Wailin Storms
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Music
Press
"Justin Storms is a one-man wrecking crew of Texas blues, country, doom and despair...Make sure to catch Justin playing out in the Brooklyn, NY area. " - Heavy Planet
This winter here in New York City has been nothing short of brutal. On top of my lady leaving me; the cold, unforgiving streets of this urban tundra offer no sanctuary for a bitter, broken, little, man like myself. As a result, I seek comfort in the saddest, most miserable and depressing music conceivable. Maybe I find resolution under the veil of others’ miseries; or maybe I just listened to one too many Elliot Smith albums growing up. Whatever it may be, there’s something all to soothing about the drone of someone else’s pain and misfortune. With this in mind, I’ve found a form of succor in a recent submission. Wailin’ Storms, previously classified as “Texas Doom Country Blues”, offer a sad bastard collection of country riddled blues. The lo-fi recordings present a soul-defining sense of melancholy, stimulating a thunderstorm of emotion within the gut of its audience. Originally howlin’ from southern Texas, Justin Storms’ approach to blues is gritty, twangy, and conveys an overwhelming feeling of isolation that will seriously depress the fuck out of you. He draws his inspiration from the raw blues of the 50’s, heavily influenced by the legends such as Johnny Paycheck and Screaming Jay Hawkins. His broken-hearted, lonesome, and gloomy lyrics could bum-out even the most jubilant and content listeners. Wailin’ Storms’ seven song demo is a perpetual rain cloud that follows your parade everywhere (I mean that in the best way possible).
The demo opens by immediately tempting your bottom lip to quiver. Leave Me With Your Heart is a slow, doomy, tear-jerker, lyrically centering around heartbreak. The slow strumming and crawling tempo of the track create an intensely somber mood. His sound subsumes a Pygmy Lush meets Jeff Buckley vibe, hogtied together with the morose claustrophobia of southwestern desert blues. Dismally following is No Woman Blues. The title implicates the lyrical content; loneliness and heartbreak seem to be the thematic backbone of the record. Vocally, the doleful howling of Wailin’ Storms is certainly my favorite aspect of the demo. The guttural, passionate yells on this track stir up an inconsolable brew of feelings within, proving itself an archetype of emotive, ancestral blues. O’ When the Rain Starts is easily my favorite of the demo. The fetching melody and chord progression create a semblance of dysphoria. Justin’s singing on this track is notably impressive, incorporating falsettos to further showcase his adept vocal range. The lyrics really hit home on this one, bewailing the anguishes of a broken, shell of a man coping with an epic loss.
Nearing the end of the demo, Superstitious Man keeps the groove alive. The slide guitar elucidates the country aspect of the demo while the song maintains the prominent gritty blues template. Justin’s vocals are again highly impassioned and cement themselves a remarkable facet of Wailin’ Storms‘ sound. The soul behind his bellowing is undeniably moving.
Wailin’ Storms‘ lo-fi approach to gritty blues is nothing short of captivating. The raw production adds an untouchable element of despondency, creating a viable sense of empathy within the listener. If you’re not already in a rut, Justin’s forlorn tunes might be a turn-off. However, Wailin’ Storms is a perfect augmentation for any rainy-day collection. You can catch him live in the NYC area in the next few months, so keep a look out. Hope I didn’t bum any of you dudes out with this one.
- Nick Ventrudo
Singer-songwriter Justin Storms teams up with the noisy indie rockers Vibrant Ones and Candice Moore for a free show Saturday at the LL. Justin's brand of reverb-drenched acoustic indie reminds me of Iron & Wine (though that may be a lazy comparison) and My Morning Jacket so it's not as strange a show line-up as you might think. Storms started recording and playing out in '05 and now has company on stage: Jeremiah Dillashaw accompanies on electric lap steel. While classic influences such as Roy Orbison and the Everly Brothers as well as Nick Cave and Glenn Danzig are obvious, Justin's morose wail is a fresh one in an age of cut-and-paste digitized rock. Storms says it best when he characterizes his sound as . . ."the wind's asthmatic voice howling through (an) empty window view." Couldn't have said it better myself. - Richard Guerrero
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
What started as an experiment for maritime artist Justin Storms in the humid subtropical climate of South Texas has evolved several times over the past few years. From one man band, to stripped down two piece, to the present day power trio. Storms grew up playing in punk rock in the DIY scene in Texas. Several bands later he ended up forming what would later be "Wailin Storms" along with members of other local bands in Texas.
In 2006 Storms' left for Maryland to attend art school where he began self recording and releasing several EP's that would later disappear from performing and moving around: Baltimore, New York, Berlin, and Zurich. After the last move the band settled down in Brooklyn where he met drummer Ross Anderson of "Such Hounds" at a New Years part and bassist Eric Messina from "Silicone Sister" at a show. After playing a lot of shows, touring, and getting heavily involved with the local Brooklyn scene they began recording their first official EP "Bone Colored Moon." There's something about the songs that aren't like anything else happening now. Maybe it happened before with bands like Flat Duo Jets, X, Howlin Wolf, or the Gun Club but they're bringing back that real soul in rock n roll. The shit you feel when you hear a blind bluesman hollering about his woman.
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