Dustin Kensrue

 

In celebration, albeit somewhat late celebration, of his announcement of a new album this year, I thought I’d do a small little write up about one of my favorite songwriters, Dustin Kensrue, singer/guitarist of california experimental rockers Thrice and as of last year, solo acoustic act. Kensrue’s 2007 solo album Please Come Home is a delightful mix of acoustic folk and a little bit of blues, layered underneath Kensrue’s emotional croons. Though the lyrical content of the some of the songs can be preachy (Kensrue’s lyrical work on Thrice’s Vheissu also took a very unexpected Christian tinge), the album is overall a beautiful example of how versatile Kensrue is and how well his voice works over acoustic. And although the music could most accurately be compared to more pop sounding singer songwriters like Jack Johnson or John Mayer’s acoustic work, don’t let that deter you, the album can be enjoyed by fans of any acoustic work. To the straight up, fast paced blues tale of addiction and adrenaline “Blood & Wine,” to the bouncy, folksy “Consider The Ravens,” a parable of maintaining faith in the hardest situations. I’m also going to take this opportunity to give you guys a couple mp3s from the 2007 Thrice release The Alchemy Index, Vol. 2: Water. If you’ve ever heard Thrice’s older material, forget what you know and download these mp3s. You’ll recognize Kensrue’s moans but Water is a beautiful, relaxing blend of atmospheric guitars, echoing piano, shimmering vocal harmonies, computerized drums and volume swells so definitely check it out if you’re a fan of atmospheric type music.

 

From Please Come Home:

“Please Come Home”

“Blood & Wine”

“Consider The Ravens”

 

From Thrice’s The Alchemy Index, Vol. 2: Water:

“The Whaler”

“Digital Sea”

 

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