Prolific SF singer/songwriter Kelley Stoltz celebrates new album at the Chapel
A Bay Area songwriter who has been setting the bar high for bedroom studio producers for over two decades, Kelley Stoltz headlines a show at the Chapel Thursday to celebrate his new album, La Fleur.
While he initially worked in the music industry while living in New York City during the '90s, Stoltz didn't release his first album until 1999 after he had relocated to San Francisco. Recorded entirely solo on four-track over the space of several years, The Past Is Faster announced Stoltz as a talented songwriter with a gift for crafting lush, lo-fi pop psychedelia.
His follow-up effort Antique Glow two years later found him upgrading his home-recording setup to a Tascam 388 1/4" reel-to-reel tape machine and further spread the word of his music with CD releases by Bay Area imprint Jackpine Social Club in the U.S. and Raoul Records in Australia.
With his profile raised by reviews praising Antique Glow and his full album tribute re-recording of the classic Echo and the Bunnymen album Crocodiles (Stoltz's version -- entitled Crockodiles -- was tracked in just a week), the musician stepped up his international touring and eventually got signed to Sub Pop Records.
His debut EP (The Sun Comes Through) in 2005 and subsequent string of albums for the label offered further proof of how Stoltz had refined his knack for Beatles/Beach Boys hooks and harmonies while maintaining the sometimes fractured sonic aesthetic of his home recordings. He also branched out and helped other Bay Area artists in the studio, including garage rockers Thee Oh Sees and fellow songwriter Bart Davenport.
Stoltz would eventually move on from Sub Pop after the release of his 2010 effort To Dreamers, issuing his next album Double Exposure on Jack White's Third Man Records three years later and opening on part of the tour promoting the White solo record Lazaretto (the guitarist has long been an admirer of Stoltz's, bringing him along as support for a tour by power-pop supergroup the Raconteurs a decade earlier).
The songwriter has maintained a high level of productivity in the years since, releasing six albums under his own name along with additional side project efforts -- including a concert recording by the fictional band Strat (Live at the Whammy Bar) and the collaborative Falcon/Faulkland set Energy Beats Perfection made with Garth Steel Klippert -- as well as spending two years as touring rhythm guitarist for Echo and the Bunnymen.
In 2021, Stoltz released both the punchy collection of "power pub" anthems Hard Feelings and the more pop-minded Ah! (etc), which features contributions by Echo & the Bunnymen guitarist Will Sergeant, noted local singer Karina Denike (Dance Hall Crashers, Red Room Orchestra) and guitarist/songwriter Allyson Baker (Dirty Ghosts).
Stoltz and his band featuring Baker and guitarist/keyboard player Doug Hilsinger (Bomb, Enorchestra) also took the stage in 2021 at the Chapel for two outdoor dinner shows celebrating Ah! (etc) with a psychedelic light show by Mad Alchemy and Stoltz singing from a third-story window to be in compliance with the COVID restrictions that were then in place for live performance.
Later that year, Stoltz and company played the Great American Music Hall for a special show marking the 20th anniversary of Antique Glow and its deluxe reissue on Third Man Records. When he originally self-released the album two decades ago, Stoltz pressed a limited number of records that he adorned with unique hand-painted covers from reclaimed thrift store LP jackets. Those copies have become coveted collectors items, fetching hundreds of dollars on eBay.
This new expanded vinyl and digital reissue of the album by Third Man features a treasure trove of bonus material. With difficult-to-find cuts that were on an Australian tour-only CD as well eight additional tunes from the Antique Glow-era that have never been released before, the deluxe remastered edition of Stoltz's one-man bedroom studio masterwork features twice as many songs as the original version. The always busy Stoltz has released two new albums since then, including his latest solo effort Le Fleur that came out last week. For this record release party at the Chapel Thursday night, Stoltz and his band will be joined by indie rockers Chime School and songwriter Mayya.
Kelley Stoltz with Chime School and Mayya
Thursday, June 13, 7 p.m. $15-$20
The Chapel
