WARD WHITE: Maybe, But Probably Not

Ward White

Maybe, But Probably Not

© 2006 Ward White

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Pleasantly Disjointed

tracks

1 Things Kept Falling
2 Don't
3 Maybe, But Probably Not
4 Undertow
5 L.A. Is Not The Answer
6 Hole In The Head
7 Cheeseball # 2
8 Can You Lie?
9 So Long

notes

Ward White is a singer and songwriter living in Brooklyn, New York. He also plays the guitar. Ward has made several records that you may enjoy. His latest, Maybe, But Probably Not, is available now.

Built on solo acoustic demos for an upcoming album, Maybe, But Probably Not is a record conceived in reverse: Rather than attempting to recreate the energy of the single take recordings in a traditional studio environment Ward chose to follow their lead, eventually layering drums, bass, and string quartet to achieve a sonority he describes as "pleasantly disjointed". The nine songs on MBPN balance the immediacy of the performances (no changes were made to the original vocal or guitar tracks) with the complexity of interweaving string lines to showcase Ward's lyrics, the core of the album.

String arrangements and brevity aside, two records that informed the shaping of MBPN are Colin Blunstone's ethereal One Year and John Cale's seminal Paris 1919. "I kept returning to those records during the process of making this album - in my mind both are marvels of economy, taste, and strange beauty."

Anchored by Ward's voice and guitar, Maybe, But Probably Not features lush string arrangements from Claudia Chopek (Loser's Lounge, Shelby, Cerveris) and drums courtesy of Nigel Rawles, one half of the late lamented NYC band, Scout.

reviews

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  • author: Time Out New York - July 12, 2006

    "Dramatic local popsmith Ward White sounds refreshingly subversive on his self-released CD, Maybe But Probably Not. These are love songs, but White’s subtle winks at the form – not to mention his high, unabashed voice – keep us engaged."

  • Chamber rock has never been so exhilarating
    author: Alan Young, Trifecta Newsletter, Choice pick - 3/6/2006

    MAYBE BUT PROBABLY NOT ... is this year's first instant classic, the high point so far in the career of the American Richard Thompson. White is a virtual anomaly among US rock songwriters, a brutally cynical, dazzling wordsmith with equally spectacular guitar chops and a straight-up rock sensibility. No solipsistic folkie whining here. No cheesy synthesizers or dated 90s trip-hop production. This album ROCKS....quietly. White's tasteful, minimalist production sets his Bowie-inflected vocals soaring over tersely arranged acoustic and electric guitars and a string quartet. Chamber rock has never been so exhilarating. ..wickedly playful, literate lyricism. He ...employs devices including personification, metonymy and meta in ways that few English-language writers have done outside the covers of a book. The substance of this album matches its style, milligram for milligram. I believe that is how bile is measured. White knows that banality of evil can sometimes be very funny, if in a blackly humorous way, and there are as many laugh-out-loud jokes on this album as there are instantly recognizable moments for anyone who's ever been screwed in a relationship or struggled to refrain from decking an obnoxious boss. Maybe But Probably Not ranks with Armed Forces by Elvis Costello, Mirror Blue by Richard Thompson and Mad Within Reason by LJ Murphy as one of the alltime great pissed-off lyrical rock records. It's also a trenchant warning not to ever, ever mess with a songwriter. They always get even in the end.

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