November has been a rough month. Every peek at the media is overwhelming, exhausting, and disheartening. There aren’t enough puppy videos to cancel out the anxiety inducing ones. But thankfully, we can take to our headphones and escape into the mind of Wes Tirey. His tracks are effervescent and tranquil, but contain enough honesty to wake up our souls. Tirey is back to bless us with more of his singer-songwriter talents, this time coming in the form of six track Black Wind.
Tirey’s knack for relevance shows itself throughout Black Wind. Rather than cracking the door of raw honesty, Tirey throws it open and invites us in. His words flow like Salinger’s– punchy and tough. On “I Wonder As I Wander,” Tirey sings like a tired traveler, one who has become jaded by dusty paths and wearied faces. His guitar playing is gentle, like a moment from James Taylor’s Sweet Baby James. He infuses meaning into every measure, and each track encompasses the vigor that life requires, and what it leaves us within.
In the description for Tirey’s latest collection, a segment reads, “Don’t throw it all against the wall then fix it in the mix. Just play the damn thing and have some big ears ready to react. Then walk away from it.” And that’s the best approach we can assume. Tirey’s music isn’t for the lighthearted, rather it is for those with the heaviest of hearts, ready to look inward.
Black Wind is available now through Scissor Tail Records.
