Album Of The Week: Jay Brannan's Goddamned

For this week's Album of the Week I decided to reach out to a slightly older album, but certainly one of my favorite recordings I've had the privilege of listening to: Jay Brannan's Goddamned.

I've written about Jay before when I first saw him in concert. Seeing him live is certainly a great experience and seeing him live without any previous exposure to his music was a complete and total surprise in the best possible way. This guy is a true singer/songwriter in many, many senses. I was recently able to see him on stage again here in Chicago, and although the venue (Beat Kitchen) was not the best, it was still an absolute pleasure to see him perform live.

Some things hold true about Jay no matter whether you see him live or listen to his albums, particularly the perfect qualities of his voice. I can't say it any better than I did the first time around:

This is a voice that you don't often hear in the music world. Soft and strong, perfectly pitched with a solid vibrato, and the accuracy of a trumpet with the rhythm of a percussionist. This was a musician on stage, not just a guy with a guitar.

Goddamned was his first effort at a self-produced album. That normally spells amateur and barely passable when it comes to most singer/songwriters, but Jay isn't really your average bloke with a guitar. This guy is a true musician that understands his art. He knows his voice, he knows his ability, and he knows how to allow the song to flow from within him, acting as the vessel to art rather than the patriarchal creator. There's something magical about that as it is a rare quality to find in a musician.

None of this means Jay is anywhere close to Sainthood though. With Goddamned, he explores the underbelly of money-hungry religious leaders, he reveals his promiscuity, and he revels in his many and varied neuroses. And not a moment of it is off-putting, because in every song the listener can relate on some level. We've all had the one-night stand, or the moment when we felt a bit whoreish, or that moment when we impatiently waited by the phone for that boy/girl to call us back even though we know in our heart they aren't going to call. More than just about any other songwriter, Jay finds a way to tap into all of those things in a way that both exposes himself and the listener at the same time, creating a bond that is hard to come by in an album.

Jay is a gay man, and although his songs often explore his life as a gay man, he abhors being called a "gay singer/songwriter." He's been known to delete references to his sexuality from his Wikipedia page. I'm not completely sure why it is important to him to be known as just a plain ol' singer/songwriter when his songs so explicitly handle the queer psyche, but it is important to him so I'll comply: He's a songwriter. That is also gay. And writes mostly gay-themed material, because that is his experience. But he's just a singer/songwriter.

Tracks to pay attention to: Half-Boyfriend, I Want To Be A Housewife, Bowlegged and Starving. Songs to skip: none. They're all really amazing with great production value. Minimalist, but well-done. If you don't own Goddamned, I strongly suggest that you add it to your collection. He has a newer album as well, but I'll cover that another time. For now, go get Goddamned and enjoy the hell out of it!

I Want To Be Jay Brannan's House Wife

A little over a week ago, I had the privilege of seeing an up-and-coming singer/songwriter out of New York. I hadn't heard of the guy before, but my good friend David would not stop praising this man and his music. I've admitted before, I'm a bit of a music snob, which is a problem mostly when someone recommends a new artist to me, because my immediate assumption is that it can't be that good if I haven't heard it yet (yeah… I'm working on that part of myself, ok, don't judge me).

David had been planning on see this guy for awhile, and he had asked me a few times to go with him. I admit, I was pretty wishy-washy about the whole deal. I had just moved, and sitting in a concert for a couple hours without ever hearing this guys music seemed like a bore. But come that Monday, I decided that I needed to get out of the house, and I figured the guy couldn't be that bad. So I met up with David later that night and snagged one of the tickets at the door.

I was a bit shocked that the venue was pretty well packed. Again, I had never heard of this guy. But the entire audience was excited to see him perform. People wore shirts bearing lyrics from his songs and people chattered nervously about hopefully meeting him after the show for an autograph. This is the point where I think things started to pick up for me. Even though I wasn't familiar with his music, it seemed he was fairly popular amongst the people that did. And everyone in the audience was pretty gay. What I did know of this guy was that he was a singer/songwriter, so I had to assume some folksy dude with a guitar had to be good for a bunch of gay men to get excited about him.

After the opening act had cleared the stage and the obligatory wait between acts had come to an end, there he was. Jay Brannan strolled casually out to the stage with a simple guitar and a couple bottles of water, sat down, and smiled. I was won over immediately. He began to banter with the audience about nothing in particular, and I felt completely drawn to this man. He had a quirky, self-deprecating, forthcoming attitude that instantly endeared you to him, and a relaxed persona that flirted more with the feminine than most rockers, which allowed the audience to relate to him.

The real magic began when he played his first song though. Even though he was fingering notes on his guitar for a few moments before singing, the soft buzz of excitement still hung over the crowd. Once Jay's voice opened up to the room though, all mouths closed and ears and eyes focused completely on him. This was no ordinary voice. This is a voice that you don't often hear in the music world. Soft and strong, perfectly pitched with a solid vibrato, and the accuracy of a trumpet with the rhythm of a percussionist. This was a musician on stage, not just a guy with a guitar.
Over the next hour and a half, Jay Brannan completely entranced the audience. When the show was over, it was like waking from a dream and immediately reaching for the snooze button. Just five more minutes, and then we'll be ready for the real world again. Sadly, his time on stage was over, and I needed to go home for some much needed sleep. On our way out, we got the pleasure of meeting him and David snapped a pic with him, and we all kind of wanted to lick him.

I don't believe I can speak highly enough of this man and his music. I'll write about his album in a different post, but if you see that he is going to be playing anywhere near you, grab a couple friends and make your way to the show. It'll be worth every penny spent and more. It really isn't often that an artist comes along like Jay Brannan, and I expect we'll hear much more from this songwriter in the years to come.

And just so you get the title reference: