Nicholas Lurwick

Nicholas Lurwick has been writing songs since he first picked up a guitar at only 15 years old. With a want to write good songs, he performed and played with other musicians over the years but never really found a real partnership in songwriting.

After picking up and then losing a drummer, Lurwick struggled with finding a band to perform with and went on writing and recording on his own. After years of honing in on his crafts and recording dozens of songs, the artist finally came into a strange sense of self-realization through heartbreak and a mental breakdown.

The Early Spring Blues album is a testament to his life journey to this point - Jammerzine

Nick lurwick

​Early Spring Blues
self-released; 2018

​3.8 out of 5

By Ryan Kachikis

Folk-rock balladeer Nick Lurwick may hail from the north-east but his sound is purely southern - combining folk, country and R&B straight from the ’70s; a sound honed at the intersection of Nashville, Tennessee and Muscle Shoals, Alabama. In the video for the opening salvo “The Factory” Lurwick alternates scenes of an indoor suicide attempt and a walk into the woods outside the cabin, feverish with depression, before the twist occurs and Lurwick is merely jumping from his chair, while outside Lurwick bends around a tree and runs back to the camera smiling.

It’s affecting and represents the feeling of reaching the brink and choosing to turn back to the light; the sentiment is expressed later in the album on “Soft Noose Trash Blues” a driving rocker incorporating elements of gospel, similar to Paul Simon’s classic “Kodachrome.”

The genre here is a classic one, decades removed from the zeitgeist but in recent years revived by artists like Milk Carton Kids, The Felice Brothers and Connor Oberst. Where Lurwick could come off as derivative, he instead uses his conviction, sincerity and a focused dedication to the stylistic precedents to achieve the “timeless” feel: removed from and a contemporary of his idols simultaneously.

​His voice, an attention grabbing nasal honk popularized by Dylan but endowed more recently to Sub-Pop artist Kyle Craft swaggers through the eight tracks of Early Spring Blues; chilled and somber on “Until The Morning Came,” more of a pleading emotion displayed on “Those Pictures You Left Behind.” The songs features an in-the-moment lyrical perspective that occasionally zone out to reflection; the sad kind, where Lurwick “never gave you the best” and “would’ve treated you so perfectly.” In some sense this could be read as a “breakup album,” but I think that’s only a slice of the full life displayed here.

An acoustic guitar is the skeleton of Lurwick’s rich body of work, whose blood and guts are the heartbeat bass, swelling church organ, time honored tele riffs and vocals harmonies. He uses the harmonica as a second voice throughout, the melodic scream his voice box is too restrained to let out but breathes through the reeds. The drums are simple, simply ticking the time away responsibly so Lurwick can get really creative elsewhere, although “The Castle In The Sky” does feature some nice snare work towards the end, a confederate march by a union soldier. “I couldn’t grasp the concept, it was too abstract for me” sings Lurwick, but for the listener this album is easy to understand, another chapter written in the big book of Americana. It’s well worth a listen though, and its vibrant and impassioned approximation of such a well worn style shows that Lurwick is deserving of a place at the table with the giant shoulders he stands on. - Divide and Conquer

That folk-rock balladeer Nicholas Lurwick wrote, produced and recorded the entirety of this album is a wonder. Its polish and charm is evident from the off. Opener ‛The Factory’ makes a strong statement – a quirky yet traditional-sounding track with some lovely overdubs, an arresting melody and wonderful vocals. Nick Lurwick sounds a little like Neil Young, a little like Gram Parson, but most of all he sounds like himself; an unique and unmistakable voice, mature, wholly sincere and drenched in a fine brew of Americana and Folk.

Nick states that, after years of recording, he finally came into a strange sense of self-realisation through heartbreak and a mental breakdown. The profundity and pathos of those experiences run throughout Early Spring Blues, but this is not a record which feels sorry for itself. There is plenty of strength to go with its beauty.

Perhaps what is so surprising about this set is just how accomplished it feels. The arrangements and production are simply fantastic, with little touches and nuance that can only truly be appreciated with multiple listens. Take the wonderful ‛I’m Not Here For Business Any More’ with its simple refrain underpinned by graceful washes of harmonica, piano and choral vocals.

The song-writing throughout is as strong as you could wish for. There is variety in the musical palette and much invention, but the backbone of Early Spring Blues is Lurwick’s honest and memorable lyricism. Fans of the genre will find much to love here, and those new to the scene will be delighted by the pop sensibility on display. - music-news.com