By When most people hear the name Dustin Kensrue, they usually associate it with the post-hardcore rock band Thrice, but with Kensrue’s new solo album they may be in for a big surprise.
Kensrue’s new album, “Please Come Home,” is a mix of jazz, blues and country, and is probably one of the most personal records Kensrue has ever made.
The album dropped in stores Jan. 23 and is already being compared to the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello and Johnny Cash. Kensrue played two sold-out record release shows this past Saturday night at the Silent Movie Theater in Hollywood.
I also got to speak to Kensrue a few days after the show, early in the morning, before Thrice went into the studio to finish recording and mastering its new album, which is due out this spring.
“Please Come Home,” is an eight-song record, with some of the songs spanning many years.
“Some are a couple of years old, which is the genesis of the album,” Kensrue said. “I just started to get the energy to start putting these songs down and put them on tape and get them out of my head. I decided after the last Thrice tour to buckle down and put these songs down.”
The theater was dimly lit with old silent movie star posters hanging on the walls. It didn’t seem like an ideal place to hold a concert, but then again, this isn’t a typical show. There will be no moshing, thrashing or fist fights. Everyone will sit in a seat, which would be the most uncomfortable chair in the world if it weren’t for the large pillows placed on them and watch Kensrue sing his heart out for a small crowd of only 300 people or so.
With so many musical projects in the works, you would think that Kensrue would run out of inspiration, but that isn’t the case.
“[Inspiration] is something I [don’t] think about when I am writing. It is more that these songs are born out of me playing acoustic guitar,” Kensrue said. “I’ll find a little riff that I like and a chord progression and then I just take it from there.”
While waiting for the band to set up, I noticed Kensrue’s wife showing off their newborn baby girl, Sailor, to some friends.
One thing I have come to expect from most Thrice shows is the sense of unity and family.
Shortly after she left, Kensrue took the stage with his brother, Chase, on bass and drummer Chris Jones. Jones played drums on the album, and Thrice guitarist Teppei Teranishi also co-produced and played the piano and organ on the record as well.
“These are my friends,” Kensrue said. “Teppei, I think, is on his way to becoming a great engineer and I work really well with him. We were able to record it whenever we had the time at night to record, just a little bit here and there, which was the only time we had [because] we were recording Thrice stuff during the day. My friend, Chris Jones, I think is a great musician. I wanted the whole thing to be pretty mellow.”
As Kensrue prepared for the first song he smiled quietly and broke into “I Knew You Before,” a song filled with quaint acoustic guitar beats and harmonica melodies. The band stood out being in such a narrow room. The gold curtain covering the movie screen silhouetted them.
The next song the band played was the title track, “Please Come Home.”
“‘Please Come Home’ is a couple of years old, but the lyrics are fairly recent,” Kensrue said.
“Blood and Wine” was the next song the band played and is the reason why many critics compare Kensrue to Elvis Costello. Kensrue sings about how a wild man wants to settle down, but can’t contain his restlessness. If this song won’t get your toe tapping, then I don’t know what will.
The most memorable moment of the entire show was when Kensrue admitted he forgot the tambourine for the song “Consider the Ravens,” so he asked the entire audience to bring out their car keys and jingle them to the beat of the song. The keys gave the song an eerie sound and Kensrue a smile on his face.
The band then played the first single off the album, “Pistol,” which is filled with Kensrue’s husky voice singing about “the girl of my dreams.” It is a bluesy love song and the harmonica adds a country flair to it.
Kensrue closed the show with the last song from the album “Blanket of Ghosts,” which got the entire audience swaying. I never felt closer to Kensrue’s music then at that moment.
After he finished, some fans gave a standing ovation, some just sat quietly in their seats, but they all had a better appreciation for Kensrue’s music. That was enough for him.
Kensrue will perform this Friday on David Letterman and his album “Please Come Home,” is available at all major record stores.
