Ash Wednesday.

I've been listening to Elvis Perkins' Ash Wednesday for months now, and I must say it's one of the best albums I've heard in years. It really is a special and meaningful work of art; beautifully written to reflect the personal tragedy he's experienced over the years. Elvis is the son of actor Anthony Perkins (best known for his role as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho). Anthony Perkins died of AIDS in 1992 and Elvis writes about the loss poetically throughout the album. The death of his mother is another very significant part of his songs. She died tragically on 9/11 aboard the first flight that was flown into the World Trade Centre. Ash Wednesday is a chronological sequence of songs written before and after the events of 9/11 and her death.

"Tragedy has always been a source of beautiful, hopeful art. In American folk music, several examples spring to mind. The Depression provided the subject matter for singers like Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly. Later, the Vietnam-era inspired timeless musical contributions from Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and countless others. With the turmoil of the last six years—9/11, Afghanistan, Iraq—there is perhaps no artist who embodies the sense of general hardship and upheaval like Elvis Perkins."

"One of the most highly-anticipated debuts in recent years, Perkins does not disappoint. His songs tend to be fairly lengthy, poetic and slightly obscure explorations of lofty themes, and have thus garnered countless comparisons to Dylan and Leonard Cohen."

1. While You Were Sleeping
2. All The Night Without Love
3. May Day !
4. Moon Woman 2
5. It's Only Me
6. Emile's Vietnam In The Sky
7. Ash Wednesday
8. The Night And The Liquor
9. It's A Sad World
10. Sleep Sandwich
11. Good Friday