Ian Randall Thornton – Lineage
Self Released – 25 August 2017
Ian Randall Thornton’s sound echoes with a history beyond his years. At age 7, Thornton delved into classical music, and through his adolescence expanded his palate through involvement in different types of bands in his hometown of Norfolk, VA, from thrash punk to folk to post-rock. His current musical expression resides in a delicate balance between Americana, timeless folk, and progressive post-rock. His sound is marked by honest lyrics, captivating songwriting and unique instrumental composition. Thornton’s work embodies the essence of a storyteller with the depth and attention to detail of a true artist. His latest album, Lineage, is self-released on 25 August 2017 (Pre-Order it via iTunes here http://apple.co/2syg1Bd).
He shared some words with us on the album which you can also stream in full below:
I have been writing Lineage for almost three years now, though some of the tracks on it are twice as old as that. It has become a part of me, or at least a representation of who I have become and what I have found meaning in over the past five years. At its heart, Lineage is about family… and the process of sifting through our cultural and familial inheritance, seeking to honor and sustain what is beautiful and beneficial, while uprooting what is hindering and unhealthy. Two major realizations heavily influenced my process as I began to approach writing this album. Firstly, I realized a commonality in several of the songs I had written up to that time. Many of them had something to do with family, both directly and indirectly. Secondly, I realized the rich connection between family and folk music. Folk music sounds different in every culture, but a majority of it exists to tell a story, to capture memories that should not be forgotten, and pass them down for generations. In a sense, I write music for very similar reasons, not for fame, but for family. Many songs on the album were written for my closest friends and family members. Songs like ‘Panning for Gold’ and ‘See You Through’ were meant as proverbs of sorts for my future son and daughter. ’Dance upon the Tables’ was based off of a story my good friends told me about his finance’s grandmother the night before his wedding. Every song was intentionally placed and arranged to create a progression from the beginning to the end. The opening track, ‘Sound of the Soil’, was written to be a preface, letting the listener know why this album was created and the significance of the stories they are about to hear and experience, saying:
“Why do I labor for hours on end
Wrestling words for a meaning to tend
Some do it for glory
Some do it for fame
but I fight for my family name…
I create for few friends and my family
For my God and my sanity
I’m writing for those in my family tree.”
These songs are deeply personal, but have also led me to discover some of the reasons I personally create music; and for that I am grateful.
Pre-Order it via iTunes here http://apple.co/2syg1Bd
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Photo Credit: Lauren Stonestreet