Drew Andrews

There is magic with "Only Mirrors" - the atmospheric and absorbing debut solo album by Drew Andrews, guitarist from The Album Leaf. A rich dreamlike state beyond the gentle intricate guitars and Drew's feathery soft vocals. Maybe the abundance of feeling is from recording an album once again with a father who most of his life never knew he had a son. "Only Mirrors" lyrics reflect the tale of Drew's adoption and upbringing, the discovery of his birth parents at age 18, the meeting for the first time of his musician/producer/engineer father, Sven-Erik Seaholm, and his youthful foray into religious life, an intellectual journey which at age 20 improbably pushed and prodded him away from religion and into rock and roll full time. While better known for his active and current touring involvement for the last five years with the internationally acclaimed Sub Pop Records band, The Album Leaf; his band Via Satellite, the San Diego-based electronica/rock trio has also won numerous awards for their music. The roots of "Only Mirrors" lay within a Fall 2005 Via Satellite tour, when the band's van was busted into late one night in Lower East Side Manhattan, resulting in thousands of dollars of equipment being stolen. Finishing out the tour by contacting friends in various cities to borrow/advance gear, Drew returned home with little more than an old nylon stringed guitar to compose with. Forced to sneak off and play in quiet places in corners of apartments to not wake up nasty roommates after 2 AM, Drew began to craft a new sound, incorporating his shoegaze, pop and post-rock influences into contemplative, finger-picked tunes with hushed and plaintive vocals. As time went by, and more equipment was picked up, the songs took on a more pronounced and live sound, always still rooted in those first early frantic days returning home from a tour that could have easily been the last for many sane musicians! Drew's new unreleased 11 song album, 'Only Mirrors' was recently called by San Diego Union Tribune Head Music Critic George Varga an "atmospheric" and "absorbing debut?" An outing in March/April 2008 sent him on a successful European tour, performing his own music overseas for the first time. He is currently preparing shows and tours in correlation with the album's release on Minty Fresh.