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Derek Webb's Ctrl Tops Amazon's Singer-Songwriter Chart and Lands in Top 10 on Overall Alternative Chart  Praise continues to pour in for new studio album, Ctrl
Webb's fall tour in support of album set to visit multiple major markets
Nashville, Tenn. (Oct. 10, 2012) — On the heels of the acclaimed release of his latest studio album, Ctrl, indie pioneer Derek Webb has enjoyed seeing the project crown the Amazon Singer-Songwriter Albums chart, where it peaked in the top spot, as well as the No. 7 position on the overall Alternative chart, just behind Mumford & Sons. In addition to the success of Ctrl, all of Webb’s previous efforts—Feedback, Mockingbird, Stockholm Syndrome, I See Things Upside Down, She Must and Shall Go Free, The Ringing Bell, The House Show—jumped into the Top 50 on the Amazon Christian & Gospel Albums chart.
Webb officially unveiled Ctrl on Sept. 4 to stellar reviews and remarkable praise from critics. In addition, the album made its chart debut in the Top 10 on the Christian Soundscan chart.
With Ctrl, Webb breaks new ground sonically with his combination of nylon-string acoustic guitar, Sacred Harp recordings, and hyper-personal lyrics framed in a fictional narrative of his own writing. The combination of these unique musical elements colors a sonic landscape and supports a lyrical palette that Webb painstakingly crafted along with collaborators Josh Moore (co-producer of Ctrl, along with Webb's Stockholm Syndrome and Feedback albums) and Allan Heinberg (Writer/Executive Producer of Grey's Anatomy, 2006-2010). Sacred Harp singing is a tradition of sacred choral music that took root in the Southern region of the United States and is part of the larger tradition of shape note singing. Webb interweaves recordings of the four-part harmony, historic, American art form into his compositions on the 10-track album. Here's just a slice of some of the latest praise for Ctrl: “Morally challenging and musically innovative, Derek Webb takes yet another bold step with Ctrl…” —iTunes
“Ctrl is ultimately a surprising, perplexing, and overall redemptive piece of art.”
—Jesus Freak Hideout
“Derek Webb delivers a dense, eye-opening masterpiece…”
—Stereo Subversion
“Webb has crossed the labyrinth of songs with a message by providing a story where the listener takes a meaningful, inward journey. Like standing up a mirror for each of us to see inside ourselves, [Ctrl] has done what few Christian offerings have managed to do in the past. Webb has created a tool for us to use for our spiritual self-improvement.”
—The Phantom Tollbooth
Webb is on tour throughout the fall to promote Ctrl, visiting markets including Atlanta, Kansas City and Chicago before wrapping in Richmond, VA, on Nov. 16. Boulder-based indie trio Page CXVI is supporting Webb on tour. For full tour information, please visit www.DerekWebb.com/tour.
About Derek Webb Once called "the most dangerous man in the music business," Derek Webb's career, spanning more than 20 years including his tenure in Texas-based folk/rock band Caedmon's Call, has seen album sales over one million records, 10 Dove Award nominations, a Billboard Music Video Award nod and six No. 1 radio hits. Webb's innovative music marketing and distribution strategies (including the founding of NoiseTrade.com) have received national news coverage in USA Today, the LA Times and more. [Get Connected with Derek Webb] Web site // www.derekwebb.com Facebook // www.facebook.com/derekwebb Twitter // www.twitter.com/derekwebb ###
Media Contact:
Jess Draper the media collective jess@themcollective.com 615.591.7989 www.themcollective.com Derek Webb Earns Rave Reviews for New Project, Ctrl; Album Debuts in Top 10 on Christian Soundscan Chart  Nashville, Tenn. (Sept. 13, 2012) — Perennial critical favorite Derek Webb officially unveiled his latest studio album, Ctrl, on Sept. 4 to stellar reviews and remarkable praise from critics. In addition, the album made its chart debut in the Top 10 on the Christian Soundscan chart.
With Ctrl, Webb breaks new ground sonically with his combination of nylon-string acoustic guitar, Sacred Harp recordings, and hyper-personal lyrics framed in a fictional narrative of his own writing. The combination of these unique musical elements colors a sonic landscape and supports a lyrical palette that Webb painstakingly crafted along with collaborators Josh Moore (Co-producer of Ctrl, along with Webb's Stockholm Syndrome and Feedback albums) and Allan Heinberg (Writer/Executive Producer of Grey's Anatomy, 2006-2010). Sacred Harp singing is a tradition of sacred choral music that took root in the Southern region of the United States and is part of the larger tradition of shape note singing. Webb interweaves recordings of the four-part harmony, historic, American art form into his compositions on the 10-track album.
