Pokey LaFarge Returns with New Album; Shares First Single & Video

Iconoclastic troubadour Pokey LaFarge returns today with the tub-thumping new single, “Rent Money,” available everywhere now via his own Boxer Boy Records. An official music video – directed by Jacob Butler (LA LOM, Paul Cauthen) – premieres today on YouTube.

Despite its buoyant bounce and exuberant spirit, “Rent Money” sees LaFarge explore how hard work in hard times doesn’t always pay the bills, both in practical and spiritual terms. “Rent Money” marks the first single and title track from LaFarge’s eagerly awaited new album, Rent Money, arriving everywhere on Friday, September 11. Pre-orders/pre-saves are available now.

“‘Rent Money’ is a little bit more of a tougher tune,” says Pokey LaFarge, “but it’s not going to totally bum you out. It’s just a classic country blues song. The good lord giveth and Uncle Sam taketh away.”

• LISTEN TO “RENT MONEY”
• WATCH “RENT MONEY” (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)
• PRE-ORDER/PRE-SAVE RENT MONEY

LaFarge will introduce fans old and new to Rent Money with an epic North American headline tour featuring full-band performances and solo shows beginning July 23 at Maquoketa, IA’s Codfish Hollow Barnstormers and then traveling the continent through a holiday season finale at Los Angeles, CA’s historic Lodge Room on December 19. For complete details and ticket information, please visit www.pokeylafarge.net/tour.

Produced by Elliot Bergman (Wild Belle, LA LOM, Natalie Bergman), Rent Money once again finds Pokey LaFarge deftly traversing the boundaries of genre, seamlessly integrating the myriad strains of 20th century American music – spanning, but limited to, urban blues, primal rock ‘n roll, early jazz, ragtime, first wave reggae, boogie, gospel and electric country funk – with a freewheeling command of earnest songcraft, inspired performance, and subversive creativity.

The album sees the Illinois native pushing forward yet again in what can be safely declared his finest collection to date, impassioned and mature, both as no-nonsense social commentary and heartfelt expression of personal experience. Driven by twanging guitars, plucky rhythms, and undeniably captivating melodies, songs like “The Thing” and “My Baby Loves Me” soar and swing, their joyous refrains belying the kitchen-table issues and inescapable undercurrent of constant worry that permeates these troubled times. Rent Money stands tall as an undeniable high-water mark for Pokey LaFarge – a defining collection from a one-of-a-kind artist of singular ingenuity and rare candor, now as ever, determinedly crafting a sure-footed brand of deeply human music all his own.

“People are always going to tell you what they think you should play,” says Pokey LaFarge, “what you should sing about, how you should sound, how you should look, how you should act. And I’ve always just been like, nah. Nope. I’ve just completely gone my own way, and hopefully I’ve been honest and authentic in the process.

“I’m just trying to make music that AI can’t replicate. Things are so homogenized right now. That’s what I’m really, really, really resistant to, especially when it comes to music. I’m not going to do it. I’m not going to conform.”