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The Felice Brothers – From Dreams to Dust Worldwide Release Date: September 17, 2021 

On From Dreams to Dust, the Felice Brothers eighth and most recent studio album, the band’s exuberance to be together doing what they do so well is palpable. Characteristic of The Felice Brothers, the new tracks are a mixture of somber tunes with ones that are musically upbeat, all the while carrying messages that beg listeners to think deeply about the environment, humanity, legacy, and death.  Many of the songs depict the passage of time, nostalgia, transience and getting older.

The Felice Brothers, Ian (guitar and lead vocals) and James (multi-instrumentalist and vocals), hail from the Catskills, NY, where their early songs echoed off subway walls and kept company with travelers and vagrants. Their current lineup, with the addition of bassist and inaugural female Felice member Jesske Hume (Conor Oberst, Jade Bird) and drummer Will Lawrence (also a singer/songwriter) as their rhythm section, promises to be the best yet. 

“I want for my music to do what the best music in my life has done for me,” explains Ian. “I want to do that for other people—to help them think through hard times or think through how to communicate something they didn’t know how to; to just make them happy. This may sound ironic, because my music is kind of dark sometimes, but the music I love best is just the most hopeful music like Pete Seeger singing about humanity getting along or Michael Hurley music that connects to some childlike simplicity that makes you feel light and happy.  Music is a medicine. It can make our time on the planet a little more enjoyable.”
(Yep Roc Records)

From Dreams to Dust track listing

1. Jazz on the Autobahn
2. To-Do List
3. All The Way Down
4. Money Talks
5. Be At Rest
6. Valium
7. Inferno
8. Silverfish
9. Celebrity X
10. Land Of Yesterdays
11. Blow Him Apart
12. We Shall Live Again

Pre-Order From Dreams to Dust now – Digital Download, Compact Disc or Limited First Edition Double LP pressed on dusty red/cream two-tone vinyl.

Listen to Ian Felice on Freedom Highway

May 6, 2019:

Ian Felice, lead singer and songwriter for The Felice Brothers, recently sat down with Nick Panken (Spirit Family Reunion), for his Freedom Highway radio program on Radio Kingston. Listen Here. 

from the show: Ian Felice, lead singer and songwriter for the Felice Brothers, is the guest for the hour.  His songs have often contained a complex reflection of our society, and in recent material social commentary moves to the forefront, through a unique surrealist framework.  We talk about Ian’s evolving political consciousness and how this makes its way into his songwriting, particularly on the new record Undress.

The Felice Brothers are on a national tour in support of their new record, Undress, including a local show in Kingston, NY at BSP’s back room theatre on Saturday 5/12/19.

ABOUT THE SHOW

Freedom Highway is a weekly hour-long radio show where we trace movements of music through times of struggle. Each Sunday evening broadcast is a sonic collage of recorded music, live performances, and conversations with public thinkers and community members. Following songs across borders of race, class, geography and time, we explore how melodies and refrains are reshaped by an evolving chorus of voices, and we ask: how does this relate to the current moment in our community and country?

April 5, 2019: The Felice Brothers just released “Special Announcement” from the forthcoming album Undress, out May 3 via Yep Roc Records. Paste Magazine said,

“The song, which directly and cleverly targets financial corruption, is quick to acknowledge the absurdity of our modern politics and the role money plays in them with the lyric “I’m saving up my money to be president.” Songwriter Ian Felice imagines a world without financial interests, without the “Stock Exchange” and the ‘Federal Reserve.'” 

While Undress contains many of the musical hallmarks The Felice Brothers have come to be known for since first emerging from New York’s Hudson Valley more than a decade ago (ragged guitars, weighty lyrics, a Replacements-esque sense that the wheels might come off at any moment), the record marks something of a new chapter for the group after undergoing major personal and professional changes.

During the break between albums, Ian Felice (who shares songwriting and vocal duties in the band with his brother James) became a father and released both his first solo record and his first book of poetry, while new bassist Jesske Hume (Conor Oberst, Jade Bird) joined drummer Will Lawrence in rounding out the rhythm section following the departure of two longtime members.

