“I have been playing this guitar and it is a true beauty, no doubt!”
– Glen Hansard
Over 20 years in the making, singer songwriter Glen Hansard will release his first solo album, Rhythm and Repose, on Plateau on June 15 (Anti Records for the rest of the world).
Best known for his work with The Frames, The Swell Season and in the feature film Once, for which he won an Academy Award, Rhythm and Repose is Hansard’s first album of new material since his 2009 release Strict Joy with The Swell Season.
Rhythm and Repose is a result of Hansard’s last year and a half of living in New York City. The album was recorded by Patrick Dillett (David Byrne, Arto Lindsay, Laurie Anderson) and produced by Thomas Bartlett (Doveman, The National, Antony and the Johnsons). The record features the musical talents of Brad Albetta (Martha Wainwright) on bass, Ray Rizzo on drums, Nico Muhly and Rob Moose on strings (Bon Iver, Y Music), David Mansfield on slide guitar (Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Tour), Javier Mas (Leonard Cohen touring band) and half of Bruce Springsteen’s current horn section. Assisting on vocals are Cristin Milioti (Once, The Musical), Sam Amidon, Marketa Irglova and Aida Shahghasemi (Marketa Irglova touring band).
In recent months Hansard has been seen in the documentary The Swell Season which has toured the film festival circuit this year, contributed two songs to the blockbuster soundtrack, The Hunger Games, and been active in the promotion of Once, The Musical which successfully opened on Broadway on March 18 to rave reviews, including the New York Times who explains, “what was always wonderful about ‘Once,’ its songs and its staging, has been magnified.”
Hansard is celebrated as the principal songwriter and vocalist/guitarist for The Frames. He garnered a reputation as not only an unparalleled front man, but also for his dedicated following and his grounded, real-life songs. Whether he’s busking the streets of Dublin, where he got his start, or at the Hollywood Bowl, Hansard is always earnest and in-the-moment.
Hansard is also one half of the acclaimed duo The Swell Season. In 2007, he and Czech songstress Markéta Irglová took home the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Falling Slowly” off the Once soundtrack. Hansard and Irglová continued the success of Once with the 2009 release Strict Joy under the namesake of The Swell Season.
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