Robert Deeble and I worked together at Kinko’s way back in the early 90s. I’d been involved in the singer/songwriter thing for several years and remember feeling somewhat surprised when he confessed to me that he had he wanted to record an album. He said that he wanted to create music that was quiet, with cello and violin, and vocals that were almost a whisper. At the time, it sounded rather outrageous to me but, a few years later when I heard his first CD, Days Like These, he’d masterfully captured his original vision.
Since then, quiet, introspective, and deeply emotional music has become de riguer.
Deeble’s been on tour in support of his new album, Heart Like Feathers, his first in six years. This Wednesday, he’s returning to Long Beach (he’s lived in the Seattle area for many years) for a secret show. He’ll be playing with several local luminaries, including singer/songwriter Lili de la Mora, producer/drummer Anthony Arvizu, and bassist Gregory Coates.
“This record, from the get go, was acknowledging a darker turn in life that the previous album had hinted towards, but with more of an ascension in the end. It basically has that very subtle theme of death and rebirth, seasons of fall, and winter to spring, that a lot of literature and life wrestles with. The theme wasn’t deliberate in my intention of writing, but more a reflective response to the prior six years since the last record. However, there was a very ‘heart like feathers’ experience that occurred while recording the album, and that was my foster child. She really became a real example of joy in my life that the album, although it had already been written, lived into.”
Even though Deeble’s music may evoke a certain Pacific Northwest aesthetic, he still feels very connected to his roots in Long Beach.
“You will hear a lot of Long Beach on all my records, both the ones written when I was in town and the ones from the Northwest, but its not the sunny California thing. That never was my personality. The thing you will hear regarding place in my music is a practical grounding that the LBC raised me with. A less sophisticated way of saying it is that I have subtle punk rock edge to what I do that I think I inherited from my home town. This is a very subtle thing, though. I’m obviously not a tattooed screamer, but I absolutely detest bad ‘singer/songwriter slumped over a tip jar’ type music – while, at the same time, I am singer/songwriter.
“My ‘LBC’ comes out a bit with my commitment to writing honest songs that hold a tension of mystery and humanness. Whether that is acknowledging the confusion of an affair (“Undertow”), the haunted beauty of a lost client (“Hearing Voices”) or wonderings about God and spirituality.
“The delineation is that my view of art is not to write in order to please people, and then expect their adoration, but to serve others artistically by bringing myself to the table with thoughts, ideas, and curiosity that remind us all that life is a meaningful experience.”
During his time away from performing and recording, Deeble pursued a Master’s degree in psychology, something he admits has influenced his writing.
“Psychology has provided a formal context in the study of people but, because of the program I entered and its emphasis on relational psychology, it also has helped me live into relationships more, not just observe them. That translates into my music especially in songs like “Eucharist,” which describes the very alive feeling of being in an argument with someone you love.
“I subscribe to the belief that, rather than letting go or being re-traumatized, we need to learn to metabolize our experiences. It’s what I try to help my clients with. Learning to form our experience into a narrative allows us to move beyond it without running from it. I think it can be trickier, though, if such experiences involve others close to you. So its a balancing act and I think artists develop the skill of crafting narratives that are honest while still maintaining boundaries.”
Mid-way through the album is “The Color of Dying.” I found it to be deeply moving, both musically and lyrically. I asked Deeble about the last stanza, which reads, “My heart a solitary bird that flies at night. Break this darkened will until it bleeds some light.”
“The line, for me, represents the acceptance of my own darkness while, at the same time, the positive restraint of will and, at the end of the day, asks for something beyond me to hold those two thing in perspective.
“It’s similar to what Leonard Cohen said, that there’s a crack in everything, and that’s how the light gets in. Or the early Christian writers who were trying to ride the tension of grace within humanness.”
For his last album, Deeble had found the rigors of touring to be challenging but, on this tour, he’s approached it with a different purpose.
“For starters, I see myself differently. I’m older now, and I am OK with that. My marriage has survived 20 amazing years, and I am grateful for that. Gratitude does much for the soul. My friends and fans have grown with me, and it’s nice to join them in that. I step out not just as a musician, artist, and writer, but as a father, husband/partner, provider, and a member of my community. It’s a different awareness of myself that I think allows me to share and enjoy more of myself with others, and I’m looking forward to doing that, musically.”
To gain access to the secret show, send an email to [email protected]. Seating is extremely limited.
On Thursday, July 11, Robert will also be performing at the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood. The event is public but no advance tickets are available. You can buy them at the door. He will start promptly at 8 PM.
More information, including audio previews and lyrics to songs from Heart Like Feathers, can be found at RobertDeeble.com.