Folk musician Esther Rose is releasing her sophomore full-length, You Made It This Far, at the end of August. The New Orleans based singer has already shared a few songs from that album, including “Don’t Blame It On The Moon” and “Handyman.” At the end of May, she shared a fun video for “Only Loving You,” reinforcing her sweet, country aesthetic. Today, she’s shared another track called “Sex And Magic,” and announced she’s heading out on tour this summer and fall.

Considering how retro her sound is, the title of this track feels a little unexpected and brash — yet her simplistic and straightforward delivery demystify any titular implications. Slow strums and fiddles just barely mosey along, and a sense of longing results in an almost yodel tone vocally. Here’s what Esther had to say about the song:

This song brings me back to a very specific moment; sitting at my writing desk in the morning, staring out the window, hung-over, moved-out, and out of love. I recently searched back in my voice memos to find the original demo, and to my surprise it was on Feb 11, 2018. That was two days before Mardi Gras and three days before Valentine’s Day. Figures. I was fresh out of a long time relationship and lonely as hell. People have told me that this song makes them feel nostalgic in a way they can’t explain. We don’t have a great English equivalent, but in Portuguese they say “saudade” — a deep emotional state of nostalgic or profound melancholic longing for an absent something or someone that one loves. Moreover, it often carries a repressed knowledge that the object of longing might never return.

Check out “Sex and Magic below, where you can also find those dates. And for more Esther Rose, revisit her recent Stereogum Session from our offices in New York’s Times Square.

TOUR DATES:
06/29 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
07/11 – Winston-Salem, NC @ The Ramkat (w/ Charley Crockett)
07/14 – Virginia Beach, VA @ Elevation 27 (w/ Charley Crockett)
07/16 – Raleigh, NC @ Lincoln Theatre (w/ Charley Crockett)
07/17 – Isle of Palms, SC @ The Windjammer (w/ Charley Crockett)
07/18 – Asheville, NC @ The Grey Eagle (w/ Charley Crockett)
07/22 – Philadelphia, PA @ Milkboy (w/ Charley Crockett)
07/23 – Washington, DC @ City Winery (w/ Charley Crockett)
08/03 – Birmingham, AL @ Secret Stages Festival
08/30 – Baton Rouge, LA @ Varsity Theatre (w/ Robert Earl Keen)
09/05-09/06 – North Hillsdale, NY @ Oldtone Roots Music Festival
09/13 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue (w/ Nick Lowe, Los Straitjackets)
09/14 – Iowa City, IA @ The Englert Theatre (w/ Nick Lowe, Los Straitjackets)
09/17 – Toronto, ON @ The Horseshoe Tavern (w/ Nick Lowe, Los Straitjackets)
09/18 – Toronto, ON @ The Horseshoe Tavern (w/ Nick Lowe, Los Straitjackets)
09/20 – Buffalo, NY @ The Tralf Music Hall (w/ Nick Lowe, Los Straitjackets)
09/21 – Millvale, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre (w/ Nick Lowe, Los Straitjackets)
09/24 – Columbus, OH @ Davidson Theatre (w/ Nick Lowe, Los Straitjackets)
09/25 – Indianapolis, IN @ The Hi-Fi (w/ Nick Lowe, Los Straitjackets)

You Made It This Far is out 8/23 via Father/Daughter Records. Pre-order it here.

CREDIT: Akasha Rabut