Faith in Jane Premiere “Enter Her Light”; Axe to Oak Preorder Available
Maryland trio Faith in Jane will release their eighth album, Axe to Oak, through Grimoire Records on Oct. 7. Preorders are up, and just to clarify, yes, I said eight records. That tally depends on how you count their 2012 debut, which they list as an EP, but there’s also that four-part Trippin’ After Supper jam series they put out in the second half of 2020, so count it all up how you will. Whatever your own final number, the 39 minutes of Axe to Oak are a standout in the catalog and inarguably the most cohesive work the three-piece have done yet, working with engineers Greg Diener (guitarist/vocalist of Pale Divine) and Noel Mueller — he of Tiny Castle Recording and head of Grimoire Records — to wrangle a vision-serving version of the loose-swinging heavy pastoralism of what has always felt and still feels uncontrolled in Faith in Jane‘s sound.
That balance is essential throughout Axe to Oak, and as side A wraps with “Enter Her Light” — premiering below — as led into by the Irish folk ballad “She Moved Through the Fair,” Faith in Jane‘s wistful swing and the throaty vocals of guitarist Dan Mize, the album feels very much like a post-pandemic return. Faith in Jane have never really toured, but they’ve learned from the sphere of Maryland’s underground even as they’ve taken that influence and crafted their own jammy heavy grunge from it. I could go on,
about the record’s construction, about how undervalued the trio of Mize, bassist Brendan Winston and drummer Alex Llewellyn have been over the course of their decade together, especially in these last four or five years, and how Axe to Oak sees them figure out their place not only in their scene, but in the broader scope of heavy rock — more sunshine-on-open-rolling-field than prairie country or desert, etc.; it might be the sound of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed if Maryland’s long history of doom isn’t — with two vinyl sides of expressive breadth and a sense that they are now the band they’ve been working to be. I could. Really. But October is a ways away, and I guess spoilers?
Maybe Faith in Jane are the kind of band who work best with a producer — someone to help them shape the raw material they bring into the studio — and maybe that’s the difference between Axe to Oak and 2018’s Countryside (review here), 2020’s Mother to Earth or their sundry other prior works, but whatever it is, cuts like the nodder “Heavy Drinker,” the fuzzy bounce and march of “Axe to Oak” itself, the quick jamm-with-two-‘m’s “How Many Ships Sail in the Forest?” and the warm tonality of closer “The Seeker,” make it so the band have never sounded more ready to take the stage at Lollapalooza ’92. I’ve spent the last three paragraphs trying to look for the right word, and here it is: vibrant. Faith in Jane‘s songs come alive here, in terms of they-play-in-studio-like-on-stage energy — which is both a cliché and true — their duly organic communion with natural elements and in the flourish of the interplay between Mize, Winston and Llewellyn, and the material itself reaps the rewards of the years that have gone into its making.
If you ever get to see them live, do it. Even if not, as a fan of stuff-that-doesn’t-sound-like-everything-else, I think this is worth your time.
Album info from the PR wire follows. Please enjoy:
FAITH IN JANE: Maryland Psychedelic Rock Trio To Release Axe To Oak Album Through Grimoire Records In October
Thurmont, Maryland-based psychedelic rock trio FAITH IN JANE will release their new full-length album, Axe To Oak, through Grimoire Records in October. Alongside the record’s cover art, track listing, preorders, and more, is a premiere of the lead single, “Enter Her Light.”
An incredibly prolific band, Axe To Oak serves as FAITH IN JANE’s eighth studio album in their ten years as a band, the record delivering a uniquely ’90s grunge element in their psych rock vibes. Packing seven extensive tracks into a dense forty-minute excursion, Axe To Oak was engineered by Greg Diener in July 2021, mixed and mastered by Grimoire Records’ Noel Mueller at Tiny Castle in June 2022, and competed with artwork by Austyn Sullivan and layout by Mueller.
With the album’s first single, “Enter Her Light,” the band’s Dan Mize reveals, “This song is loosely based around the demon Lilith in Judaic mythology. We bridged it together with ‘She Moved Through The Fair,’ a traditional Irish ballad. The dark marriage between the two came about as a one-off idea for a show but it ended up sounding so natural and powerful, we had to record them together.”
Axe To Oak will be released digitally and on limited edition CD via Grimoire Records on October 7th. Find preorders HERE: https://grimoirerecords.bandcamp.com/album/axe-to-oak
Stand by for additional previews of the album to be issued over the weeks ahead.
Axe To Oak Track Listing:
1. Whiskey Mountain Breakdown
2. She Moved Through The Fair
3. Enter Her Light
4. Heavy Drinker
5. How Many Ships Sail In The Forest?
6. Axe To Oak
7. The Seeker
FAITH IN JANE will support the release of Axe To Oak with a run of East Coast tour dates which are currently being booked for October. In the meantime, the band has confirmed a local gig on August 26th to celebrate the new vinyl release of their prior LP, Mother To Earth. Watch for new tour dates to be issued shortly.
FAITH IN JANE Live:
8/26/2022 Olde Mother Brewing Co. – Frederick, MD w/ Bailjack, Strange Highways
FAITH IN JANE was formed in 2008 by Dan Mize (guitar/vocals/lyrics), Brendan Winston (bass), and Alex Llewellyn (drums), who remain as the current lineup.
FAITH IN JANE newest album Axe To Oak features some of the tightest songs they have recorded so far, the product of two years spent refining unrecorded material and writing brand new songs; so many, in fact, that several songs recorded during the sessions have been set aside for future release. Their songwriting is more focused than ever, placing stronger emphasis on the vocals and lyrics while continuing to develop their trademark heavy rock sound.
Menacing yet swinging riffs balance dread and boogie in the best Black Sabbath tradition; the rumbling bass groove that carries the songs has been enhanced by a fresh layer of fuzz; and bluesy, whiskey-soaked leads soar over everything like an eagle flying over their native Appalachians. The unexpected inclusion of the traditional Irish ballad “She Moved Through The Fair” shows yet another of their diverse musical influences. The juxtaposition of Mize’s delivery of its ancient love-and-death melody with the wash of shimmering guitar, bass and trembling cymbals is spine-chilling, and it flows seamlessly into the original “Enter Her Light.”
The whole package is enhanced by their best production work to date, courtesy of Greg Diener (Pale Divine, Beelzefuzz) and Noel Mueller (Grimoire Records). With the release of Axe To Oak, FAITH IN JANE plans to continue playing shows in support of the album- they’ve made short runs through the southeast and mid-Atlantic states, as well as journeys to New York and New England, and are looking to spread their music and message to all lovers of rock and metal.
FAITH IN JANE:
Dan Mize – guitar, vocals
Brendan Winston – bass
Alex Llewellyn – drums
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