Let’s get this out of the way right up top, I think William Tyler has moved to Los Angeles. I might be wrong but, if true, his presence here on a site about Nashville area music is a bit of a stretch. However, Tyler has been involved with so many phenomenal bands and projects over the years – from Lifeboy to Character to Lambchop to Silver Jews to his own solo albums – that it feels callous not to continue to claim him as one of our own. Hell, his Bandcamp still says Nashville so let’s just embrace willful ignorance and go with that.
The real story here is that William Tyler will release a brand new album entitled Goes West on January 25th via Merge Records and has released the first single “Fail Safe” as a tease of what to expect from the full record.
It’s a bit early to be able to forecast what the album will sound like in totality but early press releases and insights note that Tyler only plays acoustic guitar on the record, as opposed to his excellent electric work on previous releases like Modern Country. That being said, I can’t imagine that one aspect of the recording being of any concern. Tyler has been making compelling music for several decades now and I imagine this record will be as intriguing as ever.
The album is available for pre-order and can include a bonus CD of exclusive songs that won’t be released elsewhere. I’ll also add that the Robert Beatty artwork is mesmerizing and I can’t look away.