Here’s the video for High on Tulsa Heat cut “Cherokee”:
