serpentwithfeet Previews Debut Album soil With “bless ur heart”

Experimental R&B/gospel vocalist and performance artist serpentwithfeet (born Josiah Wise) today announces his debut album, soil, out June 8 via Secretly Canadian and Tri Angle Records. Our first preview of the LP comes in the form of “bless ur heart,” the video for which premieres today alongside soil’s announcement.

“bless ur heart” opens with spare, resonant piano chords before giving way to a far more mesmerizing instrument: Wise’s voice, rendered a haunting hum by his effortless vibrato. The artists considers whether his art will be understood: “When I give these books away / will my ink betray me?” he sings. “Will my stories resist wings and grow feet? / And convince men that I’m boasting?” In the video, directed by Andrew Thomas Huang, Wise performs in a gorgeous and ornate theater, dancing with a miniature moon and filling the space with his music.

serpentwithfeet will embark on a headlining tour of North America this summer in support of soil. He’ll perform at FORM: Arcosanti and New York City’s Red Bull Music Academy in May, and at Bon Iver’s Eaux Claires festival in July.

Watch serpentwithfeet’s “bless ur heart” video below, and find soil’s tracklist and album art further down, along with the artist’s tour dates. You can preorder the debut album from serpentwithfeet right here.

soil Tracklist:
01. whisper
02. messy
03. wrong tree
04. fragrant
05. mourning song
06. cherubim
07. seedless
08. invoice
09. waft
10. slow syrup
11. bless ur heart

soil Album Art:

serpentwithfeet Tour Dates:

April
13 – London, U.K. @ Village Underground
15 – Paris, France @ La Boule Noir
17 – Berlin, Germany @ Prince Charles
19 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Bitterzoet

May
13 – Mayer, Ariz. @ FORM: Arcosanti
17 – New York, N.Y. @ Red Bull Music Academy

June
19 – San Francisco, Calif. @ Swedish American Hall (tickets)
21 – Portland, Ore. @ Holocene (tickets)
22 – Seattle, Wash. @ Barboza (tickets)
23 – Vancouver, British Columbia @ The Biltmore Cabaret (tickets)
25 – Washington, D.C. @ DC9 (tickets)
26 – Philadelphia, Pa. @ Johnny Brenda’s (tickets)
27 – Boston, Mass. @ Great Scott (tickets)
29 – Toronto, Ontario @ The Drake (tickets)

July
01 – Chicago, Ill. @ Empty Bottle (tickets)
06-07 – Eau Claire, Wis. @ Eaux Claires