NYC songwriter Gabriel Kahane has released two new songs online in anticipation of his coming performances at BAM's Harvey Theater later this fall. Little Love includes the title-track and "November", both songs featuring only his lush voice and his bubbling piano. The release comes just over a month before the start of 8980: Book of Travelers, a live concept performance based on his November 2016 train trip across the United States. The songs in 8980 take inspiration from that trip's experiences, Kahane's conversations with the people he met, and ruminations on the body politic. 8980 runs from November 30th to December 2nd at BAM's Harvey Theater; the show will hit Los Angeles, Ann Arbor, and Paris going into 2018. - Will Sisskind

While singer-songwriter Gabriel Kahane certainly does possess strong vocal chops, the core strength of his music comes from the "songwriting" half of his genre label. Kahane is a dexterous and thoughtful composer, balancing out the pronounced folkiness of his accoustic guitar parts with classic string or piano accompaniments on tracks like "Veda (1 Pierce Dr.)." He's also not afraid to "plug in" and rock out either (like in "Calabash & Catamaran") proving his versatility as an artist to perform a range of styles and capture a wide breadth of emotions. He even did a cover of a song from "Oklahoma" the musical for goodness' sake! On top of that, the strong Elliot Smith vibes in Kahane's music add an extra aura of melancholy, and if Rockwood booked him for a residency it means he's as good llive as he sounds on record. You can catch him next Rockwood's Stage 2 on 8/28, and then again and again until 10/23! — Henry Solotaroff-Webber, Photo Credit: Rebecca Deane