Singer/songwriter Peter J Lehman has unveiled his second album "Agnostic Spiritual”, across all major streaming platforms.
‘Agnostic Spiritual’ is a project that Peter has been working on for some time, releasing August 2021 as an independent 8 track album, with an extended 12 track version available on digital download. Although Peter has released one of the tracks ‘Coffee and Tea’ as a single, Peter is passionate about the journey a listener can go through with an album. With the popularity of streaming and playlists, some could say the beauty and ceremony of listening to a full record has faded with listeners. However, Peter is keen to keep the tradition of sitting down and really enjoying a whole album, the way the writer intended for it to be listened to. This classical format is also going to be sustained with the release of a small number of vinyl copies of ‘Agnostic Spiritual’, giving a physical presence to the album alongside encouraging ‘skip free’ play.
The single from the album ‘Coffee And Tea’ was originally released as a single due to it being Peter’s favourite track in the collection and a piece that really represented the place he was in when he wrote the entire album. Inspired by North Mississippi hill country blues artists such as RL Burnside, Junior Kimbrough and Robert Belfour - you can expect a sparse electric blues sound with a stripped-back feel.
The album ‘Agnostic Spiritual’ was a solo project for Peter, as he tracked all the songs live, to analogue tape, playing the guitar, with a kick drum and singing simultaneously. This, in turn, gives the album a raw but personal feel, as if Peter and the listener are together in a room. Speaking about the creation, Peter said that not only did he record it “in-the-moment” he signed off the tracks in 1-3 takes, all whilst having a lot of fun with it. The album was also recorded in an old building in rural Missouri that used to be his family’s hardware store and was a one-screen theatre in a former life. This location not only held sentimental value for Peter but was the perfect setting for recording the self-produced tracks with its character and history.
“It’s like magic to me. That’s what I want to do. I strive to make a great cohesive album that tells a story and transports the listener to somewhere else for 30 to 40 minutes." - Peter J Lehman
Much as said before, one of the things that makes Peter different from other artists is his passion for albums. He doesn’t chase trends, he doesn’t make playlists and the release of a single isn’t how he measures success. He listens to albums from start to finish in one sitting whilst reading the liner notes, alongside researching how the album was made. So with all his current and future releases, the goal has always been to transport the listener for that set amount of time, where they can let go of their troubles and absorb the story.
Peter’s journey to music really began around age 16, where he picked up playing the guitar with the local gospel and bluegrass musicians in Missouri. However, life happened, and his personal struggles and commitments deferred him away from his musical purpose. But at 28 years old, the spark was back. He began to play the guitar again and started writing songs, which became a healing process for him. This is the moment that he also realised music was what he was meant to do with his life. Now, he continues to listen, read and observe the world around him with open eyes and write. His original style and voice has captured several thousand fans on social media and has been influenced by many forms of music including but not limited to folk, Americana, blues, rock and soul.
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