“You never know how people perceive you,” says Aaron Lee Tasshan. “You never know how work is received by the public.
A musician who skillfully straddles the line between Americana and pop, Tajan is celebrating the 10th anniversary of his groundbreaking album In the flames. He celebrates with tours built around the sparkling rhythms and melodic hooks of the record.
Released on October 6, 2015, the album captured Tajan when he leaned heavily towards his country roots. The subsequent album saw him woven with synths and spreading the horizon – especially in the incredibly catchy 2021 “All Night” Tashan! Tashan! Tashan! – And he takes deeper inspiration from his personal life.
“I feel like I’ve really opened up with my songs,” says an artist who has identified him as part of the LGBTQ community. “A friend told me the other day.
song In the flames Prove that it’s worth revisiting with the live setting, especially the gorgeous “Rucinda’s Room”, the gentle “Judy is a Punk”, and the bright and bouncy “Ensart”
“It’s really fun to revisit these songs live, as they’ve returned to where many of them originally started,” says the 39-year-old, who prefers fluffy hats and sweaters. “They were the first songs I wrote when I moved to Nashville, and they were the first songs that many people in town here played me.”
Tasjan says the music on his recent records is characterized by layered sounds and studio prosperity that are difficult to replicate in live environments. In the flames The material is “very rustic. It’s very simple in terms of its instrumentation and it lives very well.”
Tasshan says his goal is to “connect with others through song.” He was moved when fans said they had been listening to the album for 10 years. “What an elegant gift for someone to revisit their work over that long period of time, as a creator and a songwriter.
During the conversation, Tasjan comes across as bright and optimistic, with a long form of storytelling trick. He recalls that he stumbled over a YouTube comment that surprised him recently.
“I was trying to find a living thing I did years ago, and when I finally found what I was looking for, my first comment two weeks ago was, “Oh, this was from before gay.”
“So I don’t know who is listening or how they perceive you,” he continued, circling our conversation. “But I always believed that music would win people in time. It has a bit of a magical spell. If you make a song that captures someone’s imagination, they’ll come back to it.
He shows the points with memories of last spring. “I apologized to the woman at the Nashville show. She came up to me and said, “When you first came out, for some reason, I didn’t get what you were really doing.”
The Aaron Lee Tasjan’s In The Blazes 10 Anniversary Tour will include two Virginia stops at Tinpan, Richmond on October 7th and at Jammin Java, Vienna on October 9th. Find out more about these and other tour dates aaronleetasjan.com/tour.
Source: Metro Weekly – www.metroweekly.com
