Hey, here's a good lyric: "I got my own place but got no rent to pay 'cause it turns out the landlord is in prison/ But still when it’s late, I’ll take the B48 down to your house like I’m on a mission." I love that kind of specificity. That line comes from "I Wanna Be Your Man," the latest single from the craggy-voiced New York singer-songwriter Hank Heaven. They sing it with conversational ease over a spare acoustic guitar and some slow-swelling strings and woodwinds. I hear a nice contrast between the stately arrangement and Heaven's dazed drawl.
"I Wanna Be Your Man" is a real-talk song about catching feelings for a casual hookup. It's vulnerable without being showy about it, and it's the song that Hank Heaven is using to announce their new EP Welterweight. Heaven's last EP was 2024's Loaded Dice, which included the Beach Bunny collab "Beloved" and which came out after Heaven worked as a session and touring guitarist for acts like Samia and Del Water Gap. Now, Heaven has signed to Nice Life Recording Company and recorded Welterweight with Adrienne Lenker/Big Thief collaborator Phil Weinrobe. "I Wanna Be Your Man" follows "Thread," the single that Heaven released last month.
Hank Heaven doesn't really sound like Adrienne Lenker, but the two of them share a similar ache in their voices. It's pretty disarming. Also disarming: the Weston Borg-directed "I Wanna Be Your Man" video, in which Heaven rocks a suit and ambles around what looks like New York's Financial District. Check out that clip and the Welterweight tracklist below.
TRACKLIST:
01 "I Wanna Be Your Man"
02 "Thread"
03 "Daddy’s Gonna Buy You A Car"
04 "Seinfeld"
05 "Hank Heaven’s 113th Wet Dream"
06 "Dog Needs Man"
The Welterweight EP is out 8/14 on Nice Life. Pre-order it here.
