If you aren’t listening to Jason Hawk Harris, you’re going to want to change that.
Harris just released “Jordan and the Nile,” the lead single off of his forthcoming sophomore record Thin Places, and it is a force, both sonically and lyrically.
Born in Houston, spent some time in Los Angeles, and now residing in Austin, TX, Harris’ path to the country music world wasn’t what you might typically expect to see in the genre. A classically trained musician from California, Harris has studied his craft extensively throughout most of his life and has forayed into several genres throughout his career.
While country music was often played throughout his childhood, Harris draws on a wide array of influences, and it would take awhile for him to return to the country music he grew up on. When he began writing his 2019 debut solo album Love & the Dark, he realized that country music was the natural contrivance to get his point across and convey what he had to say. The rest is history, now as Harris embarks on his next project.
Scheduled to be released on October 6, Thin Places will be an extremely introspective project that showcases Harris’ extensive musical training and deft lyricism as he mulls over several tragedies that have transpired in his life over the last few years – including the passing of his mother – and making sense of the complicated grieving processes that have followed.
“The process of grieving my mother’s death, of watching my life kind of fall apart around me brought me to this weird sort of nirvana. In those moments, I could feel these different worlds colliding around me, and I knew I wanted to find a way to capture it.”
The first glimpse of this record hit streaming platforms recently with the release of “Jordan and the Nile,” the powerful lead single off of Thin Places. Cleverly penned and full of Biblical imagery, the single is sonically intricate, juxtaposing the pain of death and addiction with an almost optimistic, hymn-like melody. Harris draws on deeply personal experiences to create something truly special.
With the Jordan being associated with the Promised Land in the Old Testament, as well as the location of Jesus’ baptism in the New Testament, and the Nile being the mighty and powerful river that runs through Egypt, a source of life and commerce for the Egyptian empire, “Jordan and the Nile” paints a picture of longing for the day that good overcomes evil. An anthem of hope and goodness in the midst of world filled with darkness and suffering.
“I’m gonna look for that river ’til I can’t no more
’Til I see my mama standing on the farther shore
See I’m feeling heavy but I see the light
My world is dark but my abyss is bright
And even if it takes a little while
One day the Jordan’s gonna swallow the Nile…”
Check out Jason Hawk Harris’ latest single “Jordan and the Nile,” off of upcoming album Thin places, below.
Be on the lookout for more new music from Harris off of Thin Places, but in the meantime, here are a couple others off of his debut record Love & the Dark.
“Phantom Limb”
“The Smoke and the Stars”
