‘Untitled’
Maker of comic books, tragi-comic folk narratives and plate smashing garage rock; Jeffrey Lewis presents a serious coup for Brixton Sessions. The multifarious New-Yorker kindly agreed to take part while he was in town for an afternoon performance at the Brixton Windmill on the second May bank holiday.
Jarvis Cocker has described him as the finest lyricist of his generation, and we have found this difficult to contest. Lewis leads you on a cradled path across hot coals taking you from feelings of disorientation to formidable clarity. Bound by rhythm and rhyme, his ability to communicate complex political themes is like a super-power, and yet there’s more. He is constantly re-writing the rules, teaming glorious instrumentation with abrasive harangues for which he has received widespread acclamation. His 2007 release of Jeffrey Lewis: 12 Crass songs was met with 4 stars from journalistic powerhouses such as Rolling Stone and Uncut. In a re-production of songs by legendary punk band Crass, Lewis created glorious folk, rock, psychedelic, orchestral and electronica pieces that The Guardian described as ‘could be sacrilege but is actually a small epiphany’. The part-time comic-book artist’s next album EM Are I (his fifth since signing with Rough Trade in 2001) followed in its footsteps. MOJO featured its release across a full page describing it as ‘brilliant’ and ‘full of wit and musical variations’. A band effort this time round by Jeffrey Lewis & the Junkyard, it leaves you wanting to plagiarise the lyrics; to seamlessly drop them into conversations or debates to gain the upper hand. His creativity is nothing short of magical and his self-deprecating, honest and humorous approach makes us think he’s a real gem.
Although taking most of the summer off in order to work on various other creative projects, Lewis is expected to perform at a UK festival in early August with details to follow.