Rocky Votolato - Television of Saints

Each song on Television of Saints sounds fairly simple in construction – almost standard singer-songwriter fare with strummed and picked guitar lines with an occasional country twinge. Where they differ is their flowery language, each an intricate poem casting doubt,fear, and an unmistakable questioning of what’s real life and what’s one of Rocky Votolato’s nightmares. His sincerity and vulnerability flow seamlessly through gentle guitar ballads and chugging upbeat numbers. A literature lover, Votolato is a master of words, fancying phrases like “just let the pressure turn your charcoal heart into a diamond reflecting the light/don’t let it get crushed into dust.” It’s a beautiful, if somewhat predictable affair.

Rocky Votolato, The Real Thing

Check out this article I wrote for Scene a few weeks back. (And give Rocky lots of love - he's pretty much one of the nicest guys I've ever had the pleasure of interviewing.)


"Sparklers," Rocky Votolato's best new song, is surprisingly simple. Its one-word title and sparse arrangement (only acoustic guitar accompanies his gentle voice) hint at the minimalism of his recently released sixth album, True Devotion. But it would be a mistake to categorize the beauty here as "plain." His fingertips swim over the strings, etching a sonic landscape that's fluid and very much alive. And his voice is a portrait of both pain and acceptance.

The Seattle-based singer-songwriter says the "sparklers" represent the transience of our world: Everything is constantly changing, and we're only here for a little while. As he tries to accept this fact, Votolato translates his struggles into songs. In a mix of autobiographical material and fictional characters, True Devotion simultaneously details his struggle with depression (a lifelong battle that got so bad that he barely left his apartment for a year) and his vivid characterizations of stories and poetry by Louise Erdrich and Sylvia Plath. "There's a lot of run-down characters that were calling to me through the process of making this album," says Votolato.

Read the rest of the article here.

Video Bloggin' Style

Check it out. I'm awkward AND ugly. And I really like to rant. (And apparently I have a lazy eye.) And I love Rocky Votolato.

Rocky Votolato - Sparklers

The state I'm in right now is a mixture of mesmerization and depression. Listening to "Sparklers," the fifth song on Rocky Votolato's excellent new release, True Devotion (out Tuesday), I can't help but rock myself into a stupor. It is the sort of lonely you want to feel when you listen to music. The kind of sad, beautiful realization that you are alone and that everything is fleeting and that life might not always hand you roses.

Sure, it's saddening, but it's also admirable. A simple, spare guitar and a soft, gravelly voice - that's all Rocky needs to move you into a state of deep, strong emotions.

Although he might not think of it this way, I believe that Mr. Votolato uses two strategies to reel you in:

1. Stunning imagery - Is it just me, or do the following lyrics paint such a vivid picture in the brain?

Bottle rockets and smoke bombs lying dead on the sidewalk
Are black marks on the concrete now but they were beautiful last night
A picture of our life
Can we make this what it was
Everything is right, Everything is wrong
Sparklers only burn for so long

2. Dancing guitars - Is it just me, or does the guitar picking in this song float around as gently as those of an Elliott Smith song? Listen for yourself, and let me know.



I'm obsessed. Depressed. All a mess-ed.

Interviewmania February!

I'm doing interviews with Dawes, Yeasayer, and Rocky Votolato all in the next few weeks. I freakin can't wait.

P.S. They will all be available to you via podcast. Cuz I got a sweet Tascam recorder. Get ready to dig in.