Album Notes

What do musicians know that you don’t? Well, some of them already know about Kevin Loy and his provocative music. Steve Katz (of Blood, Sweat & Tears), in his liner notes to Kevin’s third album, called him a songwriter “in the best tradition of the Sixties”, naming his sound “Urban White Folk Music of the 21st Century” and writing that Kevin has “more hooks up his sleeve than Burt Bacharach”. Nathaniel James (of The Friction Brothers) said Kevin’s writing and arrangements boast “catchy hooks and sophisticated melodies…every song is essential”, and later named Kevin’s album “Throw Money” amongst his personal Top 20 albums list. Chris Henderson (of Three Doors Down) has called Kevin’s sound “totally different” (even if it wasn’t a compliment). But Kevin is setting his sights higher than just receiving the accolades of his fellow musicians. Plain Sleeve, the new album by Kevin Loy (set for release on June 28th), is his bid for mainstream recognition.

“I’ve had people refer to my music as ‘experimental’ before, but really, this is my first truly experimental album by virtue – I’ve never done anything this straightforward before now.” Indeed, much of the abstraction and ‘avant-garde’ aspects of his earlier work are put aside for Plain Sleeve, instead highlighting Kevin’s undeniable knack for pop songcraft, albeit songcraft that is particularly tempered by the attack of guitar-based rock on this release. The three singles slated for release from this album (“CEMA”, "Roy Orbison" and “Los Angeles, Silverlake”) readily attest to this strict focus on pop/rock songcraft, and Kevin has said “those three songs are amongst the best I’ve ever written”.

Plain Sleeve also features contributions from Nathaniel James (of The Friction Brothers) on bass and guitar and Stanley Watson on drums. Although Nathaniel has appeared on previous Kevin Loy albums, this album is Stanley’s first release. “Stan and I have known each other since we were kids, but we fell out of touch for a bit. We started discussing music, so I passed off a copy of “Throw Money” to him. To my surprise, he was floored by the album, and his enthusiasm is a lot of the reason why this album even exists.”