Like, Love, Lust and the Open Halls of the Soul

2007 studio album by Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter

Like Love, Lust and the Open Halls of the Soul

Studio album by Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter

Released

2007

Recorded

Seattle, Washington, 2006.

Genre

Psychedelic folk, alternative country

Length

52:49

Label

Barsuk Records
Southern Lord Records (SUNN89)

Producer

Martin Feveyear, Tucker Martine

Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter chronology

Oh, My Girl
(2004)

Like Love, Lust and the Open Halls of the Soul
(2007)

Marble Son
(2011)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
American Songwriter	Positive
PopMatters	(8/10)
Hybrid Magazine	Positive
Memphis Flyer	A−
kevchino	(9/10)
Pure Music	Positive
NPR	Positive

Like Love, Lust and the Open Halls of the Soul is the third album by Seattle band Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter. It was released in 2007 on Barsuk Records.

Sykes said the structure of the album's songs were often not what listeners initially expected. "Essentially, what we're doing is kind of folk music, but the structures are complex," she said. "It's like country/folk/rock with a psychedelic bent."

She said the album's elaborate title was inspired by a heavily tattooed bar patron Sykes saw outside a club in Reno: "I met this extraordinary guy. He was covered in tattoos, and he had three scripted L's tattooed on his wrist," she recalled. "When I asked him what it meant, he said, 'Like, Love, Lust, baby'—and he pointed at his wife and said, 'That's all that matters. You got that, and you got everything'." Sykes said "Aftermath" drew its inspiration from Swedish singer-songwriter Nicolai Dunger, who provides backup vocals on another song, "Station Grey". "It was magical," she said. "He was just sitting on my couch and playing a bunch of his songs, some of my favorites. He has kind of a strange, complicated style. I was so inspired, and I think 'Aftermath' came out of trying to incorporate that experience."

Four of the album's songs were co-written with Sweet Hereafter guitarist Phil Wandscher, formerly of Whiskeytown. Sykes said: "Phil's playing kind of blows me away, and in my writing process, now, it turns out that the songs have a lot more space for him to do things, important things. They're not guitar solos for the sake of guitar solos. They're actually complex melodic structures that are almost classical at times. There are a lot of counterpoints and layering in the records. Nothing unnecessary; everything seems to be reacting to something else."

The album was initially recorded with longtime producer Tucker Martine, but remixed by English-born, Seattle-based producer Martin Feveyear after concerns over the sound.

Track listing

(all words and music by Jesse Sykes except where noted)

"Eisenhower Moon" – 3:33
"LLL" – 3:57
"You Might Walk Away" – 2:49
"Air Is Thin" (Jesse Sykes, Phil Wandscher) – 4:20
"Spectral Beings" – 4:13
"How Will We Know" (Sykes, Wandscher) – 5:24
"Hard Not to Believe" – 4:36
"Aftermath" – 3:27
"Station Grey" – 5:04
"I Like The Sound" (Sykes, Wandscher) – 3:51
"Morning It Comes" (Sykes, Wandscher) – 6:08
"Open Halls of the Soul" – 5:26

Personnel

Jesse Sykes – vocals, acoustic guitar
Phil Wandscher – guitars, harmonica, lapsteel, keyboards, vocals
Anne Marie Ruljancich – viola, vocals
Bill Herzog – electric and upright bass, vocals
Eric Eagle – drums, percussion

Additional musicians:

Micah Hulscher – piano, harmonium
Steve Moore – keyboards, organ
Eyvind Kang – viola, violin
Wayne Horvitz – Hammond B3
Gretchen Yanover – cello
Dave Carter – trumpet
Craig Flory – saxophone
Josiah Boothby – french horn
Ben O'Shea – trombone
Billy Joe Huel – trumpet
Ron Weinstein – Hammond B3
Tucker Martine – percussion
Nicolai Dunger – backup vocals ("Air is Thin", "Station Grey")

References

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