Songs like ‘With My Companion’ make me strongly reconsider the power and place of the acoustic guitar. As a guitar player myself, I can attest to the delicacy of this instrument and its fickleness. How much can a song full to the brim with intertwining guitar lines sound skeletal and empty, but put in the right hands, a few lightly picked notes can carry a punch as strong as the heaviest rocking arrangements? Names like Bon Ives and Haux are among those few right hands I spoke about, and after discovering showalter, he falls easily into this list.
Inspired by childhood nostalgia and familial trauma, Joseph Conde retreated to near isolation as he dreamt up the six songs of his second EP as Showalter. Titled Lambsbread EP, ‘With My Companion’ is the new single off of the upcoming EP. Written in warm remembrance of his dad who passed away when Conde was just 16, the album remembers the best of times Conde had with his late father. ‘With My Companion’ revolves around a steadily-paced and gentle guitar line, heightened by surreal synth pads and atmospheric sounds that placed me directly on a sandy ocean shore, with the fading sun, and the wails of seagulls, while Conde’s pulling vocal delivery weaved their soothing spell over me as the inspired lyrics kept my mind alert throughout.
Easily a rich, haunting, and unforgettable release from the North-Carolina-based showalter. I’m now impatiently waiting for the upcoming EP. There’s something to the quality of ‘With My Companion’ that assures me of showalter’s sensibilities and choices, he has gained a new fan.