Hailing from Florida and now based in New Orleans, Thomas Dollbaum is a singer-songwriter who enlists some of the best talent from his adopted home to help flesh out his sound. New single ‘Florida’ out via Fat Possum imprint Big Legal Mess Records, sees Matt Seferian (of Pope), Mac Folger (of Lawn) and Kate Teague all lend their talents, allowing for a sound as nuanced and finely crafted as Dollbaum’s story-driven lyricism.
Taking the rugged passion of Justin Peter Kinkel-Schuster and combining it with the narrative depth of Damien Jurado, ‘Florida’ is both a representation of the state and an examination of an individual’s relationship with it. As disreputable and self-destructive as any good love story, where hopes are never far from lips and the possibility of salvation is forestalled by the needs of the present. Where for all the yellowed, prickly lawns, the image of greener grass never quite fades. “Left my old town cause it was shit,” Dollbaum sings. “Living in this new town but it’s shit too / Got to be somewhere better than this.”
Nothing good comes from Florida, including
you, oh your hair looks so black and blue
Keep me ready lord, keep me steady lord
Come back home honey when everything falls
apart for you
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Check out the video directed by Alex Thiel and edited by Graham Hamaker below:
‘Florida’ is out now via Big Legal Mess Records and available from the Thomas Dollbaum Bandcamp page.