The Felice Brothers’ long strange journey stretches back to the sidewalks and subway platforms of New York City, where they first began performing in 2006. Within just a few years, the band was playing Radio City Music Hall with Bright Eyes and appearing everywhere from the Newport Folk Festival to Levon Helm’s Midnight Ramble. They’d go on to release a series of critically acclaimed albums that pushed the boundaries of modern folk, with The New York Times likening their music to “the rootsy mysticism of the Band” and The Guardian hailing their songs as “impeccably crafted, with literary-minded lyrics that are both playful and profound.” The band shared bills with Old Crow Medicine Show and Mumford & Sons among others, took their blistering live show to Coachella, Bonnaroo, Outside Lands, and countless other festivals across the US and Europe, and backed up Conor Oberst extensively in the studio and on the road.

The band kicks off a US tour starting on April 27 in Albany. Tickets are on sale now – TOUR DATES.

https://youtu.be/TKR3f-4UlAg

March 5, 2019: The Felice Brothers just released “Poor Blind Birds” from the forthcoming album Undress that will be released May 3 via Yep Roc Records. Consequence of Sound said, “On the latest single, ‘Poor Blind Birds’ the band indeed find a way to create a beautiful, melancholic abstract of the socio-political millieu.”

After announcing the highly-anticipated Undress and the title track on February 8th, Rolling Stone, Brooklyn Vegan, American Songwriter, Relix and other outlets highlighted the band’s return after three years. Reflecting on the current political climate and general uncertainty in the world, Undress finds the group in a very different place than their last album, 2016’s Life In The Dark. Between personnel changes, families growing and the political landscape, the result is a tighter, more-paired down release.

 

“Every song is a story,” said James Felice. “On this album everything was a bit more thoughtful, including the arrangements, the sonic quality and the harmonies.”

Ian and James Felice grew up in the Hudson valley of upstate NY. Self taught musicians, inspired as much by Hart Crane and Whitman as by Guthrie and Chuck Berry, they began in 2006 by playing subway platforms and sidewalks in NYC and have gone on to release nine albums of original songs and to tour extensively throughout the world. Following the release of Life in the Dark, The Felice Brothers served as the backing band for Conor Oberst’s 2017 release Salutations and the subsequent tour.

 

The band kicks off a US tour starting on April 27 in Albany. Tickets are on sale now – TOUR DATES.

February 8, 2019: The Felice Brothers’ new album, their first in three years, is entitled Undress and is due for release via Yep Roc Records on May 3rd. The first taste from the album shares the same title and will be available on all services  as of Friday, February 8.  Take a listen to the “Undress” single here. Pre-order Undress here. 

Cut live to tape with very little overdubbing, Undress was recorded in the late summer of 2018 in Germantown, New York. Band members Ian Felice, James Felice, Will Lawrence (drums) and Jesske Hume (bass) teamed up with producer Jeremy Backofen to record their most personal and reflective album to date. 

“Many of the songs on the new album are motivated by a shift from private to public concerns,” says songwriter Ian Felice. “It isn’t hard to find worthwhile things to write about these days, there are a lot of storms blooming on the horizon and a lot of chaos that permeates our lives.  The hard part is finding simple and direct ways to address them.”

Undress follows the band’s 2016 album Life In The Dark, and finds the group in a very different place three years later. Between personnel changes, families growing and the political landscape, the result is a tighter, more-paired down release. “Every song is a story,” said James Felice. “On this album everything was a bit more thoughtful, including the arrangements, the sonic quality and the harmonies.”

Ian and James Felice grew up in the Hudson valley of upstate NY. Self taught musicians, inspired as much by Hart Crane and Whitman as by Guthrie and Chuck Berry, they began in 2006 by playing subway platforms and sidewalks in NYC and have gone on to release nine albums of original songs and to tour extensively throughout the world. Following the release of Life in the Dark, The Felice Brothers served as the backing band for Conor Oberst’s 2017 release Salutations and the subsequent tour.  The band kicks off a US tour starting on April 27 in Albany.  Tickets go on sale on February 12. Check the Tour Dates section for a show near you.

Due to health concerns and on the advice of his doctor Ian Felice is unable to tour at this time. Therefore, regrettably, the upcoming Felice Brothers tour of the UK and Europe is canceled. Refunds will be available at your original point of purchase.

Thanks in advance for your understanding. We’ll keep you posted as things progress and the band hopes to see you out there again very soon.

Ring in 2017 with The Felice Brothers at BSP in Kingston, NY. Few tickets remain here.