Ed Ackerson – Ackerson2

I have here Ed Ackerson‘s Ackerson2 album in my
frozen fingers, I don’t think there is an official release date, other than that
it’s already available for purchase. Incidentally, if you don’t know
who Ackerson is, he is probably best known for being the singer/founder
of Polara.

Sleeper and Polara ♥ Whiskey A-Go-Go, Los Angeles (29 Apr 1995)

I do have a funny anecdote about Polara, way back in the mid-nineties, I was really into Sleeper
and had saved up all my hopes and dream to see them at the Whiskey
A-Go-Go. This was a very special show for me, I even saved the concert
ticket from Ticketbastard.

Polara opened up for Sleeper, I didn’t know who they were back then,
but my friends were all savvy to them. It was 90s alternative rock and
from this set, they threw a Polara T-Shirt into the crowd and my friend
Shawn ended up grabbing it.

So, that’s how I was introduced to Polara.

I can’t say I have followed them that closely through the years, I am happy to see that they recently released Beekeeping, so be sure to check out Andrew’s review.

As the ‘2’ on Ackerson2 indicate, this is Ackerson’s
second solo album. While, I don’t have his earlier album for reference,
I can tell you that it’s somewhat of a departure from Polara. I get the
impression that Ackerson have a lot of songs and demos in his head, and
they don’t necessary fit in Polara’s noisy rock music.

The one song that really sounded different is a banjo-driven
song called “Run Away With Me”. Maybe it’s the banjo, or maybe it’s the
singing style, but it does bring up that folksy question.

Ackerson explains it:

In a lot of ways this record is about me exploring my
pre-noise roots, the influences at the beginning of my musical life
before I got into more experimental stuff. Sixties stuff, like Beatles,
Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel—the first
material I learned to play on guitar. The tight harmony singing, odd
juxtapositions of instruments, and playful production on records from
that time is still very appealing to me.

– Ed Ackerson, City Pages – November 19, 2007

“Go Ahead And Cry” is my favorite song on the album. It’s
a little upbeat, for the title and theme of the song, but I like it.
I’ll bet it should be fantastic live, especially with that banjo
section. Which, shock, there will be a CD release party at the Varsity Theater on November 28^th. Going there is now a pleasure as they have finally fixed that 35W bridge (it looks and drives much better now!).

You can pick up Ackerson’s album via Susstones Shop.