On the ravishing country-soul ballad “Blowing Kisses,” her first new song in three and a half years, the celebrated Canadian songwriter Jennifer Castle contemplates time and presence, love and prayer—and how songwriting and poetry both manifest and limit all four dimensions: “No words to fumble with/I’m not a beggar to language any longer.” Featuring a sweeping string arrangement by Owen Pallett, performed by Estonia’s FAMES Skopje Studio Orchestra, “Blowing Kisses” can be heard in its entirety during the pivotal scene of the penultimate episode of the third season of FX’s The Bear.
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Tracklist
1. “Blowing Kisses” 4:07
Catalog Number/Release Date
pob-078dig1 / Digital: June 27, 2024
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Song Narrative
Photo by Jimmy Limit.
On the ravishing country-soul ballad “Blowing Kisses,” her first new song in three and a half years, the celebrated Canadian songwriter Jennifer Castle contemplates time and presence, love and prayer—and how songwriting and poetry both manifest and limit all four dimensions: “No words to fumble with/I’m not a beggar to language any longer.” Featuring a sweeping string arrangement by Owen Pallett, performed by Estonia’s FAMES Skopje Studio Orchestra, “Blowing Kisses” can be heard in its entirety during the pivotal scene of the penultimate episode of the third season of FX’s The Bear.
“Blowing Kisses” was co-produced by Castle with engineer Jeff McMurrich in Toronto, and features Carl Didur on Piano, Mike Smith on bass, Evan Cartwright on drums, Jennifer on acoustic guitar, Victoria Cheong and Isla Craig on backing vocals. Sasho Tatarchevski conducted the orchestra.
Jennifer Castle writes: “‘Blowing Kisses’ is a love letter sent from the very front of the occuring present moment. Language can be so futile; I always loathe explaining myself, and yet my love for you makes me want to try, my hands gesturing in endless loop. One day I will no longer be here to revere the buoyancy of the blue lake. I’m held by the loving energy of God. Every rose has its thorn, truly, but let’s focus on the rose for now.”
Videos and Streaming
Acknowledgments
Castle reaches a pitch of mystical transport so gorgeously ethereal she seems about to drift off into lands that don’t appear on any map.
– Greil Marcus, The Believer
Castle’s music is not so much of the earth as floating above it, untethered to the natural order of time and space … She effortlessly conveys the conflicting emotions that accompany loss.
– Pitchfork
No hyperbole, Jennifer Castle is a spectacular songwriter. Castle’s singing carries the joy of life.
– The FADER
Castle channels the lunar radiance of Emmylou Harris and the heartfelt barroom blues of Jimmie Dale Gilmore, quietly gleaming with a rustic beauty and a deep, patient understanding of the mystic.
– Aquarium Drunkard
Castle’s songs are vibrant and bountiful landscapes, and even in their quietest, darkest moments, they thrum and glow. As a songwriter, Castle has a stunning capacity for crafting lines rich with nuance, humor, and devastating beauty.
– CBC
