JOHN DAVID KENT - Patina
John David Kent’s forthcoming album, Patina, was inspired as much by his time spent working on a Texas oil rig floor, as it was humming melodies walking the streets of Brooklyn. Many have done either in earnest; very few have done both.
By sixteen, John David Kent, known to his friends as JDK, had signed to a major record label (Mercury), played Letterman & Conan, and was touring the world behind a top 40 single on the UK charts with his band, Radish. On the heels of this success Kent built his own recording studio, formed a new band, and released his first full-length solo album on his own label, Blackland/Roustabout Records, which sparked a hit video on CMT Pure Country.
As art often imitates life, so too, success has a way of drying up the wellsprings of creativity. After years on the road and on the verge of burnout, Kent found himself needing to bring his life back down to earth, stepping away from music and exploring other ways of earning an honest living. But when music is all that you have known, it has a way of sticking with you no matter how far you run and before long the songs began showing up again.
Patina features 12 new songs that explore American stories through the lens of a man well traveled. From “Collar Blue” where Kent sings of the work ethic he witnessed growing up in Texas that runs deep in the blackland soil; to “Up All Night” where he confronts anxieties and a longing for inner peace; to the piano driven “My Old Self” which sees him contemplating the desire to return to a simpler version of oneself; and the uplifting foot stomping rocker “Let It Shine” with the lyric “when you feel like hope is gone and no strength to carry on -- let it shine”. With Patina, Kent delivers an album that is filled with more midlife catharsis than crisis.
Connecting with producer Ben Rice (Valerie June, The Candles, Norah Jones) who Kent met while on tour, the two shared work-tapes of songs and connected on daily phone calls until the songs were ready to record. Patina was recorded at Rice’s studio Degraw Sound in Brooklyn, NY with friends and seasoned session players including Josh Lattanzi (bass), Greg Wieczorek (drums), Pete Remm (keyboards), Dan Iead (pedal steel) with Kent and Rice handling guitar duties.
This move has proven to be a fitting return to music for Kent. “After taking time away, I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for my craft. In many ways, Patina feels like a debut album for me”, he reflects. While time can reveal old wounds, it can also heal them and breathe life into a new perspective. Kent’s embracement of vulnerability and knack for singable melodies is on full display on Patina where he connects simple truths for a diverse audience.
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