Following on from the razor sharp polemics of ‘The City Nowadays’, L.A. Salami releases his new double A-Side single, ‘I Wear This Because Life Is War’ / ‘Day To Day’. Both tracks feature on L.A.’s debut album ‘Dancing With Bad Grammar’ which is out August 26th on Sunday Best. Listen below:
The tracks encapsulate Salami’s unique songwriting talents, contrasting the defiance and exuberance of ‘I Wear This Because Life Is War’ with the folk-tinged tenderness of ‘Day To Day’ – both songs united by the poignancy and sharpness of L.A.’s lyrics.
“Personally, I think you go by your strengths, and words are my strength, so they take first place. They have to sit on top of everything, or be the lead. If that’s where the power comes from, don’t be ashamed of that,” says L.A., and these tracks exemplify this ethos.
Despite only having picked up the guitar at the age of 21, L.A. displays astonishing skill and enchanting dexterity on ‘Day To Day,’ on which he also channels his appreciation for sixties and seventies music when playing the harmonica like he was born to it, in almost Dylan-esque fashion.
He describes ‘I Wear This Because Life Is War’ as, “…just a simple blues song, born of the idea of wanting to shout over an audience in an open mic night that isn’t listening to you – which is life, isn’t it?”, though the deftly crafted balladry and fierce energy are far from simple.
As with the rest of this brilliant debut album, these songs are the sound of a young man brimming with ideas and poetry.
Photo Credit: Diane Sagnier