Songs of the Week: Luke Belling, Royce Johns, & Philip Bowen

Welcome to Songs of the Week, a running series with new selections.

Luke Belling – “A Stone in the Mouth of the Ocean”

We are but a dot on a map. A grain of sand on life’s limitless beach. A meager flame that snuffs out as quickly and abruptly as it lights. That’s the throbbing center of Luke Belling’s “A Stone in the Mouth of the Ocean.” Piano plays like delicate shadows, fluttering around his reedy voice as wheat brushing your face in the hot sun. “Before the tightrope walker leads me to the slaughter / The bankroll daughter ships me ‘cross the border,” sings Belling, the weight of human frailty pressing down upon his shoulder blades. “With a bottle full of bitter / A note from the vicar / Blood on the holy altar.” We are, if nothing else, ghosts traversing through existence before the final hour. Belling’s performance is undeniably haunting, and it just might have you questioning your life.

Royce Johns – “Wish I Was”

We’ve all got problems — and we think they’re the biggest in the world. But in reality, they are a drop in the bucket compared to life’s grandeur and many pleasures. With his new song “Wish I Was,” the singer-songwriter envisions other perspectives on life, from being an old oak tree to a skipping stone. “Wish I was a shooting star, handing out wishes wherever they are / Come on up and take ’em too far,” he sings. “Wish I was a shooting star / Wish I was that carefree, without a worry, without a need / Troubles to the wind / And out of touch / I ain’t there, but I wish I was.” There’s a particular heaviness to his performance that soaks into the bones, yet the light production and arrangement deceive him. It certainly puts everything into startling perspective.

Philip Bowen – “Vampire in Appalachia”

Philip Bowen is a masterful storyteller, and that’s not more evident in his song “Vampire in Appalachia.” A collaboration with Josiah and the Bonnevilles, the blood-draining song depicts the desperation of the sweeping emerald hills. “All the money leaves for Wall Street or someplace across the sea,” sings Josiah Leming. “There ain’t enough to pay our teachers, and the drugs keep flowing free.” The words fall like timber, crashing with a resounding thud! into the earth. For his part, Bowen’s voice twists and blows over the melody. It’s a performance that’ll knock you off your feet, that’s for sure.

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