El2 - Julian Lage

On "Layers", "View with a Room", and the gritty warmth of his guitar sound

WORDS BY CALEB FREEMAN
PHOTOGRAPHY BY SHERVIN LAINEZ
ILLUSTRATIONS BY KALYA RAMU & DANE THIBEAULT
INTERVIEW BY MICHAEL ZARATHUS-COOK

There is a sense of wide-eyed curiosity in Julian Lage when he discusses music. It’s an endearing quality coming from the accomplished guitarist and former childhood prodigy, who once played the GRAMMYS at age 12. 

Last year, Lage released the acclaimed album View with a Room, his second release for Blue Note Records and his third as a trio with bassist Jorge Roeder and drummer Dave King. The ten-song collection featured the addition of guitar icon Bill Frisell and was produced by singer-songwriter Margaret Glaspy; it was recorded by Mark Goodell with additional production by Armand Hirsch. 

Julian Lage - by Shervin Lainez

For Lage, View with a Room was an exploration, an attempt to “widen the aperture” of a trio record. He has described it as a “kind of seven-person art project” that attempted to balance lush orchestration with an “organic sense of improvisation and the agility of a small ensemble.” The result was a vibrant collection — infused with blues and swing — that highlighted the trio’s skill and versatility while also showcasing the evolution of their sound through their collaboration with Frisell.

Julian Lage by Dane Thibeault for Issue 12 of Cannopy Magazine

 Lage’s newest album, Layers, is a continuation of the experimental voyage he embarked on with View with a Room. A companion album to View, Layers has “all the musical seeds” of its predecessor, according to Lage─the same collaborators, the same vibrancy and sense of exploration. But at its core, the six-song collection is its own creation. It is sparser and more ethereal, more conversational in its expanded focus. Half of the songs find Lage playing an acoustic guitar, a further departure from last year’s record. The collection is another captivating release, one that stands on its own but also sheds new light on its companion. 

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CLIP: On the “gritty warmth” of his guitar