A Song For Friday: Dead Gowns

High lonesome ballads and high-powered guitar epics fuel a scorching debut

In 2023, I spotted the name of Genevieve Beaudoin’s indie rock project on the poster for another band or artist (H. Pruz, maybe? They do connect everything, after all…) and investigated, becoming quickly captivated by the expanded version of their HOW EP. When I included it in The Best Of 2023: Rock, Folk, Etc., I highlighted “Beaudoin’s gutsy vocals and Luke Kalloch’s explosive guitar” and ended with the instruction to “Keep an eye on this Maine band - I’m expecting even bigger and bolder things in the future.”

That future is today. With the release of It’s Summer, I Love You, and I’m Surrounded By Snow, Dead Gowns has fully arrived. Recorded over the last few years, this expansive album draws on a deep well of emotion in high-powered guitar epics and high lonesome ballads alike. The latter is what we’ll focus on here, namely the song See People. Decorated by Hamilton Belk’s weeping pedal steel and propelled by the gently swinging rhythm section of either Nat Baldwin or Alex Millan (bass) and Peter McLaughlin or Ricardo Lagomasino (drums), the song puts Beaudoin’s raw yet masterful singing on full display. Listen and be silenced by her passion.

Aside from the musicians listed above and some background vocals from Eliza Edens, Beaudoin (guitar, keyboards) and Kalloch (baritone/standard guitar, electric bass, background vocals, auxiliary percussion, and drum machine) are responsible for all the other sounds. Beaudoin’s lyrics throughout the album are telegraphic yet relatable, like this stanza from See People:

I need to see people I live on my phone
or is my world now made up
of plastic and foam
you roll your eyes and it’s lightless

Make sure to immerse yourself in the whole wonderful collection and, if you’re on the east coast, catch them on tour. I’m hoping to see them - yes, with H. Pruz - at Union Pool on March 5th.

Listen to most of the songs for Friday here or below.

Also Out This Week

Horsegirl - Phonetics On And On Working with Cate Le Bon, the Welsh singer/songwriter and producer who produced Wilco’s Cousin, the trio of Nora Cheng, Penelope Lowenstein, and Gigi Reece returned to their native Chicago to make this staggering follow up to their 2022 debut. That album, Versions Of Modern Performance, was an instant hit in my house, landing at #8 on my Top 25. Somehow they manage to sound precisely like themselves while stripping away anything inessential in an exercise in mesmerically tuneful minimalism. There’s a touch of ancient folk music now mixed in with their arty classicism, putting influences like The Velvet Underground and The Raincoats in a context that makes them seem even more universally human. Horsegirl is a wonder.

Hooky & Winter - Water Season This almost maddeningly brief EP further proves that Samira Winter can sing with anyone anywhere and in any style with the same relaxed command. She met the duo of Scott Turner and Sam Silbert, who make “electronic noise” as Hooky, online in a mutual admiration society, resulting in these four off-kilter but dreamy tracks. Since we haven’t had a new Winter album since 2022’s lovely and varied What Kind Of Blue Are You, I’ll take what I can get!

Matthewdavid - Zithertronics This collection of 21 electronic sketches in 25 minutes from the founder of Leaving Records is brilliantly entertaining throughout. Grab the cassette while you can - it comes with a Star Trek trading card!

Lei Liang - Dui This portrait album shows off another side of Liang’s artistry than 2023’s Hearing Landscapes/Hearing Icescapes. Working with extraordinary musicians, including Wu Man (pipa) and Maya Baiser (cello), Liang defines a sublime approach to chamber music as informed by his Chinese heritage.

Richard Carrick - The Atlas Empathetically supported by Either/Or (Jennifer Choi, violin; Pala Garcia, violin; John Popham, cello; and Kal Sugatski, viola), the ensemble he founded, Carrick puts his “extended piano” (read: prepared and enhanced) through its paces in an almost sculptural manner. From spiky or stately to witty and swinging, his nine compositions here show off a dazzling versatility.

Shawn Okpebholo - Songs In Flight Inspired by a collection of historical runaway slave advertisements from early U.S. newspapers, Okpebholo’s song cycle for soprano, countertenor, baritone, and piano would be essential listening at any time, but is only more so in 2025’s political and cultural climate. However, it’s righteousness wouldn’t be worth a damn if it wasn’t such an impressive and humbling work. In this world-premiere recording, Okpebholo’s vision is wonderful realized by pianist Paul Sánchez and vocalists Rhiannon Giddens, Will Liverman, Reginald Mobley, and Karen Slack. As a bonus, four songs from earlier song cycles are included. This album pays off a deposit Okpebholo made in my heart with Two Black Churches on Liverman’s Dreams Of A New Day in 2021.

What did you hear this week? Let me know in the comments!