Celebrated California singer songwriter Jenny Lewis returns with The Voyager, which will be released by Warner Bros. Records on July 29th. This is the former Rilo Kiley frontwoman’s third solo album and first in six years, following 2006’s Rabbit Fur Coat (with The Watson Twins) and 2008’s Acid Tongue.
The Voyager is Lewis’s most deeply personal album to date, documenting her struggle to cope following the death of her estranged father in 2010 and the subsequent break-up of Rilo Kiley. The Voyager‘s rootsy, golden glow comes courtesy of Lewis and the artists she chose to produce various tracks, including Ryan Adams (who, alongside Mike Viola, produced all but three of the tracks), Beck, and Lewis’ longtime collaborator Johnathan Rice. The Voyager finds the always relatable songwriter at her sharp-witted best, singing about her recent experiences with honesty and incisiveness.
“Making The Voyager got me through one of the most difficult periods of my life,” she says. “After Rilo Kiley broke up and a few really intense personal things happened, I completely melted down. It nearly destroyed me. I had such severe insomnia that, at one point, I didn’t sleep for five straight nights. Many of the songs on The Voyagercame out of the need to occupy my mind in the moments when I just couldn’t shut down.”
After several years of writing new material, Lewis took 2013 off to tour with The Postal Service. Sharing the spotlight was a freeing experience, providing the realization that she needed to give up control in order to move forward. While on the road, she reached out to Ryan Adams to record at his newly built studio, Pax Am, at Sunset Sound. Her first day back from tour, she went into the studio with Adams and his partner Mike Viola, and found the creative collaboration she was missing.
“Ryan and I didn’t know each other very well before this album — we had hardly even listened to one another’s music, to be honest. But I trusted the vision, and Ryan ended up being the person to get me over the fear of finishing something I’d been working on for so long. This record was the hardest one I ever made,” she says. “The Voyager tells that story: the longest night of my life and the journey to finally getting some rest.”
The track-listing for The Voyager is as follows:
Head Underwater
She’s Not Me
Just One Of The Guys
Slippery Slopes
Late Bloomer
You Can’t Outrun ‘Em
The New You
Aloha & The Three Johns
Love U Forever
The Voyager
Upcoming Tour Dates:
May 21 – Santa Ana, CA – The Observatory SOLD OUT
May 24 – Boston, MA – Boston Calling Festival
June 4 – Portland, ME – State Theatre w/ Kurt Vile
June 6 – New York, NY – Governor’s Ball (Randall’s Island)
June 7 – Washington DC – 930 Club SOLD OUT
July 6 – Toronto, ON – Urban Roots Festival
July 8 – Ottawa, ON – Ottawa Blues Fest
July 10 – Clearwater, FL – Ruth Eckerd Hall w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 11 – Orlando, FL – Bob Carr Performing Arts Center w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 12 – Miami, FL – The Fillmore w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 15 – Jacksonville, FL – Florida Theatre w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 16 – Charleston, NC – North Charleston Performing Arts Center w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 18 – Alpharetta, GA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 19 – Birmingham, AL – BJCC Concert Hall w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 20 – Louisville, KY – Forecastle Festival
July 22 – Interlochen, MI – Kresge Auditorium w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 23 – Grand Rapids, MI – Meijer Gardens w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 25 – Newport, RI – Newport Folk Festival
July 26 – Camden, NJ – XpoNential Music Festival w/Ryan Adams
July 27 – Pittsburgh, PA – Mr. Smalls
July 31 – Indianapolis, IN – Deluxe at Old National Centre
August 2 – Chicago, IL – Lollapalooza SOLD OUT
August 3 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
August 10 – San Francisco, CA – Outside Lands Festival SOLD OUT
October 3-5 – Austin, TX – Austin City Limits
October 10-12 – Austin, TX – Austin City Limits
About Jenny Lewis:
One of the most celebrated and respected performers of her generation, Lewis got her start as the dynamic frontwoman of influential LA group Rilo Kiley in 1998. In between recording and touring with the band, Lewis contributed vocals to The Postal Service’s debut album Give Up (2003) and toured with them as a multi-instrumentalist. In addition to releasing two solo albums, Rabbit Fur Coat and Acid Tongue, Lewis has collaborated with Elvis Costello, T. Bone Burnett, and M. Ward, among others. In 2010, she formed the duo Jenny and Johnny with songwriter Johnathan Rice and released their debut I’m Having Fun Now. She also contributed original music to the upcoming musical/drama,Song One, starring Anne Hathaway. In 2013, Lewis made her debut as a film composer and music supervisor for the drama Very Good Girls starring Dakota Fanning and Elizabeth Olsen.
