Andrew Belle

Andrew Belle writes songs by feel. The composition first – lyrics and melody eventually follow. Only after Belle has an internal reaction to the composition do his words finally come forth – finding the right way to express what has always been there but is only now being fully realized. When it came time to record his fourth full-length album, the Chicago-based singer-songwriter, chose to take his trusted collaborators to the vaunted Sonic Ranch Studios, located on the US-Mexico border in Tornillo, Texas. The studio compound, which sits on a 1,700-acre pecan orchard, boasts the world’s largest residential recording studio complex and has been the birthplace of albums by Bon Iver, Beach House and a slew of other notable artists.
A large portion of Nightshade takes on a subject that has more and more become part of our cultural zeitgeist – mental health. Specifically, how we deal with life itself and why so many seem to be drawn toward unhealthy coping mechanisms. While a few tracks address these themes head on – ‘Spectrum’, ‘Inside Voices’ and ‘Surprise Surprise’ – the album as a whole serves as a soundtrack for anyone driving out of a season of perpetual midnight in their life and toward a sunrise that’s maybe a little more hopeful – through a desert just north of the border.