THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Arise, Dan Sartain, Arise is the latest studio album by America’s infamous rock ’n’ roll troubadour Dan Sartain, who completed the album shortly before he died in March at the age of 39. Made up of 13 wickedly wisecracking, vintage surf-rock bangers, this concise and classic record incorporates everything that has made Sartain the genre’s favourite underdog over the last two decades.
Seeped in obsidian black humour with tracks like People Throwing Stones in Glass Houses, Rooster In The Henhouse and I Heard Laughing ruthlessly calling out those who would slight him while also riding the hard line of self-awareness, the biting witticism of these tracks pair wonderfully with the playful tone of Sartain’s slick-back dark doo-wop.
Elsewhere on the likes of True Love and Fires and Floods, the crooner gets a chance to flex his punk muscles, pushing the guitars further into distorted territory taking the late ’50s garage-rock influence via the late ’70s in much the same way The Ramones and The Damned did. But we’re transported right back again when Sartain slows down for ballad standouts such as Kisses In The Morning and Personal Injury Law.Throughout Arise, Dan Sartain, Arise, searing surf guitars intertwine with beautifully haunted organ jabs, with rhythms pulled straight from saloon bars way out west, and cheeky wink-to-the-camera lyrical whimsy.
The album is being released at the request of Sartain’s family, wife and daughter. 100% of all the profits from this release — both the artist’s share and the record company’s share — are being paid into a trust fund for Dan’s young daughter. It has been released as Dan intended. Nothing has been changed.”
