I Am the Prophet, by Lady Dan

I Am the Prophet

by Lady Dan

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Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Lady Dan’s debut album “I Am The Prophet”. Limited red and clear wine spill vinyl design.

Artwork by Zachary Wieland. Manufactured in Czech Republic. High gram vinyl within a heavy card stock jacket. Edition of 500.

Includes unlimited streaming of I Am the Prophet via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
Lady Dan’s debut album “I Am The Prophet”. Limited red and white compact disc. Artwork by Zachary Wieland.

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Includes unlimited streaming of I Am the Prophet via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

ships out within 14 days

$15 USD or more
T-Shirt/Apparel
Short Sleeve Black Tee for Lady Dan’s debut album. I Am The Prophet in red ink on the back with photo of the album printed on the front chest.

Artwork by Zachary Wieland.

ships out within 14 days

$20 USD or more
T-Shirt/Apparel
Long Sleeve Black Tee for Lady Dan’s debut album. I Am The Prophet in red ink down both sleeves with photo of the album printed on the chest.

Artwork by Zachary Wieland.

ships out within 14 days

$25 USD or more

1.	Paradox 03:13	lyrics	buy track
You called me underrated Said you could look at me forever I believed in you, somehow Only time would tell How long we could be together My threshold’s so much smaller now And of course, I want to be loved And I’m not a fan of giving up I just need convincing A paradox, a woman of stone To want to be loved and left alone I am blindingly cold and numb I am too hot for my tongue A young doll of twenty-five You said I got years to live my life, Play the field, or settle down Keep consideration, What I do with time is mine I could squander it all just to let you down Each day I wonder why I live here anymore Each day I wonder what I’m working toward I just need convincing A paradox, a woman of stone To want to be loved and left alone I am blindingly cold and numb I am too hot for my tongue I felt suffocated so I went back to Alabama God is laughing at me now Green fields and blue skies I could be alone forever Sweet evil, I’ll make you a vow And I just don’t sleep much at all, these days It’s like I’m waiting up to hear someone say, “The truth doesn’t need convincing.” A paradox, a woman of stone To want to be loved and left alone I am blindingly cold and numb I am too hot for my tongue A paradox, a woman of stone To want to be loved and left alone I am blindingly cold and numb I am too hot for my tongue
2.	Dogs 03:51	lyrics	buy track
“You say young women are dangerous To you Six years later, now I’m the one with commitment issues You’ll come around Or you won’t And I hope you don’t We sat on the floor talking All night Said he liked my voice, he liked my songs, He liked my mind But I wish that I could say the same for you I don’t know if there was much else I could do For you Are the dogs now Smarter than me? Are you just returning To your sloppy seconds? I’ll bear witness Are the dogs now Smarter than me? Are you just returning To your sloppy seconds? I’ll bear witness Are the dogs now smarter than me?”
3.	Better Off Alone 03:19	lyrics	buy track
“I could figure you out Before you’d think to say “Hey baby, look away” I’ve been spending my time At home by myself It’s not as sad as it may sound No romance, no social I’ve caused enough trouble I think I’ll stay home I’m better off alone I don’t want to talk to you I’m scared you’ll make me cry But everything’s coming up purple In my hair Red-violet No romance, no social I’ve caused enough trouble I think I’ll stay home I can’t hurt anyone alone I think about you when you’re not around You walk by making faces Grab my hands when you say, “goodbye.” Don’t think that I don’t see it No romance, no social I’ve caused enough trouble I think I’ll stay home I’m better off alone I think I’ll stay home I’m better off alone No romance, no social I’ve caused enough trouble I think I’ll stay home I’m better off alone”
4.	Plagiarist’s Blues 03:49	lyrics	buy track
Strip me down to my mother: I am blind Tell on me to my father Like a child Now that it’s all over Let the dogs run wild Recollection’s just another Cruel device I don’t want to write my own songs I want to sing everybody else’s Yet there’s no one Who feels quite the way I do Loving is a hard game, But don’t we love to put ourselves through pain No one feels quite the way I do I have lost and loved and lost again By now I’d count a forfeit a win I was feeling half alive half the time Thinking love was just a has-been And they told me not to trust What the devil sold me But that deal was too sweet Now I got a love He’s a keeper, he’s a Carolina Reaper I am the misery of defeat I don’t want to write my own songs I want to sing everybody else’s Yet there’s no one Who feels quite the way I do Loving is a hard game, But don’t we love to put ourselves through pain No one feels quite the way I do Loving is a hard game, But don’t we love to put ourselves through pain No one feels quite the way I do No one feels quite the way I do
5.	I Am the Prophet 03:34	lyrics	buy track
