Conrad Ford is the name of a new band featuring Seattle natives, Andy McAllister and Jordan Walton. After Andy spent some time in Austin, he returned infused with the tunes of the Texas troubadours.

On their first full length CD, Don’t You Miss Yourself, he and Jordan are joined by April Sather and Nathanael Butler in what has been called, “downtrodden country songs of romance and loss.”

The sparse sound of Don’t You Miss Yourself came from an unlikely place – a makeshift studio under a motorcycle repair shop. Then they selected producer/engineer Phil Ek, who had earlier worked his magic on The Shins’ Chute Too Narrow, to finish their project.

On “Golden Hearts”, this CD opens with the line “I’m headed where the grass is brown”. A line that is at once both familiar and unusual. It’s likely evocative of someone leaving Seattle’s emerald green for Austin’s dusty brown.
 
In the second song, “Godfather”, April Sather’s trumpet adds to their spare guitar/vocal sound.  Back-up instruments also include ukulele, mandolin, accordion, and cello. There’s even an Omnichord, a rare electronic instrument featured on Devo’s recordings.
 
With all that, it’s still the world-weary vocals and the Texas-tinged message they convey that shines through. On “Stay Up”, they’re “hoping not to grow apart as we grow up”. On “Big Black Moon”, a child in bed knows he’s safe even if “the city might be under siege tonight”, so he closes his eyes, but not his ears.

The ten tracks on Don’t You Miss Yourself have been referred to as “a soundtrack for the lonesome.” You’ll want to open your ears to Conrad Ford. Check out their CD or hear them live when they touch down in Boise on September 30.
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This is simply a great album to sit down to, lift your head and legs and let the mellow progression relax you as the diverse range of instruments set the stage for the over-intellectual lyrics set by McAllister and crew. I only gave 4 stars for this album cause I can't wait to give the next album 5! Cheers and thanks!
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“I’m headed where the grass is brown/you can have the riches of this town” sings Andy McAllister on “Golden Hearts”, the opening track of his band's debut album. Taking their name from director John Ford (for his big skies) and cinematographer Conrad Hall (Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid) (for the characters he filmed), Conrad Ford have crafted an album of delicate beauty that rejects the hustle, bustle and dubious delights of the big city in favour of the more subtle, understated and timeless pleasures of the rural life.

But this is no rose-tinted downsizer’s dream. It’s a lonesome life where the search for love is continuous and largely unrewarded. “You Are My Town” is a perfect description of the strangeness of life when a lover has gone (“Somebody painted my house/ A different colour while I was out/And put people inside that I did not know”). Similarly, sound-tracked by a spectral musical saw and plucked banjo, the title track warns that “there’s no comfort in what you were before” but offers a double-edged hint of hope (“Say your prayers with the lights on/you may just find your faith is gone”). Nor is it back-to-the-basics music. Alongside musical saw, guitars and just-at-the-edge-of-hearing steel and dobro there’s extensive use of an Omnichord, and the production is clear and clean.

McAllister’s voice is occasionally reminiscent of the impossibly deep bass of Brad Roberts of the Crash Test Dummies, but generally simply low, quiet and thoughtful. It induces a thoughtfulness in the listener too, a space where they can contemplate and reflect on the choices they’ve made and their consequences. A rewarding listen.
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This debut embodies the spirit of every sad-sap folkie from Leonard Cohen to Sufjan Stevens.  Northwest native Andy McAllister, with some help from Jordan Walton and his acoustic arsenal, has stepped away from the emotional weightiness of the aforementioned musicians, opting instead for effortless lyrics and swaying, airy compositions.  McAllister's subtle rasp invites a picturesque setting of an old-timer rocking on the porch, toting life's recipe to all the neighborhood kiddies.  While most of the record remains solemn in tone, hints of optimism ("Godfather," "Honest Friend") remain.  Conrad Ford also takes cues from fellow lo-fi enthusiast M. Ward, adding the sound of a crackling record player to "Big Black Moon," the graceful closer to a focused, unassuming roots record.
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