Here's just a sampling of the overwhelming praise for Ctrl:
“Extraordinary and original songwriting that comes together in surprising ways. At points, it's as minimalist as PJ Harvey's White Chalk, and at other points, it's as lush as any Sufjan Stevens album. It's eccentric at all points in between, but wonderfully so."
New York Minute Magazine
“He has a gifted ear for melody and language, and in these songs he's stripped his songwriting down to those essentials…the tension between straightforward, grounded songs and sonic experimentation is what makes the album work. This album is meant to be probed, explored, wrestled with.
Relevant
“Webb's strength is his refusal to shy away from the tension and ambiguity between real and synthetic, pure and toxic, spiritual and physical—life and death.”
Christianity Today
“Melodic, atmospheric and as mellow as anything he’s ever done, Ctrl seems to simultaneously show Derek at his most comfortable and his most uncomfortable. There’s an amazing confidence in his arrangements, production and melodies, especially in the deceptively simplistic, sparser moments. Ctrl contains a treasure trove of musicality, ingenuity, honesty, questions, resolutions and much more. No matter your personal level of interaction with Derek’s music, Ctrl stands on its own merit, delivering amazing musical performances, mind-thumping questions and Derek’s crystal clear, unmistakable vocals. Amazing on its own and possibly more than meets the eye when paired with the NEXUS soundtrack, Ctrl is absolutely worth your time and attention.”
NoiseTrade
“Ctrl is pretty much unlike anything else you'll hear this year. It's unique, haunting, and thought provoking … truly deep and artistic, something greater than can be understood in a single sitting, and thus something that will have to be played again.”
New Release Tuesday
“[This album is] one that begs you to absorb and take it in. Derek has defined himself as an artist and not just a songwriter.”
Faith Village
About Derek Webb
Once called "the most dangerous man in the music business", Derek Webb's career, spanning more than 20 years including his tenure in Texas-based folk/rock band Caedmon's Call, has seen album sales over one million records, 10 Dove Award nominations, a Billboard Music Video Award nod and six No. 1 radio hits. Webb's innovative music marketing and distribution strategies (including the founding of NoiseTrade.com) have received national news coverage in USA Today, the LA Times and more.
[Get Connected with Derek Webb]
###
Media Contact:
Velvet Kelm and Jess Draper
the media collective
615.591.7989
Derek Webb Builds Buzz for New Studio Album, Ctrl, with Online Unveiling Ahead of Official Release Webb breaks new ground sonically with his combination of nylon-string acoustic guitar, Sacred Harp recordings, and hyper-personal lyrics framed in a fictional narrative of his own writing Critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Derek Webb will officially release, Ctrl, the highly anticipated follow up to 2009’s Stockholm Syndrome, on September 4, 2012 via Fair Trade Services. However, the always fan community-minded Webb has already made the album available in its entirety on his website, derekwebb.com. "Ctrl is based on a story I wrote with two of my closest friends, Josh Moore (Co-producer of Ctrl, along with Webb's Stockholm Syndrome, and Feedback albums) and Allan Heinberg (Writer/Executive Producer of Grey's Anatomy, 2006-2010),” says Webb. “It's an album about one man's desire for something he cannot have because it isn't real, the journey he goes on pursuing it, and the costs of that journey. But essentially, Ctrl is both personal autopsy and cultural observation about how we use technology to try and control our lives, and my concern that it could ultimately have more control of us." Characterized by nylon-string guitar, drum machines and Sacred Harp recordings, Ctrl combines these unique musical elements to color a sonic landscape and support a lyrical palette that Webb painstakingly crafted along with collaborators Moore and Heinberg. Sacred Harp singing is a tradition of sacred choral music that took root in the Southern region of the United States and is part of the larger tradition of shape note singing. Webb interweaves recordings of the four-part harmony, historic, American art form into his compositions on the 10-track album. Although it’s only been available for a week, Ctrl already has everyone talking, returning rave reviews from fans, blogs & publications alike, exemplified by these excerpts from RELEVANT magazine's glowing review: Rating: 9/10 "A startling…musical conversation that spans three centuries." "The clash of sounds--the very old with the very new--hit me in the gut." "This album is meant to be probed, explored, wrestled with." Ctrl Track Listing:
### About Derek Webb Once called "the most dangerous man in the music business", Derek Webb's career, spanning more than 20 years including his tenure in Texas-based folk/rock band Caedmon's Call, has seen album sales over one million records, 10 Dove Award nominations, a Billboard Music Video Award nod and six No. 1 radio hits. Webb's innovative music marketing and distribution strategies (including the founding of NoiseTrade.com) have received national news coverage in USA Today, the LA Times and more.
[Get Connected with Derek Webb]: twitter.com/derekwebb
Media Contact: Velvet Kelm and Jess Draper the media collective 615.591.7989 www.themcollective.com |