“Thanks for all your patience” You mean leaving me in the dark? You weren’t busy, you were sleeping on my heart What’s a month for trying? I’ve been there a million times What’s for baby crying? I’ve been her a million times I am the prophet turning water into wine And if all that came from my lips was spoken with contempt, How could we ever become such good friends? I could see you asking for help; I could see me saying that I haven’t got the time You’ll call me over when you want water turned to wine I’m just a woman - not your holy, heroin muse No fame, no money, no beauty could save you I don’t think there’s a savior in man; Not even in god People always will what they want to Don’t be fooled - it’s water; it’s not wine But if I could will what I wanted, I’d take back my time I am the prophet turning water into wine
6.	Intro To Loss 00:44	info	buy track
7.	No Home 03:39	lyrics	buy track
Who were you to leave me? Who were you to go? Who were you to tell me you loved me? How was I to know? In June, you’d see me And be amused In July, you’d leave me And I’d feel abused I was good to you, baby Oh, I was the best Four more years, or maybe- No, there’s nothing left Nothing to write home about There’s no home to write to, at all My kingdom fell apart, And you just watched it fall Wolves will never be My masters, again Men will never be My owners, again I’ve been reborn I’ve got a new skin I’m no longer a slave to all of your Patriarchal sins I’m so glad you left me Oh, I’m so relieved your gone Now that you detest me It’s more clear where I went wrong With you
8.	Misandrist to Most 02:55	lyrics	buy track
If I waited Hand and foot On any man, I’d never get anywhere So I guess it’s For the best that I do everything myself I’ll be my own best man I’ll be my own best man Often restless And feeling ignored Feigning directionless And existentially bored I’ll be my own savior I’ll be my own best man I’ll be my own savior I’ll be my own best man I’ll be my own savior I’ll be my own best man
9.	The Boys Who Can’t Sit Still 03:40	lyrics	buy track
Let’s go dine at Chez Nous I can meet your mom and dad I can go all night Pretending I’ve got a rich past We can laugh and drink And have us a good time And forget all about The other ninety-nine I’ll tell a tale about the boys who can’t sit still I’ll tell a tale about the boys who like drunk thrills The lifeless girls and all the things that daddy can buy But you couldn’t pay a good woman to stay by your side You’re just another song To drive through the desert to I’m talking Marfa, It’s high noon Or maybe Alpine, A quarter after three I’ll mean more to you Than you’ll ever mean to me I’ll tell a tale about the boys who can’t sit still I’ll tell a tale about the boys who like drunk thrills The lifeless girls and all the things that daddy can buy But you couldn’t pay a good woman to stay by your side I’ll tell a tale about the boys who can’t sit still I’ll tell a tale about the boys who like drunk thrills The lifeless girls and all the things that daddy can buy But you couldn’t pay a good woman to stay by your side
10.	Drink Your Sorrows 03:28	lyrics	buy track
Go on and drink your sorrows In the morning, I’ll be here Love like this is often ignored or sorely missed Love like this is often ignored or sorely missed And in the wake of morrow I’ll be at your bed side Every tear that you’ve cried in a bottle Every tear that you’ve cried in a bottle Don’t tell me you don’t feel the same way that I do Don’t tell me you don’t feel the same way that I do There’s no need to beg, steal, borrow I’ve got all you need right here Love like this is often ignored or sorely missed Love like this is often ignored or sorely missed Don’t tell me you don’t feel the same way that I do Don’t tell me you don’t feel the same way that I do Don’t tell me you don’t feel the same way that I do Don’t tell me you don’t feel the same way that I do So go on and drink your sorrows In the morning, I’ll be here Love like this is often ignored or sorely missed
11.	Left-Handed Lover 04:15	lyrics	buy track
The day is dead Push the sun off to the side I miss your hands Resting over mine Hold me while I cry Sing to me, “You Can Close Your Eyes” And time keeps on Slipping, slipping, slipping Into the future Heal my head Or give me some more time If love is dead I take back all my rights Hold me while I cry Sing to me, “You Can Close Your Eyes” There’s so many Different directions I could come from Hold me while I cry Sing to me, “You Can Close Your Eyes” Left-handed lover, I’m getting older.

about

There’s a paradoxically perfect union between a broken heart and cowboy twang. Tyler Dozier’s songs as Lady Dan tap even deeper into that sublime intersection where searing pain can reach sublime heights. Her own tale of hurt comes complete with multilayered existential quandaries, of empowerment and restriction, of life and death, of faith and its absence. On her debut album I Am the Prophet April 22nd 2021 via Earth Libraries, the Austin-based musician weaves intensely personal storytelling, poetic imagery, biblical allusion, immaculate arrangements, and crackling songwriting into an irresistible melancholic melange.

