San Gabriel
Nights and Weekends
Share It Music
Quitting Whiskey Shivers’ bluegrass-punk fury cold turkey, James Bookert retreated to a sleepy East Austin, Texas, liquor store to plot his next musical move, which ended up being the introspective, synth-washed San Gabriel and its debut album Nights and Weekends, the title referencing shifts almost everybody dreads.
Not Bookert, though, who gratefully worked them, carving out moments here and there for writing and recording his newest project. Whiskey Shivers appeared in the movie Pitch Perfect 3, with the promise of bigger things on the horizon, but Bookert wanted more, something different. His reinvention as a solo musician and producer/writer/engineer is complete, now that the world-weary, yet briskly paced, electro-pop of San Gabriel has arrived hopeful, yet scarred.
His compromised health informing deep meditations on isolation, loss, and matters of the heart, Bookert leads with the line, “It’s been a long, hard year,” its exhausted impact felt as the slowly oscillating and dreamy opener “Alone in My Room” wistfully walks through a lovely downpour of fried, neon confetti and rainy shimmer. Upbeat and constantly in motion, varied textures seemingly falling from the sky, tracks like “Elegant Creature” with its rubbery bass line, vocoder, and glassy, noisy filigree and “Going Nowhere,” insanely catchy despite its laments of intractable ennui, are futuristic symphonies of hyper-pop flash and melodic form, as is an even more expansive “Over My Shoulder.” And then there’s “Play with Fire,” immersive and swirling, fluid disco guitar straight out of the Nile Rodgers playbook adding a touch of nostalgia, as the whole of it is devoured in a pulsating, euphoric rush that also threatens to consume “Say Goodbye” in the best way possible.
Nights and Weekends is brimming with an inexhaustible supply of playful hooks and quicksilver rhythms, whereas a darker “Straight Lines” is more of a sleek, atmospheric crawl. If Bookert is seeking citizenship in VNV Nation, he’s earned it, seemingly racing through wet urban streets at night past airy allies like Sultan + Shepard, Tinlicker, and Washed Out. Maybe Bookert just wasn’t cut out for the 9-to-5 life.
In support of Share It Music’s mission, a portion of proceeds from the album will be donated to San Gabriel’s chosen charity, HAAM (Health Alliance for Austin Musicians), a nonprofit providing access to affordable healthcare for Austin’s working musicians.
