NASHVILLE DUO HAUNTED LIKE HUMAN RELEASE FIRST SINGLE “STAY” ON 7/23
ALBUM TALL TALES & FABLES COMING OCTOBER 15, 2021
Photo Credit: Caroline Voisine
“STAY” LISTEN
NASHVILLE, TENN. - On their new record Tall Tales & Fables (out October 15), Nashville duo Haunted Like Human - Cody Clark (multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter) and Dale Chapman (lead singer, lyricist) - delve deeper into inspired songwriting, sparse arrangements, and, naturally, the frisson-inducing harmonies that marked their previous two releases. Despite the album’s title, these songs are honest, above all else. Real, tender, messy honesty.
Today, they premiere the first single “Stay,” that deploys vocal counterpoint to heighten the friction at the heart of the song.
“The stirring acoustic number puts mental health at the forefront, as they ride ravaged waters with grace and ease, alongside a peaceful melody of guitar and strings complementing their haunting, yet serene harmonies.” -AudioFemme
“These are some of my favorite harmonies that we’ve written,” says Chapman. The song deals with a relationship fractured by mental illness, and the harmonies tell both sides of the story. “It’s about looking your demons in the eye, laying all your cards on the table, and reckoning with the damage that’s been done. In the bridge, it’s all stripped down to two people pleading for the other to not give up on them, which I think is so uncomfortably honest and powerful,” Chapman says. Clark and Chapman sing against each other, an iteration of the tension created by the rushed murmur of Chapman’s delivery and refined strings.
“We put a ton of emphasis on storytelling in each of our songs. We tell our own stories, we tell other people’s stories, we tell stories that we’ve seen from touring,” says Cody Clark.
Limned with nostalgia, soaked in Southern gothic lore, the duo meticulously assembles songs to preserve the spirit of the stories they tell.
With a background in poetry and prose, Dale Chapman’s granular focus on language is simpatico with Clark’s background in classical guitar.
ABOUT HAUNTED LIKE HUMAN:
Hoping to find collaborators who were serious about music, Clark drove from Oregon to Nashville in 2017. Within a couple days, he met Chapman at a coffee shop. She deduced that he was a lost tourist and struck up a conversation, leading to a cowriting session. Next thing they knew, Clark had relocated to Nashville and they were making their first album, Ghost Stories. On the heels of that, they offered up their Folklore EP, featuring standout single “Feels Like Fire.” While that EP sought to channel the minimalist, intimate spirit of their live shows, Tall Tales & Fables is the next step in their maturation. Polished but not shiny, the album benefits from Mitch Dane’s production. Together with skilled string players, the album developed its own life while staying true to Clark and Chapman’s partnership, one built on literal and metaphorical voices.
Tall Tales & Fables will be self-released on October 15, 2021.
“STAY” AVAILABLE 7/23
