Premiere: Mike Sempert, ‘Distance’

Kevin Bronson on November 22nd, 2016

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Three years ago, Mike Sempert left behind the Bay Area and his band Birds & Batteries, with whom he made four albums and two EPs, and moved to Los Angeles. His solo debut, the writerly “Mid Dream,” followed in 2014, and this week sees the release of the follow-up, “Tend the Flame.” That the album’s title is an imperative is no accident. “With this one,” Sempert says, “I was just sick of dancing around the despair and complacency that I think we all deal with, particularly with climate change looming larger everyday.” Amid those anxieties and what has become, especially in 2016, seemingly unyielding existential dread, Sempert fashions an album that explores sounds ranging from modern orchestrated pop to indie folk to ’70s soft rock. At various junctures, you might be reminded of Bon Iver, Matt Pond PA, Father John Misty, Sea Wolf and even Toto.

Far from thumb-sucking mopery, though, Sempert remains mostly upbeat, even if it’s a tempered optimism. He sings, “Let’s pretend / that the world’s not coming to an end” to introduce “What I Want,” which is basically an activist’s call to arms. “Goodbye Polar Bear” and “Annihilation Bossa” take a dim view of the planet’s future, but in a rather jolly way. Sound the horns, because Sempert takes consolation in knowing there will still be beauty here after we’re gone. The shimmering “Distance” is for fans of Justin Vernon’s yearning falsetto; here, Sempert seeks reassurance via a long-distance phone call and instead has trouble with the connection. As subtle metaphors go, it’s dialed in.

||| Stream: “Distance”