Ira Lawrence
New York City, New York, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2015 | SELF
Music
Press
9. Elegant Freefall – Ira Lawrences Haunted Mandolin- Lawrence turns one mandolin into an enormous array of sounds, turning out some wildly inventive pop songs along the way. - Independent Clauses
"The Americana-tinged folk songs crafted by Ira Lawrence certainly sound embedded with the ghosts of eras past. It’s an electric mandolin played like an acoustic guitar, but with the spirit of a banjo and the reverb of a football stadium – deeply rooted in American folk but also somehow transcendent and worldly. He throws his voice wildly at approximations of notes, somehow slurred and articulate simultaneously. Ira Lawrences Haunted Mandolin is full of quirk and curiosity, with gentle platitudes and oddly named characters who seem to exist outside of time." - No Smoking Media
Elegant Freefall by Ira Lawrences Haunted Mandolin is the rare “constraint project” that can be appreciated without knowing what the rules were. These songs stand up on their own as hummable, admirable, thoughtful pieces. I’d recommend this to anyone, but I think it would be particularly relevant for those who are interested in the type of indie-rock that pushes the rules for the sake of wondering what’s out there past them. Highly recommended. - Independent Clauses
"Spectral, fuzzed-out folk"-THRDCoast - THRDCoast
"The stories Ira tells are less fully formed than feverish glimpses of the big picture, like watching a DVD at 32 times normal speed. And his bluntly throaty voice is an ideal imperfection to run through these slivers, an unmannered, yelping earnestness that sells such restlessness as sincere even when it sounds like John Ashbery madlibs-viz... It makes for fine indie-rock spiked with playful jitters-think Ted Leo/Pharmacists exploding into something almost as barn-levitating as Califone." - CITY PAPER BALTIMORE
Discography
Albums-
MAPAGKAWANGGAWA (out Fall 2016)
EPS-
ELEGANT FREEFALL (2015- #9 Best EP of 2015 by Independent Clauses).
Photos
Bio
Ira Lawrence is an internationally produced playwright who inherited a haunted electric mandolin from his estranged grandmother in 2014. After releasing his acclaimed debut EP "Elegant Freefall" (Independent Clauses #9 Best EP of 2015), he left Brooklyn for the Philippines with his AustraliAmerican Theater Collective EVERYTHING IS EVERYWHERE (2 Aussies 2 Americans 2 gals 2 dudes 2 goys 2 Jews 2 legit 2 quit) to write, teach, and perform at Manila's Karnabal Festival of performance and social innovation. While in The Philippines, Ira visited bombed out hospitals on the island of Corregidor, a sunken cemetery on the island of Camiguin, and almost got cast as a lead in a Filipino soap opera. MAPAGKAWANGGAWA, his debut album, is a self-recorded 11-song musical travelogue informed by Ira’s adventure abroad- exploring alienation from friends, the excitement of being immersed in a new culture, and America’s tenuous history with The Philippines (which at one point was on track to be America’s 51st state). MAPAGKAWANGGAWA is also a Tagalog word for charitable and philanthropic. So, upon the album’s release in Fall of 2016, one dollar of every album sale will be donated back to The Sipat Lawin Ensemble- the vibrant and audacious Filipino theater company behind Karnabal. The album was self recorded in Brooklyn at Ryan & Molly's apartment between Christmas and New Years 2015 and mixed and mastered by John Jagos aka Brothertiger in Greenpoint.
MAPAGKAWANGGAWA will be released 10/7/16 digitally and on a limited edition USB harddrive. Ira is working with The Planetary Group for PR.
www.iralawrence.com
NO SYNTHS
NO GUITARS
NO DRUMS
ONLY IRA LAWRENCES HAUNTED MANDOLIN
Ira has shared the stage with Classic Rockers Blue Oyster Cult, Scottish Shoegazers The Twilight Sad, Metalheads Red Fang, and Rapper Cee Knowledge (of Digable Planets).
"That mandolin does sound haunted in a very good way"- Jens Lekman
"#9 Best EP of 2015"- Independent Clauses
"The Americana-tinged folk songs crafted by Ira Lawrence certainly sound embedded with the ghosts of eras past. It’s an electric mandolin played like an acoustic guitar, but with the spirit of a banjo and the reverb of a football stadium – deeply rooted in American folk but also somehow transcendent and worldly. He throws his voice wildly at approximations of notes, somehow slurred and articulate simultaneously. Ira Lawrences Haunted Mandolin is full of quirk and curiosity, with gentle platitudes and oddly named characters who seem to exist outside of time."- No Smoking Media
"Elegant Freefall by Ira Lawrences Haunted Mandolin is the rare 'constraint project' that can be appreciated without knowing what the rules were. These songs stand up on their own as hummable, admirable, thoughtful pieces. I’d recommend this to anyone, but I think it would be particularly relevant for those who are interested in the type of indie-rock that pushes the rules for the sake of wondering what’s out there past them. Highly recommended."- Independent Clauses
"Spectral, fuzzed-out folk"-ThrdCoast
2016 FALL TOUR:
9/15/16- Friends & Lovers- Brooklyn, NY MONDO.NYC
9/18/16- Pianos- Manhattan, NY MONDO.NYC
9/24/16- Modesthaus- Boston, MA
10/12/16- PG- Evansville, IA
10/13/16- Buffalo Room- Kansas City, KS
10/17/16- Foam- Saint Louis, MO
10/20/16- Mahals- Lakewood, OH
10/21/16- The Donkey- Athens, OH
10/22/16- Hive Mind- Akron, OH
Twitter/Instagram: @iragamerman
Bandcamp: Iralawrence.bandcamp.com
Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/iralawrence
Booking/ Press inquiries: iragamerman@gmail.com/ 410-812-9868
Band Members
Links
