Dessa‘s refined array of philosophical allusion and cerebral wordplay is a danger to casual listeners. The rhyme-slinging Minneapolis vocalist/poet/Doomtree member has developed a mastery of enchanting razor-melancholia and poignant imagery in her lyricism and melody, demanding attentive listening with endless value for the rewind-button analysts. She’s taken command of 2013 with her remarkable new album, Parts of Speech, in which the soft-slug cerebral songstress pulls from her spoken-word past in conjuring a poetic expressionism that’s haunting and hypnotic.
As September’s Band of The Month featured artist, we caught up with Dessa on a beautiful Summer morning in the Hollywood hills for an intimate performance featuring several tracks off Parts of Speech and an interview session, which we’ll continue to bring you every Thursday throughout the month.
We kicked off our BOTM: Dessa feature with an intimate performance of her heartwrenching track “Call Off Your Ghost,” and followed up with a uniquely stripped-down rendition of “The Lamb”. Continuing the session series from the day, we now bring you a reworked version of “The Man I Knew,” a poignant perspective on love through the lens of substance abuse, replete live guitar riffs provided by Dustin Kiel and the gorgeous harmonies between Dessa and her vocal partner Aby Wolf.
Check back next Thursday for another exclusive Dessa performance! Get Parts of Speech, find tour dates and keep up with Dessa at her official site, as well as on Facebook and Twitter.
Previous Band of The Month Performances:
Alain Johannes / Grieves / Steel Panther / Vintage Trouble / Semi Precious Weapons
Hot Karate / RX Bandits / Nico Vega / The Mowgli’s / Dessa / Everlast
The Wild Feathers / The Silent Comedy / LP
