Ben de la Cour
With songs that explore life's murky corners and shadowy characters, Ben de la Cour's music occupies the intersection between gothic Americana and dark, gritty folk. It's a sound fueled by the stories and struggles of its creator, a lifelong searcher who's never been afraid to shine a light on his own demons.
Born in London and raised in Brooklyn, Ben experienced a coming of age when he left home at seventeen to become a farm worker, a janitor, a boxer in Havana, and in his own words one of the laziest and most inept bouncers and bartenders in history. After logging several years on the road with various metal bands Ben followed his muse to New Orleans before landing in Nashville in 2013 where he found a community of simpatico musicians and songwriters who weren't afraid to chase down their own musical horizons.
Albums like Ben's 2012 debut, Ghost Light and 2018's career shifting The High Cost of Living Strange chronicled not only that deep sense of restlessness but also his various attempts to wrestle his own vices into submission. The result is a haunting, harrowingly personal version of folk music that earned praise from outlets like American Songwriter and NPR. Ben was named a Kerrville New Folk Winner shortly after the 2016 release of Midnight in Havana and began maintaining a regular presence on the road, playing more than 100 shows a year. In a genre that has become increasingly polished and pop friendly throughout the 21st century, his stark tales of heartbreak, supernatural menace, God and the ever present specter of death seem to harken back to folk's roots, making him a modern torchbearer of a classic sound.