When Jeffrey Dean Foster watched the Black Lives Matter protests following George Floyd’s murder last summer, he wanted to address the cruelty that prompted them. The result was “I’m Starting to Bleed,” a pastiche of late-period Bowie and “Cruisin’”-era Smokey Robinson infused with a creeping sense of dread. The remixed, reimagined “I’m Starting to Bleed (Pastoral)” strips the song back to its studs, trading the original instrumentation for guitars orchestrated by 1970s Film Stock. “When Was the Last Time” was recorded as a bare-bones acoustic performance at The Ramkat in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Don Dixon suggested making a record out of it, noting that Johnny Cash magicked some of his TV appearances into album tracks. Dixon and Foster’s additions of drums, bass, electric guitar and strings, Beth McKee’s Wurlitzer, and Marti Jones’ pristine backing vocals turned it into a panoramic pop song. “Tell Somebody” is a wall of sound full of sonic nods to The Who, Big Star, and Teenage Fanclub at their Bandwagonesque best. “Headin’ Home” is a tossed-off ode to pandemic isolation, like the Flamin’ Groovies reluctantly following a stay-at-home-order. Dixon and Mitch Easter pulled the mixes together, while Dave McNair (Bowie, Dylan, Patti Smith) mastered the record. The I’m Starting to Bleed EP probably couldn’t have been made outside of the disorienting cauldron of the past year. Foster is currently working on his next full-length album.
Proceeds from this release, and three others in this series support The Shalom Project (an organization that supports NC families in need).
This is a regional release and though it’s available to all RSD-participating stores, it will primarily be available at stores in North Carolina.
Side 1: 1) “I'm Starting To Bleed”
Side 2: 1) “When Was The Last Time” 2) “Tell Somebody” 3) “Headin' Home” 4) “I'm Starting To Bleed (pastoral)”
Side B: “In A Minor Key”, “It Must Be Raining Somewhere”, “Un Autre Temps”, “Come Home To Me”, “There's A Dream Around The Corner”, “Cerulean Is Lovely”
