If you’re looking for something to bring a little joy and hope into your life at the end of another working week, then take in the latest single and video from Long Island-based Andrew Weiss and Friends. ‘We’re Trying to Have a Society Here’ is welcoming and invitational: “We’re trying to have a society here, so come and join us // We’re just pioneers along a new frontier, so come and join us // We believe in love, and we believe in light.” The world can be pretty dark at times and there’s a lot to be said for artists who strive to bring some light, openly, consciously and directly. The light, bright guitar is supported by warmly melodic bass and keys. Over these layers, singer-songwriter Weiss delivers a smooth vocal that, like his words, invites you into the song.
This is the second single from the forthcoming album ‘The World’s Smallest Violin’, due out in October 2024. These songs were written in 2021 during the mixing process of 2022 LP ‘Sunglass & Ash’. Weiss continued to create new material – he says: “The faucet was never really turned off. If ‘Sunglass & Ash’ is my DNA, these songs are like an x-ray. I’m not sure that I’ve ever been so emotionally available before in the songwriting process.” Having self-produced the band’s recent output, Weiss wanted to work with another producer and Pete Donnelly was brought into the project. Weiss explains: “During these sessions, Pete engineered, co-produced, and played bass on every song, doing each of these tasks soulfully and seemingly with ease. Pete’s enthusiasm for music did and still does warm my heart, and that was a big reason why he was able to capture the emotion of the songs on tape.” The songs weren’t ready for immediate release and a couple of EPs and another album, ‘Beverly Hills, Thanksgiving Day’, dropped in the meantime. But now is the right time and the new album promises to be hopeful, sensitive and musically uplifting.
Weiss and the band blend Laurel Canyon folk-rock with soulful pop melodies and hooks and the end result is immediately engaging. Inspired by the Beatles and a chance meeting with Paul McCartney, multi-instrumentalist Weiss has come a long way since he started playing guitar and writing songs at the age of just seven years old. Andrew Weiss and Friends now have now released five albums and three EPs since their debut full-length in 2018, reflecting their incredible work ethic. Check them all out but start with this. Enjoy.
