If you locked Leonard Cohen, Sonic Youth and Eeyore in a damp basement with access to a home recording system, chances are you would
get a song similar to Wm Perry's “Funeral Birds.” The indie feeling in this and other tracks could be attributed to the DIY nature of the songwriter's
craft. He is a self-proclaimed failure who refused to succumb to economic downturns and moved out of Chicago taking his dreams of self-expression with
him.
Lyrical qualities reflect the poetic sentiment offered up by the likes of Nick Cave and Tom Petty. Inclusions from a wide range of influences
including pre-WW2 blues make for songs which grip beneath a solid sense of time and rhythm. Perry's work could easily be overlooked, but it carries
well and hits upon themes common to many who pursue their creativity despite feeling outsourced or pushed around. “Graveful” reminisces on the idea of
how full a grave can get with the scratchy vocal tone of Bob Dylan and instrumentation of varied folk and blues predecessors.
Though Perry is older than the pop icons rising and falling across radio airwaves, listeners will connect to an honest spirit of carrying on after
the fallout from failed dreams cascades like snow around us. Though lyrically dark, poignant ideas spill out and the main message to take away from Wm
Perry's work is that true artists still exist in basements on DIY recording systems. Wm Perry will perform at the MidPoint Music Festival this Sept.
23, 24, & 25 in Cincinnati, OH. To listen visit: http://www.sonicbids.com/WmPerry
Review by Ellen Eldridge
