Laura Stevenson is celebrating her mom’s birthday a bit differently this year. In lieu of sending flowers or a thoughtful trinket, the New York songwriter has released two new songs, written for and inspired by her mom: “The Mystic and The Master” and “Maker Of Things.” The double single is now out, with all proceeds from Bandcamp go to Safe Horizon.

In less than five minutes, we get a glimpse into some of Laura’s most emotionally-devastating memories, but also the strength and lessons she learned from her mom to get through it all. The end results are among Stevenson’s strongest tracks to date, delivered in such a warm and vastly-textured way that it ends up saying more about the perseverance of the human spirit than it does anything else. “I grew up watching my mom go through so much” explains Laura, who recorded these songs with producer Joe Rogers (who also engineered Stevenson’s 2015 LP Cocksure) in her childhood home on Long Island earlier this year. “I just wanted to share this as a way of showing her my appreciation for everything she endured while raising me and my sister.”

Fresh off an incredible experience performing alongside The Hold Steady’s Craig Finn and her former bandmate Jeff Rosenstock. Laura Stevenson will kick the new year off with an appearance at Changeville, a music & arts festival for social change, alongside Japanese Breakfast, Big Freedia, AJJ, Ted Leo, and more.

CREDITS:
Produced by Joe Rogers and Laura Stevenson
Mixed by D. James Goodwin
Aidan Koehler on violin (The Mystic and The Master)
Eleanor Norton on cello (Maker of Things

For tickets and more information, please visit changeville.us/tickets.