Transfiguration of Vincent April 14, 2003

"songs alive in metaphor and imagery in the spirit of Tom Waits and the late John Fahey...the antidote to commercial country"
                              — All Things Considered, National Public Radio

"a bucolic folk sound with a postmodern lo-fi sensibility... deft, poised guitar playing, vivid lyrical imagery, and melodies that burrow into your brain--as if they'd been there all along."
                              — Marc Greilsamer, Amazon.com

M. Ward is a Portland, Oregon based songwriter whose music seems to occupy a place that is uniquely "out of time". A place that bridges the gaps between the roots of various American musical traditions—folk, country, blues and rock. Armed with a guitar, harmonica, sparse percussion and a tin-pan alley-esque piano, Ward spins timeless classics that seem to flow effortlessly; simple yet eloquent tales alive with metaphor and imagery, told in a raspy, sepia-toned croon. Listening to an M. Ward record is like thumbing through and old family photo album, full of black and white photographs that are fading around the edges; an imperfection that only adds to the clarity of their memories.

'Transfiguration of Vincent' is the third solo album from M Ward, who cut his musical teeth in the San Luis Obispo based trio Rodriguez. In composition and style his music has been compared to such luminaries as Tom Waits, Granddaddy, Sparklehorse and Howe Gelb (the Giant Sand front man has been one of Ward’s strongest champions, releasing the young songwriter’s debut CD, 'Duet For Guitars #2', on his own Ow Om label). Ward’s seemingly effortless finger picking guitar conjures the elegance of the late John Fahey. Critics and fans on both sides of the Atlantic were sent swooning over his 2001 collection, 'End Of Amnesia'.

Late in 2002, Ward was asked to accompany indie-rock wunderkind Conor Oberst on his Bright Eyes Orchestra tour across the U.S. Packed houses of trendy emo kids were held in rapt awe as Ward wove his spell; they then rushed to gobble up CDs by the box after the show. The seeds have been sown for 'Transfiguration of Vincent' to be the breakout release for one of America’s most enigmatic songwriters. We welcome you to come along for the ride.

Issued under licence from Merge Records