The Great American Desert is the new nom-de-plume of Max Holmquist who was previously known by the stage name South of Lincoln.

Confused? Don’t be. All you really need to know is that he will release a superb album of intense, pared back, sparse folk called Carson City on June 26th via Yer Bird Records (digital and vinyl only). It is every bit as gorgeously melancholic and troubled as you could wish for, populated with tales of runaway daughters, gamblers, the run down and the haunted – folks for whom every roll of the dice is loaded and where the hope of better days ahead are no longer felt with any conviction.

This is the stuff of heartbreak and suffering, of tragedy and the tragic, and is presented in a way that inexorably draws the listener in until you cannot help but feel part of the stories being told. These are exquisite, compelling songs made for a campfire; made for a backporch and a bottle of whiskey; and made for the long, dark nights when no one but you seems awake in the world.

Carson City is, quite simply, magnificent.

Order from Bandcamp here. If you pre-order the vinyl you will be one of the few to get a free CD version of the album too.

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