WILKES-BARRE — Connecticut-based singer/songwriter Jesse Terry’s confessional songwriting style is reminiscent of the singers he heard from his parents such as James Taylor, Neil Young and Jackson Browne. For his latest project, a concept EP about the soon-to-be submerged village of Kivalina, Alaska, Terry had to put himself in the shoes of future displaced residents who inhabit the community so he could write from their perspective. He and fellow singer/songwriter Alex Wong read “hours and hours” of interviews with Kivalina villagers, culminating in a six song collaboration with Wong.
“It was a really powerful story and a really powerful writing experience,” Terry said. “It was really all about emotion; I don’t profess to be an expert on this particular topic, but I do know it’s a fact their village is going underwater.”
Terry said he may play a song from the upcoming EP at his 8 p.m. May 27 F.M. Kirby Center performance, but he knows he’ll include songs from his upcoming full-length. Fans will have to wait until 2017 to hear the finished product (which will feature a full string section), but Terry said he’ll use three acoustic guitars and the atmosphere of the Kirby Center’s Live at the Chandelier Lobby concert series to introduce new songs and provide a deeper look into existing staples of his set.
“I’m thinking of it as kind of a storyteller kind of show where I can really connect with the audience and give them a little insight behind the songs and where they came from,” Terry said. “I feel like it’ll be a beautiful setting for that. I feel like I’ll be able to tell some stories behind the songs and I’ll be able to have this really intimate, great connection with the audience where there’s absolutely no barrier and that’s very appealing to me. I love that.”
Terry’s concept EP will be his second duo release. He and fellow singer/songwriter Abbie Gardner will hit the road together in June for the Joyful Noise Tour, and the two collaborated on a three-song EP in advance of the run that can be downloaded for free at Noisetrade.com. The tour and subsequent EP sprang from a midnight conversation the two had in a New Jersey parking lot after playing a show.
“It just happened in a very organic way, there was no influence from outside people or music business folk,” Terry said. “I love that it just happened so naturally.”
Between his recent collaborations, past full-lengths and future release, Terry has a catalog of tracks to choose from during his Wilkes-Barre performance. Terry’s style continues the tradition of confessional Americana.