Growing up in Dothan, Alabama, Dozier was drawn to the wide spectrum of possibilities that music offered, even if she didn’t find a specific community she felt akin to. “I just didn’t find my people,” she says. “I was listening to country, psych rock, bluegrass, punk, and old socialist folk.” But as she moved to the big city of Birmingham with her then-boyfriend to attend Christian ministry school, she felt that world closing in rather than expanding. Between a controlling relationship, her father’s battle with cancer, and a wavering certainty in her faith, Dozier’s world was changing. She embraced the rebellion at her core, left school, returned home to care for her father as he passed, eventually moved to Texas for a new start, and began working her way toward I Am the Prophet.

“I learned how to show my strength, my truth, my self through music,” Dozier says. “This is my one place to be a bitch if I want to be a bitch. So many of these songs, at their core, are about me reclaiming ownership of myself.”

That new perspective feels wholly earned on her 2019 debut EP, Songs for the Soulless. The five-song set took equal inspiration from indie guitar hero Laura Marling as it did classic country. In early 2020, Dozier returned to her hometown and holed up in a one-room cabin for six weeks to find the next step of that journey. In addition to further baring her soul lyrically, she wanted to ensure that I Am the Prophet would expand sonically as well. Dozier convened a group of musicians including pedal steel guitarist Eddy Dunlap, Juniper Berries’ Josh Stirm, and drummer Aksel Coe at the home studio of Nashville musician Jeremy Clark to bring her cabin sketches to life.

“I took a step back, looked at my life, and detoxed it,” she says. “I started creating my own moral compass because I realized it had previously been made up by men in my life--pastors, boyfriends, people who didn’t care about my best interests. A lot of these songs are me processing and shedding all of that.”

Building up from a base of burnished acoustic guitar and twinkling keys, album highlight “No Home” tells that growth story in a stunning arc. Dozier’s lyrics somehow feel both intimate and epic, tracing from her lowest lows to a new height. “Nothing to write home about/ There’s no home to write to at all,” she sings, before insisting that she will never let wolves or men be her master again, as violin, cello, and pedal steel bolster her winged ascent.

Though full of lines that astonish in their simple power, Dozier’s lyrics reveal further layers of depth as the songs wear their way deeper into the listener’s heart. On the thumping, glistening “Dogs”, Dozier compares a former lover’s decision to leave her for his ex to a dog’s willingness to eat it’s own vomit. At first blush the image elicits a knowing sneer from those who’ve been jilted in a similar way, but those familiar with the Bible verse Dozier paraphrases will get an extra jolt. By tapping into her religious upbringing and twisting it back in unexpected ways, Dozier imbues her songs with a surreal familiarity. “I’m a big fan of Easter eggs like that, those little surprises that make things more magical and meaningful,” she explains. “Because it was so big in my life, my songs often have these Biblical reference points.”

Album closer “Left-Handed Lover” brings everything into focus over a shuffling rhythm and a hazy cloud of flute-like synths. The song is perhaps the most unabashed in its longing and loss, Dozier’s amber voice slipping softly through the sheets of saxophone and trumpet that wash over the mix. The dense and purring arrangement echoes the indie mythmaking of Weyes Blood or Julia Holter, technicolor and organic, though Dozier’s vocals bear down straight to the heart.

“There’s so many different directions I could come from,” Dozier sings, the album readying for another spin. I Am the Prophet proudly displays Lady Dan as a project of empowerment and depth, but leaves plenty of room for growth. Much like her own experience with religion, Dozier’s debut is not a statement of certainty or superiority, but rather a newfound welcoming and questing. “I’m still disconnected and working through bitterness, but this album feels like stepping closer to understanding what I would like to believe,” she says. “For now, I’m okay with not knowing, while making sure I stay true to myself.”

credits

released April 23, 2021

Written by Tyler Dozier
Vox + Guitar - Tyler Dozier
Drums - Aksel Coe
Bass - Matthew Chancey
Keys + Percussion - Jeremy Clark
Pedal Steel - Eddy Dunlap
Violin - Laura Epling
Cello - Ian Robinson
Electric Guitar - Josh Stirm
Trumpet - Andrew Golden
Saxophone - David Williford

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