Daniel Romano’s Outfit

Canadian country-psych auteur Daniel Romano has had a busy 2020, writing and releasing nine albums that expand on his reputation as one of the sharpest artists operating today. How Ill They World Is Ordered, released physically on You’ve Changed, is the latest offering, a work of towering talent rendered in brassy Americana hues.

How Ill… features the mighty skills of The Outfit, the tightest of tight-knit rock and roll bands: Julianna Riolino (vocals), David Nardi (guitar, vocals), Roddy Rossetti (bass), Ian Romano (drums), supplemented here by Mark Lalama (organ, piano), Briana Salmena (vocals), Victor Belcastro (sax) and Aaron Hutchinson (trumpet). The band assembled in the studio in a perfectly tuned geometry to record these new songs adhering simple guidelines: play the whole thing, in sequence, three takes or bust, with no overdubs; play “the sound of the feel of a snake bite”; play “a heist on horseback for fool’s gold”.

An insightful, subtly witty and prolific Canadian singer/songwriter whose music reflects a mix of Nashville’s countrypolitan era, 60s psych rock and a host of other eclectic influences, Daniel Romano earned widespread acclaim with the release of his 2011 album Sleep Beneath The Willows, which made the shortlist for the prestigious Polaris Music Prize. Signing with New West Records, he continued writing and releasing albums at a rapid pace, turning out additional highlights like 2015’s If I’ve Only One Time Askin’ and 2017’s Modern Pressure. In 2020 he released a slew of albums via his own You’ve Changed Records, including How Ill Thy World Is Ordered.

With your left eye closed, Daniel Romano seems a master synthesiser of sound and genre, a collage artist combining the corrupted influences of a century of so-called popular music forms, a chameleonic acrobat with a near-criminal authenticity. With the other, he’s revealed as a sincerely dedicated, passionately motivated songwriter aghast at the injustices of the world, a caring bandleader and generous collaborator, a spirited and shockingly playful artist tapped into a great, unyielding inspiration.

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Future Yard presents
Daniel Romano’s Outfit
14.06.2021
#thefutureisbirkenhead