Jacob Golden

Biography

Jacob Golden (*Mid 70s, Sacramento, CA) is an American songwriter/singer/guitarist. Since leaving his former band Birthday in 2000 he is a solo artist and collaborated with different electronica musicians and producers. Now he's residing in Silverlake, LA. Debut album 'Hallelujah World' was released in 2002 on Rough Trade and received great press write-ups internationally. Also appeared on the Faultline album 'Your Love Means Everything' in 2002/2004 (EMI), where he performed backing vocals to...

Jacob Golden (*Mid 70s, Sacramento, CA) is an American songwriter/singer/guitarist. Since leaving his former band Birthday in 2000 he is a solo artist and collaborated with different electronica musicians and producers.

Now he's residing in Silverlake, LA. Debut album 'Hallelujah World' was released in 2002 on Rough Trade and received great press write-ups internationally. Also appeared on the Faultline album 'Your Love Means Everything' in 2002/2004 (EMI), where he performed backing vocals to Michael Stipe on the track 'Greenfields' and played guitar on the track 'Where Is My Boy?' performed by Chris Martin. A move to Portland, Oregon and now Silverlake inspired the writing of his second album, 'Revenge Songs'.

David Kosten from Faultline proved instrumental in helping Jacob bring 'Revenge Songs', to the public, with plans to make the album available on his own label in the UK, and helping Jacob find a licensee for the album around the world. He was also responsible for bringing Jacob to the attention of Chrysalis Music CEO Jeremy Lascelles, who after a short acoustic performance in his LA hotel room, signed Jacob to the publishing company. Jeremy previously championed Ray LaMontagne and Bat for Lashes.

After Chrysalis put one of Jacob's tracks on a sampler circulated at the Sundance Film Festival in 2006, the musical directors of US drama 'The OC' put one of his songs, 'On A Saturday', in the last ever episode of the popular series, responsible for significantly boosting the profile of a number of artists including Jem, Imogen Heap and Death Cab for Cutie. The episode has screened in the US in February and is yet to screen in the UK. Jacob is the only unsigned artist whose music was used in the final episode.


Variously inspired by Joanna Newsom, Nina Simone, Paul McCartney, Cat Stevens, Simon & Garfunkel and America, 'Revenge Songs' is a capitivating piece of work. Described by Jacob as 'modern field recordings', Jacob took the documentary approach to recording the new album. Little of 'Revenge Songs' was recorded conventionally in a studio, most was recorded in Jacob's home in Portland, and all background noise has been left in the finished record. On 'Zero Integrity' you can hear an ambulance siren in the background. He recorded other tracks in underground carparks and concrete art galleries.

At a time when music has never been more available to the masses, Jacob is building a special relationship with his fans through a more personal touch. Like the anti-folk musicians before him, he has developed a core fanbase in the US by doing tours of fan's living rooms, sourcing interest from his website forum or Myspace page. He is extending this plan to the UK in April 2007 when he travels across the Atlantic for a show at the Borderline venue in London, and is using the opportunity to set up at least three living room shows in Yorkshire, Cambridgeshire and London.

He also plans to shoot the video for the single release of 'On A Saturday' guerilla-style in Soho Square, inviting fans to join him on Saturday 21st April to appear in the video. The video will be a short film, featuring excerpts from different shows in the UK, and footage from Soho Square. He also offers fans the chance to buy very special, limited edition, first copies of 'Revenge Songs', with sleeves designed and hand made by Jacob.

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