Robert Ellis Returns with Self-Titled Album June 3rd - NPR Premieres "Drivin"

Credit: Dusdin Condren

(Press Release) Robert Ellis is set to return with his eponymous fourth album on June 3rd via New West Records.  The 11-song, self-titled set is his most personal statement yet and a summation of his career thus far.  Robert Ellis follows his critically acclaimed 2014 release The Lights From The Chemical Plant, with NPR Music premiering the album track "Drivin'" today.  They describe the album as "brilliant," and stated, "Musically varied, impeccably structured, Robert Ellis recalls the 'confessional' songwriters who set the bar in the 1970s, as well as recent Americana landmarks like Jason Isbell's Southeastern.  There are traces of Joni Mitchell and Paul Simon on this cohesive work, and the laconic insight that James Taylor offers at his best.  Robert Ellis is not always a light listen - the narrator bluntly claims his sins throughout - but the musical adventurousness that's in Ellis' blood makes it an irresistible one."  
 
Listen to "Drivin'" via NPR:
http://www.npr.org/2016/03/25/471302109/songs-we-love-robert-ellis-drivin

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The record was self-produced by Ellis at Sugar Hill Studios in his hometown of Houston, TX with engineer Steve Christensen (Steve Earle) and mixed by John Agnello (Kurt Vile, Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr.)  Robert Ellis will be available on LP, CD, and Digital Download and the album pre-sale will begin at 12pm EST today via Pledge Music.   Ellis has also announced his first headline dates in support of the album, kicking off in Houston, TX on June 2nd.  Please see all dates below.
 
Robert Ellis opens with “Perfect Strangers,” a meditation on what brings people together (and how tenuous that connection can be), and ends with “It’s Not Ok,” a raw look at emotional compromise.  Between those two powerful bookends are nine other songs that show Ellis’ full command of a vibrant set of songwriting skills - irony, distance, character, narrative, a thoughtful relationship between sound and sense.   Included is the first single, the dynamic “How I Love You,” the pop pleasure of “California,” the bossa nova shuffle and melodic 70s soft rock of “Amanda Jane,” the emotional center of the record, “The High Road,” and the breathtaking and epic “You’re Not The One;” all presenting multiple sides of Ellis’ control and talent. 
 
Ellis states, “I felt that in the past year, lots of constructs I took for granted were turned on their head.”  He continued, “With this record, I feel like I’ve gotten to where I can use the material of my own life as a jumping-off point.  But now I can do different things with that material.”  Many of the songs have an element of melancholy as some of the record revolves around the dissolution of Ellis’ marriage (the pair remain friends) but also hope and happiness play an equal role.  It’s an album of owning mistakes, self-discovery, and accepting hard truths.  It’s also an album that finds Ellis reaching into the trick bags of masters like Paul Simon, John Prine, and Randy Newman, all artists that have been consistent risk takers, and employing the full complement of skills that he has learned from studying their songcraft.  This respect for tradition and risk taking fuel Ellis’ new record and in the end, Robert Ellis, the album, is the most accurate reflection of Robert Ellis, the man.  It’s analytical and emotional, calculated in spots and improvisational in others, restless, peaceful, never indifferent, never dispassionate. 
 
The new album follows Ellis’ critically acclaimed 2014 release The Lights From The Chemical Plant.  Racking up multiple year-end accolades, NPR selected it as one of their “50 Favorite Albums of 2014,” calling him a “major sonic storyteller” and Rolling Stone called it “a fully realized masterpiece.”  Esquire Magazine declared it one of the best of the year with Buzzfeed hailing him as one of “25 New Artists You Need In Your Life In 2015.” 
 
Robert Ellis Track Listing:
1. Perfect Strangers
2. How I Love You 
3. California 
4. Amanda Jane
5. Drivin’
6. The High Road 
7. Elephant 
8. You’re Not The One 
9. Screw
10. Couples Skate 
11. It’s Not Ok
 
Robert Ellis On Tour: 
June 2nd - Houston, TX Discovery Green (Free Show) Tickets
June 3rd - Austin, TX 3Ten Austin City Limits Tickets 
June 4th - Austin, TX 3Ten Austin City Limits Tickets
June 5th - Dallas, TX Kessler Theatre Tickets
June 7th - St. Louis, MO Off Broadway Tickets
June 8th - Indianapolis, IN The Hi-Fi 
June 10th - St. Paul, MN Turf Club 
June 11th - Davenport, IA Daytrotter Venue Tickets
June 12th - Chicago, IL Schuba’s Tickets
June 13th - Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom 
June 15th - Wilkes-Barre, PA Kirby Center Small Room Tickets
June 18th - Boston, MA The Sinclair 
June 20th - Port Chester, NY Garcia’s (On Sale April 1st) 
June 22nd - New York, NY Bowery Ballroom (On Sale April 1st)
June 23rd - Washington, DC The Hamilton 
June 25th - Philadelphia, PA Milkboy Tickets
June 26th - Pittsburgh, PA Club Cafe 
June 27th - Columbus, OH Rumba Cafe Tickets
June 30th - Charlotte, NC Double Door
July 1st - Atlanta, GA Terminal West Tickets
July 2nd - Birmingham, AL The Saturn Tickets
July 3rd - Nashville, TN 3rd & Lindsley Presented By Lighting 100 
*Tom Brosseau supports all shows
 
Please visit: 
RobertEllisMusic.com 
NewWestRecords.com