Adam Donen’s latest single, What Doesn’t End, is a gentle, quiet epic of a song. Over an immersive soundscape, Donen’s gritty, baritone vocal is intimate, world-weary and almost spoken, drawing us into his narrative. Sparsely arranged and understated, the song’s seeming simplicity came from how the song was originally created. Donen explains: “The whole thing, inclusive of the line breaks, was written on a mobile phone during one of my daily walks.”
Donen filmed the video on the route of his usual walk through the Black Forest near his home in Baden-Baden. Although it looks like a fantastical scene, this is simply reality in all its beauty. No visual effects were needed to create this sequence of haunting, awe-inspiring images. At the end of the atmospheric video, an important message appears that speaks instantly to lovers of real music in a digital age: “No AI or visuals here. This is just what life is like.” Indeed.
The walk followed a visit from Donen’s long-time music collaborator Robert Harder (Brian Eno, David Byrne), who found him in a state that Donen himself describes as, “…a mental, physical and spiritual emptiness.” Harder offered Donen some advice: “Stop trying to work on a gigantic scale; Stop trying to control everything; Write eight songs, but the chords, melody and lyrics only; and come to Joshua Tree.” Complete with biblical and literary references, the resulting songs are personal and tragic, weary and emotive. This is a sombre, dark, americana that is totally absorbing.
Inventing art forms, writing, directing and composing, Adam Donen is a creative force, known for a range of projects, including Symphony to a Lost Generation (2016), the world’s first fully holographic drama. From traditional theatre to classical compositions for symphony orchestras, Donen is relentlessly inventive. This is the first single from Bible Stories, Donen’s forthcoming fifth album of original songs, due for release on 17th April. Recorded with Harder in Joshua Tree, the album features violinist Bobby Furgo from Leonard Cohen’s band and acclaimed electric double bass player Janie Cowan. Reminiscent of the likes of Leonard Cohen and Nick Cave, this collection is Donen’s first release of songs in over a decade.
